The Gallery at Queen’s Park presents:
“ESSAYS IN INTERSTELLAR COMMUNICATION”
by Chris Dunnett
Exhibition Dates: September 8-26, 2021
Gallery Hours: Wed – Sun, 10 am – 2 pm
Free Admission
Exhibition Statement
Politics mired in the culture wars, social isolation brought about by the recent pandemic, and a changing media landscape have emerged alongside a polarization that threatens our collective ability for meaningful, productive dialogue. I wish to engage the public in considering how to move beyond our impasses by visually invoking the mystique of hope and progress that surrounded our first steps into space 50 years ago.
Taking interstellar distance as an analogy for ideological distance, I have created a series of fantastical designs for electro-mechanical communication devices. While they reference rational scientific elements, the visual execution is loose and betrays a sense of the irrational. Thus, our discussion of ideology is overtly contextualized by this push and pull of the rational and irrational and between medium and message.
Through these works, I ask the questions: how do we move forward in this media-rich age of division, isolationism, and fear? How can we construct dialogue that embraces hope, recognizes our common humanity, and brings us closer?
Artist Biography
Chris Dunnett is a multidisciplinary artist currently based in Port Moody, BC. He holds a BFA from NSCAD University, MSc from the University of Toronto, and a BSc from the University of New Brunswick. Chris has spent the past decade working in non-profit arts organizations, as a professional printmaker, and as an educator. He currently runs Tuckamore Press, a printmaking studio focusing on artist collaborations and classes.
