Gabby DaSilva
a body for my body
March 21 - March 25, 2022
Gordon Snelgrove Gallery
This interactive mixed-media exhibition combines memories of a playful childhood in the early 2000s, with my newfound sense of self and passion for the medium of video art. Being a woman in an (dis)abled body, I have discovered a playfulness grounded through lived experience. By uniting both analog and digital media I have transformed a traditional gallery space into a home that represents my truest self.
I believed I was raised through a feeling of timelessness, one that I hope to evoke in my installation of stacked television sets. In their glow is familiarity, comfort and warmth. Home. Shared memories and references. Inside jokes and exaggeration. The retelling of stories and how every time I see an old tube TV, I am transported back to my youth. I feel gratitude to this past generation of analog media, for it is a type of body that I have leaned on
throughout my life and continue to cherish, especially as we move further into the bodiless digital era.
I have learnt that privilege and struggle are two sides of the same coin. It has been almost four years since my body first began to ignore my thoughts and act without prompts, convincing me that I might shatter. These are the stories and fragments referenced in the flickering light.
I invite viewers to choose a DVD, pop it in the player, relax onto the couch and immerse themselves in the familiar warmth of television glow.
About the Artist
Gabby Da Silva is an emerging, artist fascinated with the collaboration between digital and physical mediums. Within a conceptual approach, she makes work that deals with the documentation of events and how they can be presented. Born and raised in Saskatoon SK, Gabby comes from a close family whom she credits for their strength, especially when she was diagnosed with a neurological disorder in 2019. Her work responds to both her surrounding environments and everyday experiences. After graduation, Gabby aims to continue practicing as an artist, forever discovering new ways to express herself and her communities through art.
Rowen Dinsmore
At First Sight
March 21 - March 25, 2022
Gordon Snelgrove Gallery
At First Sight is a visual display that embodies my experiences as a woman in the modern era. A normalized and routine part of our lives involves looking at each other and ourselves and is encouraged even more so today by online platforms like social media. In turn, the practice of watching others as well as being their spectacle has become normalized behavior. As a woman, I am constantly aware of this, and I have experienced it on many occasions. My work stems from my own fascination with social media’s impact on the gaze. With this in mind, I have developed a series of self-portraits that demonstrate various ways in which women may be looked at. These both embody and embrace the way in which women are perceived by men, in art, social media, advertising, or any passerby. The exhibition covers the experiences, frustrations, and acceptance of being a sight.
About the Artist
Rowen Dinsmore is a conceptual and portrait artist who works in painting, screen printing, clay, and media installations. Influenced by social media and art history, Rowen studies what it means to be a woman in the modern era through an artistic lens, often approaching topics of spectatorship and the female gaze in a post-internet world. Rowen will be graduating this Spring as a Studio Art major from the Bachelor of Fine Arts Honours program and was also recently selected to receive the Elizabeth Evelyn Schollie Scholarship for the 2021-2022 academic year from the University of Saskatchewan.
She works as a volunteer Studio Assistant for local artist Monique Martin, assisting with her preparations and installations for shows and festivals such as Nuit Blanche 2021. For the last three years she has also been involved with the University of Saskatchewan’s Visual Arts Students’ Union, holding the role of Vice President since 2018 and more recently as the Social Media and Graphics Coordinator since September 2021. Rowen is also the Creative Lead and Social Media Manager with the 525 Art Pop-Up here in Saskatoon.
Rowen Dinsmore, Objects of Vision, 2022, Oil on Canvas. Photo: Emma Victoria
Gabby DaSilva
a body for my body
Rowen Dinsmore
At First Sight
