. . . a story in the middle . . .

Catherine Blackburn, Lucien Durey, melannie monoceros, Audie Murray

Curated by Blair Fornwald

April 1 to May 14, 2021

Image of work by Audie Murray, entitled "chi fii embraces the old ones", Featuring a rock wrapped in a floral pattern beaded chain. Placed on a white fur throw.
Photo by Audie Murray, chi fii embraces the old ones (detail), 2021, digital print on vinyl.

About the exhibition

In medias res, Latin for “in the midst of things,” is a literary device wherein a story opens mid-plot. Dropped abruptly into a pivotal scene, the reader pieces together backstory and gets to know characters through flashbacks and dialogue. We live in medias res, learning how and why and who we are relationally – through the people, places, and things in our orbit, and through the stories contained within them.

By incorporating found and gifted materials, recreating and referencing significant spaces and objects, and utilizing techniques passed down through generations, the artists in a story in the middle explore how traditions, skills, values, sensibilities, and sensitivities are inherited and carried forward. The handmade object is a conduit for conversations between ancestors and descendants, loved ones and strangers. Here, Catherine Blackburn, Lucien Durey, melannie monoceros, and Audie Murray use handmade objects to articulate, with crystalline specificity, the nuanced complexities of their family relationships and histories.

 

Curatorial Essay: fragments from the lost home

Exhibition Tour: ...a story in the middle...

About the artists

Catherine Blackburn

Catherine Blackburn was born in Patuanak Saskatchewan, of Dene and European ancestry and is a member of the English River First Nation. She is a multidisciplinary artist and jeweller, whose common themes explore Indigenous sovereignty, decolonization and representation, often prompted by personal narratives. Her practice focuses primarily on the mediums of beadwork, sculpture and wearable work. Blackburn’s work has been presented in exhibitions and fashion runways both nationally and internationally. She is the recipient of the Melissa Levin Emerging Artist Award, a 2019 Sobey Art Award longlist nominee, and most recently, one of five artists selected for the prestigious Eitlejorg Contemporary Art Fellowship.

Lucien Durey

Lucien Durey is an artist, writer, and singer based in Vancouver, Canada. His performative works engage with collections, found objects and ephemera and he has exhibited and performed nationally. He holds a BFA from Emily Carr University of Art + Design and an MFA from Simon Fraser University’s School for the Contemporary Arts.

melannie monoceros

melannie monoceros is a poet and interdisciplinary artist exploring polysensory production and somatic grief through text/ile. Their work considers the collective qrip (queer+crip) consciousness by connecting to marvelous bodies living with complexity as sick or disabled. A Black, Taino, Arawak creator (Xamayca), they live in Treaty 1, Winnipeg, Manitoba. melannie is the recipient of a JRG Emerging Artist Award and they have performed, published and presented work nationally, recently at Plug In ICA, Gallery 1C03, the Window Gallery, and the Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba.

Audie Murray

Audie Murray is a multi-disciplinary Michif artist raised and working in Regina, Saskatchewan, Treaty 4 territory. Her practice explores themes of duality, connectivity, healing and growth. Working with specific materials, Murray reclaims and work through subjects related to the body, space, and relationships. She holds a visual arts diploma from Camosun College (2016) and a BFA from the University of Regina (2017) and is an MFA student at the University of Calgary. She has exhibited widely, including at the Alberta Art Gallery, The Vancouver Art Gallery, and the Anchorage Museum. Murray is represented by Fazakas Gallery, Vancouver.

…story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
…story in the middle…
Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
…story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
…story in the middle…
Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Catherine Blackburn, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
…story in the middle…
Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Catherine Blackburn, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Catherine Blackburn, th’i konarı̨̨́dı Ɂú (Can you say it again?), Headphones, beads, land, laminated light jet print mounted on dibond, 2021, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
Catherine Blackburn, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Catherine Blackburn, th’i konarı̨̨́dı Ɂú (Can you say it again?) (detail), Headphones, beads, land, laminated light jet print mounted on dibond, 2021, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
Audie Murray, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Audie Murray, for Catherine, Tattoo Gloves, worn work gloves, glass seed beads, moose hair dyed with saskatoon berries, chain, brain tanned hide, acrylic paint, 2021, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
Audie Murray, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Audie Murray, for Catherine (detail), Tattoo Gloves, worn work gloves, glass seed beads, moose hair dyed with saskatoon berries, chain, brain tanned hide, acrylic paint, 2021, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
…story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Catherine Blackburn, Trapline II (detail), Rabbit fur, glass beads, sinew, thread, painted metal traps, nails, wood beam, 2021, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
Catherine Blackburn, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Catherine Blackburn, Trapline II, Rabbit fur, glass beads, sinew, thread, painted metal traps, nails, wood beam, 2021, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
…story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
…story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
Audie Murray, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Audie Murray, chi fii embraces the old ones, Digital print on cloth vinyl, candle stick, candles, 2021, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
melannie monoceros, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Foreground: melannie monoceros, Down the House | Sit, No.1, Wool and acrylic yarn, cotton, cork backing
Background: melannie monoceros, Down the House | Sit, No.2, Cotton, poly textral, herritage lace, wood frame, cork backing
…story in the middle…, 2021. Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
melannie monoceros, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
melannie monoceros, Down the House | Sit, No.2, Cotton, poly textral, herritage lace, wood frame, cork backing, …story in the middle…, 2021. Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
Lucien Durey, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Foreground: Lucien Durey, Parlor door, glass, resin, steel, lamps, pillow, extension cord
Background: Lucien Durey, Bog, bathmat, safety eyes, found frame, spray paint, …story in the middle…, 2021. Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
Lucien Durey, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Lucien Durey, Parlor door (detail), glass, resin, steel, lamps, pillow, extension cord, …story in the middle…, 2021. Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
Lucien Durey, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Lucien Durey, Bog (detail), bathmat, safety eyes, found frame, spray paint, …story in the middle…, 2021. Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
Lucien Durey, …story in the middle…, Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba  
Lucien Durey, Stardust, dish rack, bumpits, jar lids, ping pong balls, flowers, beeswax, hammock yarn, …story in the middle…, 2021. Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
…story in the middle…, 2021. Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.
…story in the middle…, 2021. Photographer: Karen Asher. Courtesy of the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba.

Adjunct Programming

Lucien Durey and melannie monoceros: A screening, a reading, and a discussion

Thursday, April 22, 2021

Lucien Durey and melannie monoceros are interdisciplinary artists whose practices engage objects and language. Durey often composes songs for his sculptures and installations. These songs, sung by Durey (sometimes accompanied by friends or family members) amplify the affective potential of his found object assemblages, punctuating them with autobiographical and fictional details. They are often similarly comprised, incorporating found text fragments.

melannie monoceros’ text/iles articulate sensual and sensory connections between fabric and language. Poetry forms the basis of monoceros’, practice, which slips seamlessly between writing, textiles, and other modes of production. In their work, poems and stitches live side by side in the same series, finding affinities in the slow, quiet, and intimate nature of both.

Join us for a screening of Durey’s work and a reading by monoceros, followed by a conversation with both artists about the relationship between writing and visual art making in their respective practices. Moderated by a story in the middle curator Blair Fornwald.

Facilitated on Zoom and live-streamed on the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba YouTube channel

Visit the gallery

School of Art Gallery
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University of Manitoba (Fort Garry campus)
Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2

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