Call for submissions: Performances 2022-23

The body in e-activism

Deadline: May 23, 2022 at 11:59PM

La Centrale galerie Powerhouse is an artist-run centre dedicated to the dissemination and development of multidisciplinary feminist practices. Our programming focuses on feminisms that enter into dialogue with intersectionality and social justice and is built on the basis of non-hierarchy and consensus by selection committees made up of active members of the centre. We encourage artists who identify as belonging to groups that are under-represented and/or not very visible in dominant cultural institutions, at all stages of their career, to submit a project.

Over the past two years, we have witnessed a change in the speed at which communities come together to express their realities. Being unable to protest in the street due to health restrictions, many people have turned to the digital space to be heard. We can think of feminist movements such as #MeToo, the movements initiated by queer communities as well as anti-racist movements such as Black Lives Matter, Indigenous Lives Matter and Stop Asian Hate. Strongly engaged content continues to
circulate and be shared online, particularly on social networks such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. As a result of the health crisis, the digital realm has become the most effective means of communication for activists to rally together.

For the 2022-2023 call for projects, the members of the performance committee invite artists to explore the following theme: The body in e-activism. In light of the criticism towards performative activism, we ask you to reflect on the various forms of activism both online and in real life in order to consider their impact on our future, beyond trend movements. Through performance, La Centrale wishes to give rise to dialogues that reflect on these new forms of practice. What boundaries can be drawn between the virtual world and the physical world? How do the social movements created online impact public policies, the media, feminist movements and society? How does our digital presence influence and transform the way we advocate? How are our actions in the physical space diffused and transmitted into the digital space? How can we create collective engagement between our virtual and physical communities? How do we express our relationship to the web? This call is an invitation to explore different strategies for creating and disseminating performative practices that focus on social justice, online and real-life social movements, and collective engagement. The artists will have the opportunity to transmit a virtual and/or face-to-face presence to explore these issues.

The committee encourages artists to consider either a digital and/ or physical project using the following modes and formats:
- Virtual communication
- Connecting the virtual to the physical
- Augmented reality (ex: QR Codes, video and image based on AR)

The committee will select three projects:
- An Instagram performance residency
- Two performances in the gallery

We pay exhibition fees and honorarium on the basis of CARFAC’s recommended rates. La Centrale provides technical support and covers certain costs such as transportation of works, travel and installation fees. We also offer professional documentation.

YOUR PROJECT SUBMISSION MUST INCLUDE:
• Curriculum vitae including your personal information (phone number, email, website etc.)
• A Project description (max. 500 words)
• An Artist statement (max. 350 words)
• A short text (max. 200 words) explaining how your project fits with La Centrale’s mandate.

VISUAL FOLDER:
• Visual documentation (15 images in digital format)
• For video works, please send a link (VIMEO or Youtube) or an MP4, MOV file (Max. 10min)
• A descriptive list (title, medium, size and year)

PLEASE NOTE:
Please respect the following indications for your digital documents.
• Documents must be in JPEG, PNG and/or PDF format.
• Documents must be identified in the following format: 202223_Artist’sname_NameofDocument
• The images should be identified in the following form: 202223_Artist’sName_Image01
• Image formats should not exceed 1 MB per image and video. The total file size should not exceed 2 GB.

Please send your submissions via WeTransfer to the following address: dossier@lacentrale.org with Performance 2022-2023 in the subject line of the email indicating either Instagram Residency or Gallery Performance (ex: Gallery Performance 2022-2023). You will receive a confirmation email from WeTransfer when your submission is uploaded.

Please note that late submissions will not be accepted.

For more information, write to My-Van Dam at galerie@lacentrale.org