“It’s an honour to host Mowry Baden at NIC,” said NIC Artist Talk coordinator and Fine Arts and Design department chair Sara Vipond. “He brings a wealth of experience as an educator and artist. It should prove to be a fascinating evening.”
Baden boasts an exhibition and teaching career that spans more than half a century.
His sculptures have been exhibited at Barbican Gallery, London; MOCA, Los Angeles; Hunter College, New York; National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa and the Getty Museum in California.
Baden’s accolades include a prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship in 2014 and a Governor General’s Award for Visual and Media Arts in 2006.
His work includes harnesses, furniture, rooms, pathways and catwalks, “all with the goal of impinging upon the viewer’s movements and awakening a physical self-awareness that was previously unconscious,” according to his official biography.
He taught at Raymond College, Pomona College, UBC and the University of Victoria, retiring in 1997.
The Victoria artist’s work is displayed prominently throughout the city, where he hosted a solo exhibition, ‘Toroidal Yodel,’ in 2016. In an interview about the exhibition with the Times Colonist, Baden said he seeks to avoid making art that is predictable or “predigested.”
“If somebody serves you an experience that’s immediate and abrupt and primitive, you’re grateful,” he told the newspaper.
Baden speaks from 6-7 pm at the Stan Hagen Theatre on the Comox Valley campus. Admission is free and everyone is invited.
The NIC Artist Talk series continues to offer an engaging line-up of speakers that fosters students and professional artists in the community.
Upcoming series artists include Scott Bertram (October 25), Skeena Reece (November 8) and Kelly Richardson (November 22). The series started September 27 with prominent Canadian painter Landon Mackenzie.
The 2018 Artist Talk Series is made possible thanks to community gifts and corporate sponsorship, including key support from lead sponsor RBC Dominion Securities. If you are interested in supporting future Artist Talk events, please call 250-334-5085 or visit foundation.nic.bc.ca/what-can-i-do/sponsorship.
For more information on NIC’s Artist Talk Series, visit www.nic.bc.ca/fine-art.
