Pop goes the art!
Legacy Art Galleries exhibit unites two alumni through art Absurdist leopard-print paintings may not pop immediately to mind when you think of Victoria’s artistic legacy. But that’s an oversight a new Legacy Maltwood exhibit will address with Eric Metcalfe: Pop...
JB MacKinnon on “The Day The World Stops Shopping”
We can’t stop shopping. And yet we must. This is the consumer dilemma that noted author J.B. MacKinnon is addressing in this special Department of Writing Orion Lecture. The author of five books of nonfiction, MacKinnon is also an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in The New Yorker, National Geographic and Atlantic, as well as the Best American Science and Nature Writing.
Curator’s talk: Eden Grove AIR
Visual Arts Visiting Speaker series presents Eden Grove Artist in Residence Recorded SEPTEMBER 15, 2021 The Eden Grove Artist in Residence program (March to June 2021) offered artists the opportunity to be immersed in ancient temperate rainforest ecosystems while...
The Choice To Be Creative with Lindsay Delaronde
Heart Seed Creatives presents The Choice To Be Creative with Lindsay Delaronde Published SEPTEMBER 6, 2021 Chantal Solomon interviews Lindsay Delaronde about staying true to her chosen path as an Indigenous Artist while navigating modern notions of artistry. She...
Carey Newman: Hearts and Hands
Visual Arts Visiting Speaker series presents Carey Newman: Hearts and Hands Recorded June 22, 2021 Carey Newman, whose traditional name is Hayalthkin’geme, is a multi-disciplinary Indigenous artist, master carver, filmmaker, author and public speaker. Through his...
Dr Fahmida Suleman
Since the late 19th century, museums have devoted attention to Islamic art and craft, encompassing objects dating from the seventh century to the present. Ideas about how the diverse and fascinating visual and material cultures of the Islamic world should be displayed have changed significantly over time, reflecting the broader trends in museum practice.
Life Stories
Life Stories Exhibition brings to light a provocative array of visual and material culture from the University of Victoria Art Collections that engages with life stages and related rituals. The exhibition runs December 2, 2020 - April 3, 2021 at the Legacy Art Gallery...
Jennifer Baichwal
Discover the life story of the planet Join Canadian filmmaker Jennifer Baichwal in conversation with local writer, filmmaker and TV producer Barbara Todd Hager for this lively Orion Series discussion, which is part of the public programming for the exhibition Life...
Nonfiction Podcast
Nonfiction Podcast with David Leach & Deborah Campbell A conversation between UVic writing professors David Leach and Deborah Campbell (plus guest authors and experts) about the art, craft and ethics of researching, writing and revising creative nonfiction,...
Artist’s talk: Katie Bethune-Leamen
Visual Arts Visiting Speaker series presents Katie Bethune-Leamen Recorded OCTOBER 21, 2020 Katie Bethune-Leamen is a visual artist who works in sculpture and installation. Recent solo exhibitions include: La douche écossaise (Susan Hobbs Gallery, Toronto), Tom...
A glazed Stonepaste Bowl
What is stonepaste, and why was this material so important in the development of glazed pottery across the Islamic world? This talk considers a Medieval glazed stonepaste bowl from the Tushingham collection and looks at the ways in which the form and decoration were...
Handmade Pottery from Medieval Jordan
Why would anyone choose to form a ceramic vessel by hand when it is easier and quicker to make it on a potter’s wheel? This talk looks at two handmade pottery vessels from medieval Jordan and considers what the technological and visual characteristics might tell us...
A Painting from Hama
What unusual substance was used to make this painting? This talk considers a monochrome painting on paper made in 2005, and discusses the cultural significance of the substance used in the paint.Figure 1.Painting on paper by Sameer Tanbur. Hama, 2005. Private...
A Block-Printed Fabric from Hama
Why is a cotton sheet made in the Syrian city of Hama decorated with images of waterwheels? This talk discusses the visual characteristics of this simple textile and explores the links that can be made between the repeated decoration has to block-printed cotton...
A Brass Lunchbox
How many different techniques were required to manufacture this brass lunchbox? This talk examines the form and function of the lunchbox, and links it to earlier examples produced during the Mamluk sultanate (1250-1517) in Egypt and Syria? Figure 1. Brass lunchbox,...
An Interview with Rick Leong
PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art presents An Interview with Rick Leong Published JULY 21, 2020 Rick Leong in conversation with Cheryl Sim, curator of the exhibition RELATIONS at PHI Foundation. Rick Leong’s painted landscapes are rooted in a bilingual vocabulary...
A Rock-Cut Panel in Viar, Zanjan
Beyond the historical and aesthetic values of surviving architectural fragments in ruined sites, what is the importance of studying them? What do they tell us about the circumstances within which they were created? This talk looks at a rock-cut panel with the design...
A Glass Medicine Bottle
Why do we often use the term ‘balsam’ to describe a soothing medicine? This talk discusses a small glass bottle dating to the nineteenth century, and connects it to the use of medicinal tree resins in ancient and medieval times.Figure 1. Clear glass bottle of...
A Brick Dome in Iran
Why is brick such an important material in the architecture of Iran, and how was it used both for structural and decorative purposes? This talk examines an elaborate dome built over the prayer hall of a medieval mosque in the town of Ardistan in central Iran.Figure 1....
The Wildflowers Around Victoria Painted on Silk
Elizabeth Yeend Duer (1889–1951) was born in Nagasaki, Japan. Her father was an Englishman, Yeend Duer (1846–1921) and her mother a Japanese woman, Yasu Tsunekawa (née Zama, 1859–1936). Elizabeth grew up knowing much about both English and Japanese culture and language and learned to selectively deploy this knowledge, depending on context and the message she wished to convey.
Nashtifan Windmills
In a world where we are surrounded by high-tech architecture, why is it important to study and preserve different forms of vernacular architecture? This talk looks at the windmills of Nashtifan and examines the structural and functional features of these vernacular...
Crafts of Syria
The Traditional Crafts of Syria What can we learn about the artistic traditions of a country by learning about the lives and working practices of its artisans? This site allows you to explore the rich heritage of crafts in Syria from the seventh century to the...
The Arts of Death and the Afterlife in South Asian Traditions
Melia Belli Bose of University of Victoria discusses the arts of death and the afterlife in South Asian traditions as part of the Society for Asian Art's Arts of Asia lecture series, Visions of the Afterlife in Asia. For more information:...
A Satellite Image of Shahrasb
What are the challenges faced by architectural historians in gaining access to historical buildings and archaeological sites? Wars? Pandemics? Political conflicts? Or simply high costs of travelling? When physical presence in a historical site is not feasible, what...
Three Wooden Amulets
What leads people to make protective charms and why do these objects take some many different forms? This talk examines three amulets from Afghanistan, and links them to a tradition that stretches back before the birth of Islam.Figure 1. Carved wooden amulets,...
A Sheet of Handmade Paper
What makes handmade paper different from the paper we use in our everyday lives? This talk suggests that we should pay more attention to how paper is made and the impact it can have on drawing, printmaking, calligraphy, and painting.Figure 1. Sheet of handmade cotton...
Two Ceramic Bowls
Why might people drill through ceramic bowls. This talk examines what drill holes might tell us about the practices of display and repair in the Medieval Islamic Middle East.Figure 1. Sherds from a decorated lead-glazed bowl, excavated in Karak, Jordan. Late twelfth...
Two Brass Candlesticks
Why did craftsmen choose to copy the styles and techniques of earlier periods? This talk examines a pair of inlaid brass candlesticks made in Cairo, and argues that the revivalist decoration is both inventive and expressive of the spirit of the time.Figure 1. Brass...
A Woven Rug from Jordan
How do nomadic groups in the Middle East make their rugs? This talk examines a fragmentary flat weave rug from Jordan and considers the materials and methods involved in its manufacture.Flat weave woollen rug purchased in Jordan. Probably mid twentieth century....
An Aerial Photograph of Shibam
Why is Shibam sometimes called the Manhattan of Arabia? This talk examines the extraordinary style of traditional mud-brick architecture constructed in the southern Arabia. Aerial view of Shibam, Yemen, c. 1964. Photograph: R. Digby Milwright
Three Conder Tokens
What do a druid, a mythical king, and an eighteenth-century Engish actor have in common? This talk examines the phenomenon of Conder tokens, and explains what economic circumstances brought into being this unusual form of money.Obverse faces of three copper halfpenny...
A Mosaic Image of the Sea
Why do pagan images from the Classical world appear in Jordanian churches. This talk examines the designs and inscriptions in a roundel at the centre of a mosaic pavement in an ancient church in the town of Madaba.Roundel from the mosaic pavement of the Church of...
AHVS Stay at Home Quiz 2020
On each slide you will see a composite picture. Identify each image and follow the instructions. Answers will be posted July 1st. Good luck!
Laura Dutton discusses 2 videos: “Night Comes On” & “Nearness To or Distance From”
UVic Fine Arts presents Laura Dutton discusses 2 videos Published MAY 4, 2020 Professor Laura Dutton discusses 2 videos: 'Night Comes On' (2016) and 'Nearness To or Distance From' (2018). Laura Dutton is a Victoria-based visual artist working primarily with video...
A Silver Coin from Baghdad
How did coins made in ninth-century Iraq end up in Scandinavia? This talk examines a silver coin (dirham) minted in Baghdad and connects it to the active trading networks that spread north from the eastern regions of the Islamic world from the late eighth to the end...
A Silver Trade Coin
Can we always trust the date we see on a coin? This talk examines one of the most famous coins ever minted, the Maria Theresa Thaler, and asks why it became so popular in countries like the Yemen. For more on the history and circulation of the Maria Theresa Thaler...
A Medieval Tower in Jordan
Why do the exteriors of Medieval military buildings sometimes carry decoration? This talk examines the political and cultural context of a thirteenth-century fortification from the Jordanian town of Karak.Burj al-Banawi, Karak, Jordan. After 1263. Ordered by sultan...
An Inscribed Ceramic Jug from Raqqa
Pottery vessels are made to perform everyday tasks, but why would someone choose to cover a jug in writing? This talk examines the inscriptions covering an ancient jug found in the Syrian city of Raqqa.Unglazed ceramic jug excavated in Raqqa, Syria. Late eighth or...
An Aerial Photograph from Iraq
How did an aerial photograph taken during World War I end up in a book in the University Victoria library? This talk relates the history of the annotations and additions to a published account of the Mesopotamian Campaign, and focuses on a photograph taken in the...
J. M. and Jerusalem
Why did the capture of Jerusalem by General Allenby in 1917 have such an impact across the world? Explore this topic through a painting produced on the Western Front by a soldier, known only as J. M.‘Our feet shall stand within Thy gates, O Jerusalem. Psalm CXXII.’...
J M’s Hut
What can we learn about the identity of the mysterious J. M. by looking at his paintings and drawings? This talk examines a painting of an officer’s hut from the World War I sketchbooks by J. M.‘Little Grey Home in the Wet.’ Watercolour painting by J. M., 1917–18....
Pipe Smoking in Ottoman Egypt
Why is it important that a shadow puppet shows a figure smoking a pipe? This talk examines the story about a puppet found in a town in northern Egypt, and questions what substances were smoked during the Ottoman period.Leather and textile puppet discovered in Manzala,...
Clay Pilgrim Tokens from Iran
How can clay be transformed into an object with spiritual significance? This talk examined the Shi‘a Muslim practice of using tablets of clay brought back from sites of pilgrimage in Iraq and Iran.Clay pilgrim tokens from the Pa Minar Mosque, Zavareh, Iran....
Carey Newman & Kirstie Hudson created a book about the making of the Witness Blanket
Carey Newman and Kirstie Hudson are the authors of Picking Up the Pieces. (Orca Book Publishers, Ken Wilkinson, Melissa Welsh)Why Carey Newman & Kirstie Hudson created a book about the making of the Witness Blanket When Vancouver Island artist Carey Newman created...
Guernica – A Political Odyssey on the CBC
"Guernica: A Political Odyssey" discusses the politics of Pablo Picasso's most famous work of art, from its inception in the crucible of the Spanish Civil War to the covering of a replica of the painting at the UN in 2003. (aired March 19,2007)Guernica - 1937,...
Art Anarchy & Activism on the CBC
"Art, Anarchy, and Activism" discusses the interface of the arts with anarchist activism on the cusp of the 21st Century. (aired June and October 2002)
Two Early Islamic Inscriptions
Why did Muslims in the first decades of the Islamic period feel compelled to create inscriptions on stone? This talk examines the religious and cultural messages contained in two important texts written at the end of the seventh century.Inscription from Hafnat...
A Greek Shadow Puppet
Why does a famous character in a Greek popular entertainment have a Turkish name? This talk discusses a shadow puppet made in southern Greece, and looks at the ways in which this type of theatre circulated around the eastern Mediterranean region.Shadow puppets made by...