Programming

INTERVENTIONS

20 October — 24 November 2001

BFO Projects

Mitch Robertson, Toby Heys and Women with Kitchen Appliances Room + Board

This project required the participation of Montreal artists who were asked to transform the DARE-DARE space into a "hostile environment for art".

Mitch Robertson (Toronto) and Tobey Heys (England) are the creators and curators of an extensive international touring exhibition project. This project required the participation of Montreal artists who were asked to transform the DARE-DARE space into a "hostile environment for art". DARE-DARE invited members of the group Women With Kitchen Appliances to intermingle in the exhibition space. The two artist-curators, accompanied by two other visiting artists, created an exhibition in this environment. They had only a few hours and the contents of their suitcases to complete this challenge. It was a project that challenged the codes of conduct of artists in residence and their hosts. The constraints of the journey (the weight and volume of the suitcases) and the participation of the artists determined the final work. The performative aspect and the integration of the host site in the process raised interest.

BFO Projects is an association of curators that organizes group exhibitions internationally. On the one hand, Wade Walker is a member of the KIT collective who prefers anonymity by using a pseudonym. Mitch Robertson, on the other hand, uses artistic ploys to bring more attention to himself. Their collaboration resembles a marriage based on irreconcilable differences. The Room + Board project attempts to create a situation where collaboration actually becomes an acknowledged rivalry. This method of working involves implied rules and boundaries, so the rivalry creates not only a context but also an outcome.

Women With Kitchen Appliances is a group of performers living and working in Montreal. They have performed in Rouyn-Noranda, Toronto and Ottawa. WWKA has performed on stage, under a big top, in a huge white cube, lofts, living rooms and on the lawn. They have performed at multidisciplinary, sound, music and performance events.