the see

Jessica Maccormack

 

book launch

Wednesday March 13, 7pm

 

A long time ago in a place where all was not understood, not a thing made sense and I was very much smaller than everyone else.

 

Where landscapes disintegrate and bodies fragment, where the surface is shinier, a distressed narrator struggles to form a sense of self. If i were a dog... but i'm a fish. MacCormack's surreal, lush imagery and fragmented text reflect a harrowing account of trauma. He lives in the Dream of a Fantasy and breaks off pieces for us. As terror and alienation wash up on every shore, the child’s desire for belonging and human connection is undone by her critical eye, and an inability to accept that her perception of reality is unsound. All these awakenings are only small gasps of air sucked into the lungs. Then we go back under. Before the child drowns, the body transforms into creatures of the sea, while the Missing Ones still can’t be found anywhere. When we have long ago fallen off the places that might have made sense, where there are many fish, many directions, we are led to ask what it might have looked like if anyone was looking.

 

The author reveals a heart-wrenching portrayal of survival.

 

Jessica MacCormack's interdisciplinary practice engages with the intersection of institutional violence and the socio-political reality of personal trauma. Her recent works integrate animation, video, painting and collage in social interventions and community productions that explore issues of criminalization, HIV/AIDS, racism, transphobia, sexual assault and mental health. Working with communities and individuals affected by stigma and oppression, MacCormack uses cultural platforms and distribution networks to facilitate collaborations which position art as a tool to engender personal and political agency. She has an MFA in Public Art and New Artistic Strategies from the Bauhaus University (2008). Currently she is an Assistant Professor at Concordia University and lives in Montréal, Québec.