October 20, 2022–May 7, 2023
Enter a world that is both strange and familiar. Karine Giboulo, a Montreal-based artist, takes guests into an immersive reconstruction of her house. This is no ordinary house—over 500 tiny polymer clay figures have been used to bring it to life. The figures depict narratives that take place inside or on furniture, appliances, and other ordinary items.
A group of anonymous and socially isolated persons are lined up on the kitchen counter, waiting to access a food bank. A dresser drawer in the bedroom opens to show rows of factory employees stooped over large sewing machines. A neglected iron in the laundry room starts a forest fire that drives animals out of their natural home.
Giboulo’s solution to the COVID-19 pandemic that started in 2020 and the waves of seclusion and isolation that followed is Housewarming. It is a crafted documentary of unique and group experiences that is based on current affairs. The vibrant dioramas decorating each space encourage meditation on the difficulties our society faces in the presence of the pandemic. Themes like solitude and connection, age and caregiving, labor and consumerism, the climate crisis, food insecurity, and housing instability are all amplified by their stories. This personal journey also reveals a narrative of self-acceptance and identity and takes us back to childhood, a formative time in the growth of world consciousness.
Above all, the house serves as a framework for thinking about where we fit into the larger picture and the ties that bind us. Giboulo urges us to consider how each home building includes the world and its history and how we appropriate the greater world through the material items that fill our spaces by turning furniture, appliances, and other common objects into storytelling tools. The house thus becomes a picture, reflecting and extending the self simultaneously.
Giboulo’s microcosms, which are consistently straightforward and incisive, articulate surprising juxtapositions — amusing and sorrowful, realistic and silly, poetic and political — that elicit a range of feelings, from awe to intense empathy. The more deeply we examine the events and their main characters, the more likely it is that we will see ourselves there.
Certainly, we will see our own homes differently.
Curated by Karine Tsoumis.
Programs and events
Artist talk with Karine Giboulo: October 20, 6–8pm,
Join artist Karine Giboulo and exhibition curator Karine Tsoumis for a discussion on the themes and stories that unfold in Giboulo’s playful yet urgent new exhibition.
Virtual artist talk with Karine Giboulo (French): November 3, 1–2pm, online via Zoom.
Curator tour with Karine Tsoumis: November 8, 1–2pm
Explore the exhibition with curator Karine Tsoumis.
Move, Make & Write (My Home): November 15, 5:30–7:30pm
Esther Maloney invites you to let your body engage somatically with the exhibition.
Move, Make & Write (My Environment): November 22, 5:30–7:30pm
With Esther Maloney, use clay and paper to explore your own stories and experiences.
Curator tour with Karine Tsoumis: November 22, 6–7pm
Explore the exhibition with curator Karine Tsoumis.
Figure making with Karine Giboulo: November 29, 6–7:30pm
Discover the versatility of working with polymer clay and express your own creativity.
Figure making with Karine Giboulo: November 30, 10:30am–12pm
Discover the versatility of working with polymer clay and express your own creativity.
Artist tour with Karine Giboulo: November 30, 1:30–2:30pm
Discover the exhibition alongside artist Karine Giboulo.
Figure making with Karine Giboulo: November 30, 6–7:30pm
Discover the versatility of working with polymer clay and express your own creativity.
Curator tour with Karine Tsoumis (French): December 6, 6–7pm
Explore the exhibition with curator Karine Tsoumis.
Gardiner Museum
111 Queens Park
Toronto Ontario M5S 2C7
Canada
www.gardinermuseum.on.ca
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