Pierre Lassonde School of Fine Arts Graduate Exhibition 2023 | No Ducks

Photo: Owens Art Gallery, 2023

Despite it All: Pierre Lassonde School of Fine Arts Graduate Exhibition 2023

Isra Amsdr, Caroline Bulgarelli, Ella Christison, Laika Dadoun, Libbie Farrell, Emma Fung, Alexandria Gilliss, Daisy Graham, Thu Ho, Jessica Angela Landry, Sophia Lawrence, Isabel Ardito Lebo, Chloe Lundrigan, Maria Lutz, Lili Magdalene, Nathalie Martin, Chloe McCollum, Meagan Philbrick, Jade Pinder

21 April to 4 June 2023
Official Opening: 13 May @ 2:00 pm
Owens Art Gallery, Mount Allison University

Every year, the Owens Art Gallery presents the work of students graduating from the Pierre Lassonde School of Fine Arts at Mount Allison University. Featuring a wide range of work in a variety of media, this exhibition celebrates the artistic development of each student and considers it in relation to the collective journey of the whole class.

The Pierre Lassonde School of Fine Arts is focused on the research, creation, histories, and practices of the visual arts. Study in the School is led by practicing artists and art historians in courses designed and coordinated to establish a strong foundation in all facets of the visual arts. The School’s curriculum provides a rigorous, student-centred learning environment that balances intellectual with applied approaches, engaging students in the critical and reflective exploration of contemporary society, communities, and cultures. Research and creation in the visual arts is integral to the development and expression of cultural identities that can both reflect and challenge the values and norms of our pluralistic society. In a rapidly changing environment, the Pierre Lassonde School of Fine Arts prepares students for these challenges with the skills and abilities that will enable them to find a place in the diverse cultures and values of Canada and the world.

No Ducks logo designed by Chloe Lundrigan

No Ducks: Emerging Art Critics at the Owens Art Gallery

Reintroduction

In a culture riddled with fast-paced, doomsday messaging, how can the process of building one’s identity with others be an act of resistance? How can embodied care become a refusal of the apocalypse and an affirmation of queer futures? For those who often feel out of place, how can we redefine belonging? This year’s issue of No Ducks explores these questions and more as five emerging art critics and writers engage with definitions of queer space in nature through the theme of reintroduction. Edited by Chloe Lundrigan, this year’s issue features the writing of Isra Amsdr, Flora Chubbs, Lexi Delong, and Riley Small, and covers a wide range of topics, including rubble species, Third Spaces in nature, and dismantling colonial capitalism.

Created during the COVID-19 pandemic, No Ducks’ mission is to publish and promote diverse student and emerging art writers and critics with ties to Mount Allison University and the Atlantic Region and Wabanaki Territories. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Marjorie Young Bell Fine Arts and Music Award, Mount Allison University, for its generous support of this program.

We would like to acknowledge that the Owens Art Gallery, Mount Allison University, is located within the traditional territory of Mi’kma’ki, the unceded ancestral homelands of the Mi’kmaq. Our relationship and our privilege to live on this territory was agreed upon in the Peace and Friendship Treaties of 1725 to 1752. Because of this treaty relationship, it is to be acknowledged that we are all Treaty People and have a responsibility to respect this territory.

Pierre Lassonde School of Fine Arts
Purdy Crawford Centre for the Arts
Mount Allison University
152 Main Street, Sackville, NB • 506-364-2490
finearts@mta.ca

Owens Art Gallery
Mount Allison University
61 York Street Sackville, NB, E4L 1E1 • 506-364-2574
owens@mta.ca
www.owensartgallery.com
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Monday to Friday, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Saturday and Sunday, 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Admission is Free

The Owens is partially accessible. The stairs from the entrance nearest the University Chapel have a handrail. There is also ramp access at this entrance, however, the ramp is steep. The stairs to the entrance off York Street have a handrail, but no ramp, and are covered with temporary wood treads. The main floor of the Owens is wheelchair accessible. Our second-floor gallery and gendered bathrooms are located in the basement and are not accessible. Two flights of stairs lead to each of these floors. LED lights are used throughout the building. The Owens welcomes guide dogs and other service animals. The closest accessible parking spaces are located on York Street across from the Owens. For detailed information on construction disruption please visit our Accessibility page.

COVID-19 Information
The Mount Allison University campus continues to have COVID-19 health and safety measures in place. During your visit at the Owens Art Gallery:

• Masks are welcome
• Free disposable masks are available
• Hand sanitizer is available throughout the gallery
• If you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, please stay home and plan your visit for another time

If you would like to visit the Owens at a quieter time, or when all staff and visitors are masked, private visits can be arranged from 9:00-10:00 am on weekdays.

If you have any questions about your visit, please email owens@mta.ca or call (506) 364-2574.