Description:

The VAC invites you to attend our Opening Reception on Saturday, September 28, 2024, from 1 - 4 PM. We will be screening Studio Pararaum’s newest video on 16mm film throughout the day’s festivities. Art Historian Peter Sealy will lead a public discussion with the artists from 2 - 3 PM. Light refreshments will be provided.

Visitors from Toronto are invited to take a free shuttle bus to the VAC, departing from Factory Theatre at 12 PM on Saturday, September 28, 2024. Registration for the shuttle bus is required.

Shuttle Bus Pick-Up / Return Location: Factory Theatre, 125 Bathurst St, Toronto, ON M5V 2R2

Shuttle Bus Destination:  Visual Arts Centre of Clarington, 143 Simpson Ave, Bowmanville, ON L1C 2H9.

Shuttle Bus Time of Departure: 12:00 PM, Saturday, September 28, 2024

Shuttle Bus Time of Return: Approx. 5:05 PM, Saturday, September 28, 2024

About the Event:

The Visual Arts Centre of Clarington (VAC) is pleased to announce our final exhibition of the 2024 season. Memories of the Mountain is a site-specific exhibition in collaboration with Studio Pararaum—a Toronto-Zürich design and architecture collaborative established by Meng Li and Linda Zhang. It combines creative Artificial Intelligence (AI) and ceramics to investigate alternative approaches to the culture around building—reimagining our relationship to geological extraction through architecture, urban design, and technology. 

Studio Pararaum challenges the opposition between nature and technology. In their early research, the studio conducted field studies to explore extraction sites. They visited underground mines and quarries as stand-ins for the Earth’s collective mountain, capturing its surface at each site through a combined process of 3D scanning, latex casting, and bioplastic moulding—termed “rock-skins.” 

The rock-skin is later digitized and repetitively processed by AI algorithms. The virtual system learns from the uploaded models, reshaping the skins’ surfaces into new, digitally-generated samples of ecological material that later become ceramic sculptures. These creations will position us against real-world sites while situating our urban design processes more compassionately in between the geological/man-made, city/landscape, emotive/scientific, and immaterial/technological. We are eager to witness how these interactions inform and inspire our community and others working toward sustainable futures across the mountain beyond.

Accessibility: Please email us if you require additional accommodations so we can meet your needs or provide additional seating as required.

Available spots: 27/38

Price: $0.00 Taxes waived

Notes: Shuttle Bus Time of Departure: 12:00 PM, Saturday, September 28, 2024, at the Factory Theatre. Shuttle Bus Time of Return: Approx. 5:05 PM, Saturday, September 28, 2024, at the Factory Theatre

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