PhD Oral Exam - Jasmine Sihra, Art History

When studying for a doctoral degree (PhD), candidates submit a thesis that provides a critical review of the current state of knowledge of the thesis subject as well as the student’s own contributions to the subject. The distinguishing criterion of doctoral graduate research is a significant and original contribution to knowledge.

Once accepted, the candidate presents the thesis orally. This oral exam is open to the public.

Abstract

This dissertation explores the possibility of bringing together disciplines as a confluence, or junction, analysing the site where disciplines meet in artistic and curatorial practices case studies the Canadian arts milieux. This text draws on Indigenous feminist ontologies of waterways to point to how artists and curators expose the relationship between various dimensions of pollution and colonialism. Using artistic and curatorial case studies, this dissertation speaks to two emerging trends in the scientific data collection, knowledge creation and transmission that inform high-level environmental and pollution policies, assessments and regulations. First, Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour’s (BIPOC) experiences with pollution and climate change are often excluded in research or policies. Second, when BIPOC are considered, community knowledge, wisdom, and experiences have been subject to extraction, and decontextualized from their places of origin in journals, news articles or other forms of reporting. This dissertation argues that artistic and cultural practices are increasingly important within pollution research, precisely because artists and arts professionals are able to honour community experiences and foreground the intricate relationships and connections that create knowledge, instead of viewing it as isolated sets of data. The case studies focus on artworks and exhibitions curated after 2012, including: a comparative analysis of the works by Métis artist Zoe Todd and Tāłtān artist Tsēmā Igharas, a chapter dedicated to the work of Black multimedia artist Christina Battle, and an analysis of the interdisciplinary group the Synthetic Collective’s exhibition Plastic Heart: Surface all the way through (2021; 2023).