14 HOURS- A Photography Exchange Exhibition
Gordon Snelgrove Gallery • Saskatoon • April 2018
HIFA Design Department Gallery • Wuhan • May 2018
Statement
14 Hours Is a collaborative exchange exhibition between senior photography students from the University of Saskatchewan and Hubei Institute of Fine Arts. The exhibition divides into two parts, with the participants take turns shipping their artworks to designated galleries overseas. The first part of the exhibition installs in Gordon Snelgrove Gallery at the U of S on the 9th of April 2018, and the second half took place in HIFA Design Department Gallery on the 30th of May, 2018. This exhibition is the result and testimony of the students' creativity and diligent works from two art institutions. It transcends space and time. It's a prime example of an excellent international academic exchange. The staffs and students from both schools maintain close contact since the inception of this exhibition. The artworks showcased in this exhibition are rich in concepts, vary in styles. It will, no doubt, bring an exquisite and impactful visual feast to the viewers. This academic exchange's unforgettable event will strengthen the friendship between the U of S and HIFA and establish a global platform for future cultural dialogues among institutions.
Curatorial Concept
The University of Saskatchewan (U of S) is a Canadian public research university, founded on March 19, 1907. It is located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. The University of Saskatchewan is the largest education institution in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The University of Saskatchewan is one of Canada's top research universities (based on the number of Canada Research Chairs) and is a member of the U15 Group of Canadian Research Universities (the 15 most research-intensive universities in Canada). The U of S has engaged in multiple academic exchanges with the Hubei Institute of Fine Arts (HIFA) and showcased the first student exchange exhibition in May and October of 2017. The successful exchange exhibition between the U of S and the printmaking department of HIFA, in particular, had a profound impact on students and staff of both schools.
In early 2018, we would like to invite senior students from the photography department of HIFA to another exchange exhibition and select the exceptional works to showcase alongside the works from the U of S. The Students from both schools excel in Darkroom technique and inkjet printing. The artworks from this exhibition utilize the method of Medium format photography scanning and printing. As a relatively new artistic medium, photography holds great potential in the contemporary art world. It is in the very nature of every enthusiastic photographer to continuously express their creativity through their lenses.
This exhibition aspires to create a global dialogue between the artists from two continents, converse through photography's visual language, and further strengthen the bond between the two institutes.
Gallery Space
The Gordon Snelgrove Gallery is located in the Murray Building alongside the Department of Art and Art History, University of Saskatchewan. And is both a teaching facility and public gallery. It provides a venue for new work by artists and curators both within the department and operates as a site of direct exchange with the local arts ecology.
The gallery was named in honour of Gordon Snelgrove (1898–1966), a painter, faculty member and possibly the first art historian in Canada to receive a PhD in his discipline. The gallery also maintains and displays works by graduating students from the Department of Art and Art History Collection.
