What is the ‘slipperiness’ of self-portraiture?
Precision and imprecision: "Self-portrait" by Corri Lynn (left); “Self-portrait” by Chantale Potié (right). | Courtesy of the artists
“There is something about self-portraiture — the slipperiness of self-portraiture — that speaks to me as a splash, in its elements of precision and imprecision,” writes Chantale Potié, a master’s candidate from Concordia’s Department of Art History.
Potié’s thoughts will be accompanying an illustration of herself in Self/Portrait/Text, a new exhibition that highlights the work of students from the Departments of Studio Arts and Art History.
On June 19, 40 self-portraits and 11 corresponding texts will be unveiled in a vernissage at Montreal’s Z Art Space gallery. The projects are also being showcased in a limited-edition, hand-bound, silkscreened book published by Mille Putois.
Spearheaded by Eric Simon, chair of Studio Arts, and Cynthia Hammond, chair of Art History, the Self/Portrait/Text initiative was conceived to bring the two departments closer together and lay the groundwork for future interdisciplinary learning activities.
“Few structures presently exist to encourage much-needed opportunities for Studio Arts and Art History to act on our mutual desire to have more projects, more dialogue and more time together,” Simon says. “Our project provides the sort of interdepartmental crossover that students need.”
In the 2013-14 academic year, Self/Portrait/Text was one of 22 projects to receive support from Concordia’s new Curriculum Innovation Fund. The university-wide initiative supports faculty in their explorations of course and program transformations that aim to provide students with dynamic, engaging learning experiences.
Simon came up with the idea for Self/Portrait/Text after contributing to Têtes de Mickey, a compilation by Mille Putois publisher Simon Bossé of 86 self-portraits from around the world.
“When I saw it, I thought it would be a really good project for my portrait class,” Simon says.
Participation in Self/Portrait/Text was voluntary; he found that his students and the Art History invitees were happy to sign on.
“It sounded really interesting,” Potié says. “It was a chance to get outside of what we normally do in the classroom setting and actually communicate and engage with other departments in the university.”
Potié was impressed by the range of approaches people took to their self-portraits. “They were all really different. Some of them didn't even have the subject in them, some of them were more simple, and some really did look like the person. It was interesting to see how everybody interprets themselves or how they choose to represent themselves.”
The Self/Portrait/Text vernissage and book launch takes place at Montreal’s Z Art Space gallery (819 Atwater Ave.) on June 19 from 5 to 7 p.m. The exhibition runs from June 20 to June 25. Opening hours are 12 to 5 p.m. every day.
Read about the 22 course and program transformations the Curriculum Innovation Fund supports so far.
Thumbnail vignette: "Self-portrait" by Christine LeBlanc.