Recently Discovered Curnoe Article
An article written by Greg Curnoe in July 1992 about the history of art galleries in London Ontario was recently discovered.
The article was brought to our attention by curator Clayton Windatt, head of the Aboriginal Curatorial Collective. We have attached his thoughts, Greg’s history and a CBC documentary below.
Curator Clayton Windatt:
“As I continue my research into the structure, histories and communities behind the Artist-Run Centre and Alternative Gallery Culture, I find more and more things that have impacted on me personally and on the environments that I work within. A long time ago when I was Director of the Artist-Run Centre, White Water Gallery, I found a photocopy of this document in a pile of paperwork in their basement. The paper was extremely water damaged but after some scanning and cleaning up the text I was able to make it legible. It had a handwritten note scrolled across the top of the page which stated “Murray Favro gave this to me Nov 19, 1993 as he left a lecture concerning himself, Kerry Ferris, Dave Gordon, Bernice Vincent, Robert Fones, and Ron Martin on founding the FCG. (Forest City Gallery) Jamelie Hassan and Bob Bozak Abstained.”
I am not sure who wrote the note or the context in which this document has changed hands as it has obviously been circulated many times and photocopied repeatedly being given out to people as a way of disseminating data old-school style. I cannot find any publishings online of the following paper by Greg Curnoe London, Ontario, June/July 1992. I can see that copies exist in archives and that many people reference this paper in their own materials regarding Greg’s work specifically when it comes to the formation of Canadian Artist Representation CAR. I am sharing this paper with the permission of the Estate of Greg Curnoe.
The reason why I am promoting this paper on the formation of Artist-Run Centres is that many, if not all concerns expressed by Greg Curnoe in 1992 are even more relevant today. Institutionalization is the reality for all arts organizations and community-driven actions are becoming less and less common. Sharing this document anchors current arguments of rights, fair wages and equity into discussions that have been taking place for decades. My goal with sharing this is that people listen and try to understand the value in arts actions and community-driven arts movements. I am also believe strongly in the work that Greg Curnoe started in the formation of CAR and believe greatly that artist rights can increase today.”
Read Greg Curnoe’s paper on “Five Co-op Galleries in Toronto and London from 1957 – 1992” HERE