Le retour

jenna d. maclellan (Montreal) and tagaza djibo (Niger)

Artist Talk: February 17th, 2010
Performance: March 11th at 6pm
At the Musée des maîtres et artisans du Québec (615 avenue Sainte-Croix, St. Laurent)
Presented as part of Rallye Expos of the Festival Vue d'Afrique

Running from February 17th until March 28th, Le Retour is a photo exhibition/installation that traces the development of a process-based series of public performances that took place in Montreal, Ghana and Niger. The photographs, taken by the two artists, follow jenna as she performs in a dress while encountering people across Montreal and West Africa in train yards, the countryside and village markets. Through this journey, the garment is transformed from a starch industrial aesthetic to a refined natural finish. Since 2008, the artists have collaborated to analyze issues of identity by questioning political ideas of beauty and mankind's connection to the earth. At the opening, jenna and tagaza will make their creation process public by means of an artist talk.

 

For the performance, presented during The Week of Action Against Racism, jenna will again perform in the dress, enacting a cycle of mark-making and erasure to reference the actions documented in the exhibition.

 

 

jenna dawn maclellan, an interdisciplinary artist, has led a nomadic lifestyle that has directed her artistic process and created a diverse sense of community. Her collaborative and politically engaged work has been described by as "social sculptures". jenna's work has been exhibited in galleries and public spaces in North America, France and West Africa.

 

tagaza djibo is a Nigerien photographer with close to 20 years of experience. He uses a thematic and public approach to photography, focusing on ethnic scarifications and recurring subjects such as street children, the Niger River and nomadic fishermen. His photographs have been exhibited in several parts of the world including Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, Ghana, France, Spain, and the United States.