Private Investigators: Masquerade in Public Space
Curated by Kathryn Walter
Walter Phillips Gallery, Banff Centre for the Arts, 1997
Walter invited seven artists to create and inhabit characters to infiltrate the public spaces of one of Canada’s most famous tourist destinations—Banff, Alberta. Each performer came with a disguise and a goal to address the contradictions at work in the National Park’s townsite—wilderness versus tourist mecca, and examine the roles people play in conforming to society’s expectations.
LEFT: Shauna Dempsey and Lorri Millan: The Lesbian National Parks and Service
RIGHT: Millie Chen and Eveyln Von Michalofski: Oracle Brand
RIGHT: Millie Chen and Eveyln Von Michalofski: Oracle Brand
LEFT: Faye Heavyshield and Shelley Niro: Old Sister/New Sister
RIGHT: Judy Radul: The Specialists: Performing the Heterosexual Couple
(all portraits by Don Lee)
The performances took place in and around town, and the gallery was used as a project room/documentation centre where workstations were installed for each project, complete with props and costumes when not in use. A large mirror hung on the end wall creating the semblance of a theatre dressing room. Here, viewers could not avoid reflections of themselves and one another. They too became performers caught in the act of seeing and being seen.
Catalogue/Book published by Banff Centre Press, 1999
RIGHT: Judy Radul: The Specialists: Performing the Heterosexual Couple
(all portraits by Don Lee)
The performances took place in and around town, and the gallery was used as a project room/documentation centre where workstations were installed for each project, complete with props and costumes when not in use. A large mirror hung on the end wall creating the semblance of a theatre dressing room. Here, viewers could not avoid reflections of themselves and one another. They too became performers caught in the act of seeing and being seen.
Catalogue/Book published by Banff Centre Press, 1999
This project was funded in part by The Canada Council for the Arts