Adapting to new realities
Mounting a live, in-person exhibition during the age of COVID-19 also presented some logistical challenges.
“We reopened to the public last February along with museums in Montreal, so we are very well adapted to the situation,” Thériault says. “The challenge is with exhibitions such as this one, with a non-Canadian artist and curator who were unable to be here for the installation. Many decisions are taken in a back-and-forth via Zoom or WhatsApp.”
Thériault adds that it is nice to be part of a large artistic event such as MOMENTA, and she is excited about the gallery’s new season in general.
Poetic Disorder runs until October 16, followed by the group exhibition Constitutions (November 3 to January 22, 2022), in which five artists from India critique oppression created by caste discrimination and labour as India celebrates 75 years of decolonization next year.
The gallery will also resume on-site programming for its SIGHTINGS project in mid-September, and the second edition of its Terms online artistic program will focus on the notion of service. Also, launching this autumn, the web-based Rules of Extraction project expands on the past exhibition World of Matter: Exposing Resource Ecologies, presented at the Ellen Gallery in 2015. World of Matter investigated the complex ecologies of primary materials through a series of exhibitions, events, publications and a multimedia platform.
“Our new season is an exciting one as there are fewer restrictions to enter the building and we are able to use our atrium entrance again,” Thériault says. “Some students and faculty will be on campus and will be able to visit us more easily.”
The Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery is located on the ground floor of the J.W. McConnell (LB) Building (1400 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W.) on Concordia’s Sir George Williams Campus. Visit ellengallery.concordia.ca for more information about the Poetic Disorder exhibition and other programming.