On June 11, at 9 p.m., Winter in Summer was projected onto a wall of the Gamman House, located at 306 Cyr Avenue, in Vanier. The projection consisted of a collection of videos curated by Izabel Barsive. The artists Raymond Aubin, Nadine Bariteau, Paula Franzini, Charlotte L’Orage, Doris Lamontagne, Komi Seshie and Laurent Vaillancourt participated in the creation of the videos.
The viewer saw the reflections, sometimes spiritual or philosophical, each artist had on the effect of winter in their everyday lives, as well as their emotions: discomfort facing another season, time of reflection, love becoming hate… The theme forced them to curl up and to, inevitably, immerse themselves the way the cold season does.
The work:
“In the depths of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.”
— Albert Camus
Digital video is becoming more and more accessible through the use of inexpensive tools like smartphones or cameras meant for amateurs that professional artists have adopted in recent years. Editing these videos is also easier thanks to software that is increasingly intuitive. This opens up a limitless field of exploration for artists who create video art pieces. The Winter in Summer project, opened to both experienced and novice artists, obliges them to contemplate winter’s effect on their daily lives, but also on their emotions. For some, this is a spiritual or philosophical reflection. The artists see and hear winter, which they capture despite their preconceived notions and physical constraints. Winter pushes us to curl up if it is experienced here in Canada. Our relationship with the environment requires daily adaptation and challenges us physically and mentally, just like producing the videograms that also alienate us does by compelling artists to master tools that may intimidate them. Winter also forces us to remain humble before nature. Whether you are used to the season or not, immersion is inevitable. And while it was possible to understand winter in regions without snow or ice, for artists from the north, the season still remains etched in the mind’s and body’s memories.
In the summer these audio-visual projects will be projected on a wall of the Gamman House in Ottawa’s Vanier neighbourhood. The public must face a season they often wish to forget, obliging them to rethink the present and relive moments from the past.
These non-narrative art video pieces are evocative. They offer the artist the option of exploring tools without having to strive for perfection, which obsesses creators of commercial projects.
The hours spent on their projects enabled artists to genuinely experience winter, a season many deem to be monochrome. These video art pieces convey the artist and audience’s obligation to commune with winter in a shifted space-time. — Izabel Barsive, curator
The Centre d’artistes Voix Visuelle would like to thank the Ontario Arts Council, Canadian Heritage, and the City of Ottawa for their support.