Anya M. Wassenberg's Blog: Art & Culture Maven, page 72

Boulders Beach, South Africa - One of The World's 50 Best Beaches©

From a media release:


Boulders Beach, South Africa
One of The World's 50 Best Beaches©
Plush white sands. Ancient granite boulders. Small penguins.

Venture to Boulders Beach in the Cape Peninsula of South Africa where a tropical day truly becomes a new adventure. The deepest blue waters stay protected and calm, hidden amongst the granite so that your swim is peaceful and serene.


As a national landmark, Boulders Beach and its penguin inhabitants remain clean and welcoming for their 60,000 annual visitors. Travelers will find themselves tanning in the average 22°C weather and 295 days of sun, splashing in the many rock pools or strolling along the beach’s boardwalk through nature’s beauty. Whatever you find yourself hoping for in a tropical vacation, Boulder Beach has it all.

Getting There
Though this tropical vacation may sound like a far-away dream land, Boulders Beach is easily accessible with a number of different travel options with top Airlines including Delta Airlines, United Airlines and South African Airways. Major airports in Europe, Asia and North America are offering direct flights to Cape Town International Airport in South Africa.

You can also directly fly from London, Miami, Las-Vegas, New York and Chicago. Once there, paradise is only an hour away. Get more flexibility in fares from popular cities including San Diego, Halifax, Calgary, Ottawa and Paris.

• Check out the deals at FlightNetwork

You can easily rent a car to get around. However, tourists recommend taking a more scenic train route to find yourself near Boulders. Hop on a train in Cape Town and venture to Simon’s Town with the beach a short walk from there. You truly can experience the beauty of South Africa and make traveling part an incredible part of the journey.

Boulder Beach is one of The World's Best Beaches©, a list that has been ranked by some of the world's top travel professionals. Just checking out the pictures, it's hard to disagree with any on the list, although the world is full of beautiful places.

• Check out the full list: The World's 50 Best Beaches©

Jazz Pianist/Composer Fred Hersch Nominated for Two 2018 Grammy Awards

From a media release:

Internationally Renowned Jazz Pianist/Composer Fred Hersch Nominated for Two 2018 Grammy Awards for Recent Palmetto CD 'Open Book'
“Best Jazz Instrumental Album” and “Best Improvised Jazz Solo”

• Buy it on iTunes

© Thomas J. KrebsInternationally acclaimed jazz pianist and composer Fred Hersch has received two 2018 Grammy nominations for his recent solo recording Open Book on Palmetto Records. Hersch has been nominated in the categories of Best Jazz Instrumental Album and Best Improvised Jazz Solo (Benny Golson’s “Whisper Not”). The Grammy Awards ceremony will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Sunday, January 28, 2018.

Hersch has earned a total of twelve Grammy nominations since 1993 in the categories of Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Best Instrumental Composition and Best Improvised Jazz Solo. Nine of his nominations have come since his recovery from a 2-month coma in 2008.

A select member of jazz’s piano pantheon, Fred Hersch is a pervasively influential creative force who has shaped the music’s course over more than three decades as an improviser, composer, educator, bandleader, collaborator and recording artist. A twelve-time Grammy Award nominee, he continues to earn jazz’s most prestigious awards, including recent distinctions as a 2016 Doris Duke Artist, 2016 Jazz Pianist of the Year from the Jazz Journalists Association and the 2017 Prix in Honorem Jazz for the entirety of his career from l'Académie Charles Cros in France.



Hersch has long defined jazz’s creative edge in a wide variety of settings, from his breathtaking solo recitals and exploratory duos to his extraordinary trios and innovative chamber settings. With some three dozen albums to his credit as a leader or co-leader, he consistently wins an international array of awards and lavish critical praise for his albums. The 2015 Palmetto album Fred Hersch SOLO , his tenth solo disc won the French Grand Prix de Disque de L’Académie de Jazz. His 2016 release, Sunday Night at the Vanguard (Palmetto), is a definitive statement by his long-running trio with bassist John Hébert and drummer Eric McPherson; it earned Hersch two Grammy nominations. His eleventh solo CD Open Book also earned two Grammy nominations as well as the 2017 Coup de cœur jazz from l'Académie Charles Cros.

Hersch has earned similar distinction with his writing, garnering a 2003 Guggenheim Fellowship in Composition. He’s collaborated with an astonishing range of artists throughout the worlds of jazz (Joe Henderson, Charlie Haden, Art Farmer, Stan Getz, Bill Frisell); classical (Renée Fleming, Dawn Upshaw, Christopher O'Riley); and Broadway (Audra McDonald). Long admired for his sympathetic work with singers, Hersch has joined with such notable jazz vocalists as Nancy King, Janis Siegel, Cecile McLorin Salvant, Norma Winstone and Kurt Elling.

The feature documentary The Ballad of Fred Hersch premiered at the prestigious Full Frame Film Festival in March 2016 to a sold-out house and rave reviews and is now streaming on Vimeo. His autobiography Good Things Happen Slowly (Crown Books/Random House), was named one of the Five Best Memoirs of 2017 by The Washington Post.http://fredhersch.com/books/good-thin... https://fredherschfilm.com/

Ticket Deal: School Girls - The African Mean Girls Play - Extended Thru Dec 31 2017 in New York City

From a media release:

School Girls
or, The African Mean Girls Play
by Jocelyn Bioh
directed by Rebecca Taichman
Use code MCCWTGP and save!
Tickets: $49 and $55 (Reg. $79-$99)

NOW EXTENDED THROUGH DECEMBER 31!
There are three easy ways to purchase tickets:
Online: Click here and enter MCCWTGP.
By Phone: Call 212.352.3101 and mention code MCCWTGP.
In Person: The Lucille Lortel Theatre Box Office, 121 Christopher Street, NYC.

NEW YORK CITY - Paulina, the reigning Queen Bee at Ghana's most exclusive boarding school, has her sights set on the Miss Universe pageant. But the mid-year arrival of Ericka, a new student with undeniable talent and beauty, captures the attention of the pageant recruiter--and Paulina’s hive-minded friends.

Directed by Tony Award® winner Rebecca Taichman, Jocelyn Bioh's buoyant and biting comedy explores the universal similarities (and glaring differences) facing teenage girls across the globe.

How far would you go to be queen bee?

Jocelyn Bioh (Playwright) is a Ghanaian-American writer/performer from New York City. NYC acting credits include: In the Blood, Everybody (Signature, Lortel Nomination), Men On Boats (Playwrights Horizons), An Octoroon (Soho Rep), Neighbors (The Public Theater), and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time which won the Tony® Award for Best Play in 2015.

Spirit of York™ heritage-inspired cocktails at the Toronto Christmas Market November 16 to December 23 2017

From a media release:

Cozy up with Spirit of York™ heritage-inspired cocktails at the Toronto Christmas Market
November 16 to December 23, 2017
TORONTO, ON - This year, the annual Toronto Christmas Market welcomes Spirit of York™ Distillery Co. to its world-class festival roster. For its first holiday season in production, Spirit of York is offering a selection of three custom-crafted cocktails, each inspired by a notable theme from Canada’s rich history. Ciders, syrups and teas have been thoughtfully paired with each of the premium Spirit of York liquors to create a warm blend of flavours with notes of nostalgia. Using only the finest locally-sourced ingredients and embodying all things Canadian, each heritage-inspired Christmas cocktail is sure to keep holiday spirits high and market-goers warm.

Spirit of York will also be selling their holiday gift sets during market hours including custom tasting boxes, cocktail kits and curated bitter sets.

Where: Spirit of York Distillery Co. (12 Trinity Street), located in The Distillery District

When: Thursday, November 16 - Saturday December 23, 2017
Tuesday – Thursday, 12 – 9 p.m.
Friday, 12 – 10 p.m.
Saturday, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Sunday, 10 a.m. – 9 p.m.

The Cocktails: 

The Queens Ranger
Named after The Queen's Rangers and conscripted German settlers who hacked out the wagon path of Yonge Street - includes earl grey tea, orange syrup and Spirit of York Gin

East of the Delta 
Named after a popular canoe route used by French settlers in the 1700s, now known as the Humber River - Includes cinnamon and clove apple cider and Spirit of York Whisky

Coureurs des bois 
Named after the itinerant, unlicensed fur traders of new France known as "wood runners" to the English on the Hudson Bay - Includes hot chocolate, lavender syrup and Spirit of York Vodka

Website: SpiritofYork.com
Instagram: @SpiritofYork
Twitter: @SpiritofYork
Hashtag: #SpiritofYork

About Spirit of York Co.
Located in Toronto’s historic Distillery District, Spirit of York Distillery Co. is committed to crafting Canada’s best tasting spirits. Using the finest locally-sourced rye and water from the Canadian Shield, the spirits are truly an authentic Ontarian product. Spirit of York fuses time-honoured distillation techniques with modern processes, to deliver a superior quality with a taste of the unexpected. The re-imagined heritage space offers a unique environment for mixology innovation and education through private tasting experiences, well-crafted mixology equipment and customized bitters. Spirit of York’s 750mL bottles of premium gin and vodka are available for purchase on-site and in select liquor retail locations across Ontario.

GastroFestival Madrid January 20 to February 4, 2018

From a release:

TravelSpain for the Eats:
GastroFestival Madrid
January 20 to February 4, 2018
• Find out more

Eat your way through Madrid as you enjoy the sights, sounds, culture, and fashion early next year for the GastroFestival Madrid. The city of Madrid invites everyone to enjoy first-rate cuisine during the Madrid Fusión International Gastronomy Summit. This is a world-class encounter between professional chefs, but its Gastrofestival also takes some of its creations out into the streets of Madrid.

This wide-ranging programme includes everything from delicious set menus in selected restaurants, culinary workshops, to gastronomy-themed exhibitions in major museums. The section entitled Gastroculture at the Gastrofestival features a number of museums and art galleries offering a "cultural menu" comprising itineraries, lectures, discussions and guided visits.

For fifteen days restaurants, shops, museums and cultural centres in Madrid will be taking part in this fantastic event in which art plays a leading role. A complete experience, this great festival for the senses features special menus, culinary routes and cookery courses, and invites everyone to enjoy all aspects of gastronomy.
Gran Via, MadridRestaurants and bars across the city will take part in some of the now favourite sections, including the Degustatapas tapas tastings and Rioja Wine in Our Favourite Bars. Last year gluten-free restaurants participated for the first time, offering special menus just like other eateries around the city. You can choose a themed culinary tour,
Spanish CuisineWorld And Fusion CuisineDegustatapasRioja wine in our favorite barsMadrid MarketsDining with the StarsRoute for the sweet-toothedColombian coffee routeCocktail barsCookery schoolsHomeware storesGourmet shopsGastrofestival has six main themes: Gastronomic Madrid, Gastroculture, Sensory Experiences, Gastrofashion, Wine Culture and Gastrohealth.

Various cultural venues across Madrid also take part in this culinary event with an array of offerings that seamlessly merge culture with gastronomy. The previous edition featured Conde Duque, the Madrid Municipal Newspaper Library, the Contemporary Art Museum and the Costume Museum.

From last year's Festival:

Recently Released: Paul Maged - Light Years Away (Independent - 10 October 2017)

Recently Released:
Paul Maged - Light Years Away
(Independent - 10 October 2017)
• Listen on Spotify

"Light Years Away" is the second release by New York City based singer-songwriter Paul Maged. It's a follow up to Diamonds & Demons, an indie release of a few years ago that turned quite a few heads critically. This release is the first in a planned trilogy of EPs.

Let's just get this out of the way from the beginning. I don't usually critique CD covers, but he really does need a better designer - ditto the promo shots. The visuals just don't go with the high bar set by the music. They deserve better.

Paul's got a high tenor that can be clear, sweet and high, or edgy, with an accomplished and nimble style. You could classify the release as a whole as power pop with a sense of urgency and drive. PC Police is a catchy punk-pop tune mocking PC culture, but with a very simplistic take on the issue.

The PC Police are coming after me,
They're coming after me...

The average person who reads their news on the web knows the issues are far more complicated than a blanket statement about liberty can cover. If you can't talk about the issue with the kind of relevance it deserves, it may be better to go on to something else.

Moment of Strength has an anthemic feel and a bridge that made me think of the days of disco. It's a strong track and blends musical influences.

Paul began his stage career as a stand up and sketch comedian, an art he pursued for more than a decade coming right out of high school. He's had background roles on SNL and acted in indie films. Paul channels his comedic experience in the video for the title track. Light Years Away features a nicely complicated sense of structure and composition in a song about life on a cosmic scale. There are definite prog rock influences at work here.

Sailing through infinite time
Our matter, our being, our minds



Ashley Jane turns softer and acoustic in a folk rock vein with some tasty chord changes to savour. Maged says he dreamed this song in full. It includes Cabbage Pomeranz on the harmonica. Half Moon continues the acoustic folk thread. Here his vocals are fluid and expressive.

He does a lovely acoustic piano version of Audioslave's Like a Stone, wringing the emotion out of the words and the music with an almost orchestral. It's a completely different vocal take than the Chris Cornell original.

The release has really nice production, the sounds clean and warm, courtesy of Multi-Platinum Producer Sean Gill of The Passengerz.

Track List:
1. PC Police
2. Moment of Strength
3. Light Years Away
4. Ashley Jane
5. Half Moon
6. Like a Stone
7. Moment of Strength reprise

Music & Lyrics by: Paul Maged; Keyboard, Piano, All Vocals: Paul Maged; Lead Guitar & Bass: Ari Friedman (except Like a Stone); Drums: Marc Hoffman (except Like a Stone); Harmonica: Cabbage Pomeranz (Ashley Jane); Piano, Keyboard, Bass, Acoustic: Paul Maged (Like a Stone)

Stay in touch:
https://www.facebook.com/PaulMagedMusic/
https://www.instagram.com/paulmagedmusic/
https://twitter.com/TheMagedMan

Pop Single: Saycille 'Wish' (Independent: Aug 15, 2017)

Saycille 'Wish'
(Independent: Aug 15, 2017)
You could say that Saycille is a latecomer to the musical party - but she's making up for that now. Born near Amsterdam, Saycille worked at a variety of jobs until the age of 52, when she lost her job. She decided to volunteer at at Tijd voor Meedoen (TvM), a local community centre, where she started a weekly group for people to get together and make new friends.

At TvM, she also joined the amateur TvM-band as a singer, and quickly discovered a desire and talent for songwriting. The only problem was, she didn't play any instruments to be able to add the chords to her words and melody. No problem! After a 15-minute Youtube video called "instant piano genius" she figured out enough to create her first compositions.

Wish is her first single, a buoyant pop song with a sense of momentum. Her vocals sweet and sincere, with a surprising depth for someone who started the way she did. The track is catchy and hummable, with an upbeat swing and message.

"I want to express whats in my heart, to make way for what's in other peoples hearts, where I believe we all share the same love for life itself and our beautiful planet."

Look out for her CD Hearbeat, set for release in February 2018.

Musicians:
Saycille (vocals/writer); Petra Lugtenburg: Grand piano; Dave van Beek: Drums; Xander Buvelot: Bass; Frank Stukker: Gitar

Stay in touch:
https://www.facebook.com/saycille/

Review Steven Allen Gordon: All Over the Map - Music for Solo Guitar and Solo Viola

Review
Steven Allen Gordon: All Over the Map - Music for Solo Guitar and Solo Viola
(Independent, June 03, 2016)
• Listen on Spotify
• Buy the CD

This release by Bellingham, WA based Steven Allen Gordon is a collection of pieces from various eras and genres of music, played largely solo by the long time musician. He plays viola (Bach, Ralph Vaughn Williams and William Walton) as well as music for classical guitar (Bach, Villa-Lobos and Tárrega), steel-string acoustic guitar (Laurence Juber), and electric guitar (Bach and Joe Pass). It's an interesting collection of pieces from an accomplished musician.

Electric Bach: Prelude in D Major is the least successful. While technically proficient, Bach loses some of its resonance in such a clean electric guitar version. The intricacy is there, but not the depth. But, that's the only quibble among the tracks.

The Prelude No.1 in E Minor by Heitor Villa-Lobos on classical guitar is engaging. It's virtuosic playing with sensitivity, and an impressive range of tone and volume.

The viola pieces are really nicely handled. It's Gordon's main instrument, and the sound is rich and resonant on repertoire by J.S. Bach repertoire originally written for cello. With its lower tone, the viola doesn't have that sweet, high upper edge of the violin. The tone has a slightly mournful cast to it.

Breaking Point by Laurence Juber is one of the highlights of the release, a bluesy tune on steel string acoustic guitar with a strong rhythmic pulse. The Ralph Vaughn Williams piece, accompanied by piano is another high point. It's beautifully fluid and expressive.

Gordon is an accomplished musician and displays a nice range of styles through the release. In 1998, Steven completed a Ph.D. in Historical Musicology from UCLA. He's played viola professionally for over three decades, and his experience includes many concerts with a variety of orchestras, chamber ensembles and music festivals.

During the same time period, he's also worked in the recording industry, and has played on hundreds of film scores, numerous TV shows and a variety of pop, rock and several jazz albums.

Musicians: Steven Allen Gordon, Viola, Guitar & Jeremy Borum, Piano (tracks 11 and 14)

Track List:
1. Electric Bach: Prelude in D Major (electric guitar) - J. S. Bach
2. Prelude No.1 in E Minor (classical guitar) - Heitor Villa-Lobos
3. Suite in D Minor for Solo Viola (Originally for Cello) J. S. Bach - Prelude
4. Suite in D Minor for Solo Viola (Originally for Cello) J. S. Bach - Allemande?
5. Suite in D Minor for Solo Viola (Originally for Cello) J. S. Bach - Courante
6. Suite in D Minor for Solo Viola (Originally for Cello) J. S. Bach - Sarabande
7. Suite in D Minor for Solo Viola (Originally for Cello) J. S. Bach - Menuete 1 and 2?
8. Suite in D Minor for Solo Viola (Originally for Cello) J. S. Bach - Gigue
9. Breaking Point (steel-string acoustic guitar) - Laurence Juber
10. Prelude in E Minor (classical guitar) - Heitor Villa-Lobos
11. Ballad for Viola and Piano - Ralph Vaughn Williams (Jeremy Borum, piano)
12. Capricho Árabe (classical guitar) - Francisco Tárrega
13. Prelude in D Major (classical guitar) - J. S. Bach
14. Vivo, con molto preciso for Viola and Piano (Movement Two, Concerto for Viola and Orchestra) - William Walton (Jeremy Borum, piano)
15. Blues Intro (electric guitar) - Joe Pass

Stay in touch:
https://www.facebook.com/stevenallengordon

Alt Rock - Night Herons: Relevant Noise (Independent, June 27, 2017)

Recently released
Night Herons: Relevant Noise
(Independent, June 27, 2017)
• Buy the release
• Listen on Spotify

Relevant Noise is the second release from Oakland, CA based Night Herons. The core group consists of Dana Berry on vocals, drums and guitar, Mike Assenzio on guitar and Larry Huene on guitar and drums. The group has been together since 2013 and they are easing into a fully developed sound.

It's straight ahead alt rock with a nice ear for hooks and riffs that stick in your head and keep it from getting boring. The first track, Compromise, exemplifies the combination of driving rock and observant lyrics.

I compromise my life 
Doing what I like
Is getting me nowhere

While you could certainly file the release under radio-friendly alt-rock, there are a number of influences throughout the album. Tracks like Fighters & Lovers or Glaciers seem to take their inspiration from heavy metal, but with a more inventive and hook laden treatment.

Dana Barry's vocals are perfect for the genre, at turns full of yearning and emotion, and then harder edged for the rock out lines. In some tracks, like Wildfire or Sunflowers, there are shades of not outright progressive rock, but certainly some nice licks and rhythmic complexities.

Let Me In is a stand out track - all atmosphere, beginning with a minimalist arrangement over his voice, then adding the full force of guitar and percussion. 2x2 goes into a blues rock vein, and the energy works along with jangly guitar lines.

Overload is another highlight. When the band plays not just with the conventions of straight ahead rock, but atmospheric effects, it works perfectly with Dana's vocals.

Dana Barry has been a drummer since forever, gigging in a string of bands that include LA's Forrest Lawn and San Francisco's Pancho-San. He was looking to put together a band to perform his original compositions in 2013. He recruited Assenzio (formerly of East Bay outfit The Wounded Men), who in turn recruited friend and old bandmate Huene. The chemistry worked so well they decided to form a brand new band, and so the Night Herons were born. Their first release, Shipyard Riots, followed in 2014.

Along with the original trio, the new recording includes bassists Mason Holding, Dave Leonard (Titan-Ups, Dartajax) and Assenzio’s brother Brad, with Shea Breaux Wells adding vocals to the song, “Let Me In.”

Track List:
1. Compromise
2. Fighters & Lovers
3. Blurred
4. Wildfires
5. Sunflowers
6. Glaciers
7. Let Me In
8. Feels Like a Breakdown
9. 2x2
10. Blue River
11. Bad idea
12. Stay Awake
13. Razorblade
14. 10.000 Women
15. Overload

Stay in touch:
https://www.instagram.com/nightheronsca/
https://www.facebook.com/nightherons
https://twitter.com/nightheronsca

Latin American Arts in Toronto; Sur Gallery presents Vehemence - Exhibition till December 2 2017

From a media release:
Latin American-Canadian Art Projects
Sur Gallery presents Vehemence
Exhibition continues till December 2, 2017
Vehemence Additional Programming
Performance by Regina José Galindo: Movilización (carguen con sus muertos)/ Mobilization (carry your own dead) Thursday, November 16, 7:30-8:30PM
A Conversation on Canadian Mining Companies’ Impact Friday, November 17, 7-9PM

About the Exhibition:
The exhibition explores the human body as a site of trauma and memory. Artists and designers in Vehemence create an intense vernacular informed by personal and collective narratives that transpire in Central America having a cause and effect in our lives in Canada.

For decades, Central America has been subject to abominable human right violations. Violence pervades social and cultural life with abductions, torture, death squads, and massacres of women, children and the elderly. Indigenous people are subject to the most disruptive forms of repression and fight a long battle against large corporations that are killing the land and people in the name of profit. Drug trafficking across the borders increase the violence and social instability of many, while governments do little to improve the livelihood of its population. Artists in Vehemence having come from Central America bring a particularly compelling voice as they offer testaments, political outcries, and denunciations through the genre of drawing, performance and design. Artists Regina José Galindo (Guatemala), Osvaldo Ramírez Castillo (El Salvador/Canada), and Underline (El Salvador/Canada) attest to these realities not as abstract notions of the disruptive, but as visceral testaments. Images that will either upset the sheltered or remind us of a past of trauma, we all are subject to questioning our own accountability as privileged spectators.

This exhibition and educational programming is curated by Tamara Toledo

About the Artists
REGINA JOSÉ GALINDO is a performance artist and writer. Galindo has had solo exhibitions at Modern Art Oxford (2009); Fundación Joaquim Nabuco, Recife (2011); Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach, California (2012); and Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain (2013); among many others. Her work has been featured in group exhibitions such as: Arte ? Vida: Actions by Artists of the Americas 1960–2000, El Museo del Barrio, New York (2008); Under the Same Sun, Guggenheim Museum, New York (2015); and I Have a Dream, Thessaloniki Centre of Contemporary Art, Salonika (2013). She has participated in various biennials and has received prominent awards for her work. Regina José Galindo lives and works in Guatemala City and is considered to be one of the most subversive voices in contemporary art today.

OSVALDO RAMIREZ CASTILLO is a Vancouver-based artist graduate of OCAD University with an MFA from Concordia University. Ramírez Castillo has exhibited extensively in Canada and The United States in solo and group exhibitions; he has participated in group exhibitions in Cuba, El Salvador, France, Egypt, Taiwan, Macedonia, and Spain; and has received various grants, awards and scholarships for his work. His work is in private and public art collections in Canada and abroad.
Osvaldo Ramírez Castillo, Weight, mixed media, 2015FIDEL PEÑA, born in El Salvador, is a graphic designer and co-founder of the Toronto-based graphic design studio, UNDERLINE. Underline develops branding, print and digital projects for commercial clients, as well as self-initiated projects that deal with humanitarian and political issues. Fidel has lectured on design topics in Europe, North America and Latin America.

Performance by Regina José Galindo: Movilización (carguen con sus muertos)/ Mobilization (carry your own dead) 
Thursday, November 16, 7:30-8:30PM
Canadian mining companies extract over seventy percent of the planet’s minerals, causing a devastating impact on Latin America and other continents. Canadian companies are responsible for human rights violations and environmental disasters all over the planet. Regina José Galindo's performance entitled Mobilization (carry your dead) is an invitation to all Canadians to take responsibility for the damage caused by their government. Limited capacity, please arrive early. Doors open at 7pm.

A Conversation on Canadian Mining Companies’ Impact
Friday, November 17, 7-9PM
Academics and Professors Steven Schnoor (Concordia University), Carlotta McAllister (York University), and Dot Tuer (OCAD University) as well as Canadian performance artist and writer Irene Loughlin will share their expertise and discuss Regina José Galindo’s practice and performance at Sur Gallery. The artist will be present and will answer questions following the discussion. Moderated by Tamara Toledo. Seating capacity of 25 with some standing room.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Communications Professor at Concordia University Steven Schnoor is a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Indigenous Stewardship of Environment and Alternative Development and Centre for Indigenous Conservation and Development Alternatives research programs at the Department of Anthropology at McGill University. Schnoor is the filmmaker of a documentary depicting the violent eviction of Mayan subsistence farmers from their homes in rural Guatemala at the behest of a Canadian mining company.

Curator Tamara ToledoAssistant Professor at York University and Deputy of CERLAC-Centre for Research on Latin America and the Caribbean, Carlotta McAllister’s research is on the formation of political and moral agency in situations of violent conflict and her primary conducted fieldwork is in Guatemala.

Writer and cultural historian Dot Tuer’s research focuses on Canadian and Latin American art of the contemporary and modern periods with a speciality in new media, photography, and performance and has a scholarly interest in colonial Latin America and transcultural exchange. Tuer’s current writing and collaborative projects address the relationship of social memory and witnessing to political agency in the Americas.

Performance artist and writer Irene Loughlin has worked with images challenging the social constructs surrounding mental illness, drawing visual metaphors from medical, ecological and diasporic landscapes. Loughlin has exhibited extensively both nationally and internationally, with particularly close connections to South and Central American art communities.

• Please RSVP to alexia(at)surgallery.ca with your full name under the subject line "RSVP Vehemence Performance” or “RSVP Vehemence Panel” depending on which event you wish to attend.

About the Curator
TAMARA TOLEDO is a Toronto-based curator, artist and educator, graduate of OCAD University and holds an MFA from York University. Toledo is co-founder of the Allende Arts Festival and of LACAP. Toledo has curated numerous exhibitions as well as the Latin American Speakers Series, bringing internationally renowned contemporary artists and curators to Toronto to articulate and discuss issues of identity and intercultural dynamics in contemporary art. Toledo has presented her curatorial work at various conferences in Montreal, New York, Vancouver and Toronto, as well as written articles (delete 'on') for ARM Journal, C Magazine and Fuse.

About Sur Gallery:
Sur Gallery is Toronto's first gallery space dedicated to the exhibition and critical engagement of contemporary Latin American art. Sur Gallery is a project of LACAP-Latin American Canadian Art Projects.
100-39 Queens Quay East, Toronto ON M5E 0A5
(Located on the first floor on the east wing of Pier 27, East of Yonge Street)
Gallery Hours: Tues & Wed 10am-2:30pm/Thurs & Fri noon-6pm/Sat 11am-5pm

About Regina José Galindo and her performance pieces: