The Tallest Poppy Artist Residency has closed.

Thank you so much Talia and all the staff at the Poppy. The food was (and still is) always delicious and the service uniquely ace.

And thank you to all the artists for participating in this small but scrumptious art project.

the outskirts are interested in creating public art to alter the urban landscape by challenging the binary conceptions of public vs. private. We aim to re-insert the voice of the artist and of the community within public space. While always keeping an eye on aesthetics we aim to incite a dialogue that encourages reflection on contemporary social and political issues.

The Tea Party is a collaborative performance that seeks to open a space for dialogue between the public and the private sphere by aesthetically positioning the private within the public. This staged juxtaposition, in the form of a high tea party held in public space, ruptures the viewer’s notions of the public and the private, creating an interstice in which ideas of race, class and gender are redefined. The use of the colonial tradition of high tea as a marker of class privilege and excess in the context of a deeply stratified social hierarchy seeks to generate a parodic and unsettling commentary on contemporary social issues.

Kegan is compiling an anthology of the residency’s first year. Watch this space….

Co-founders Jaimie Isaac & Niki Little undertook the project  “quilt our collective.” Both feel that Winnipeg is a hot bed for emerging artists, curators, and cultural interpreters and breaking onto this scene comes with its own set of challenges. Some obstacles that they have identified include gaining professional experience that contributes to developing a personal voice, acquiring financial and logistical backing for projects, as well as engaging in critique with peers in a mindful environment. Although the collective will not eradicate all these issues, they believe strength in numbers will happily cultivate motivation, encouragement and add a dynamic flavour to their work.

The residency gave them time and space to research and creatively brainstorm. Within two days they plan to compose their mandate, discuss prospective projects and suss out a plan of action. Identity in relation to the theme of community is not only found within their practices but it also embedded in the cultural fabric that is quintessentially Winnipeg. So they feel that it is fitting we begin this journey in a space that is locally owned and who supports the notion of presenting art and critical dialogue in innovative and dynamic ways.

Their findings will be stitched together create a paper quilt that will represent our collective. This counterpane will be their introduction to the community through its exhibition in the Tallest Poppy window following our residency.

http://zorra-productions.blogspot.com/

Andrew worked at the circulation desk of the NSCAD library during the summer of 1999. Today he’s Associate Curator of Historical Canadian Art at the WAG.