January 13, 2011 (Calgary, Alberta) – Today at the Alberta College of Art + Design, four selected students began a once in a lifetime opportunity to work alongside internationally acclaimed performance artist Laurie Anderson as part of a special two day studio experience organized in partnership with Calgary’s one Yellow Rabbit Theatre, and the High Performance Rodeo. These four students, selected from a long list of applicants, are acting as assistants in the development of Laurie Anderson’s upcoming Glenbow exhibition The Gray Rabbit. Anderson also presented an exclusive standing-room only lecture to over 300 ACAD students earlier today, sharing her experiences as an international performance artist, and leading creative thinker.
The opportunity to work with an artistic legend such as Anderson is a very exciting one for students, and ACAD is pleased to welcome her to our campus. “Having Laurie Anderson join our classroom and work with students in our studio space is an exceptional opportunity, and I am pleased that we were able to partner with the High Performance Rodeo to make this happen. Our students are some of the most creative and innovative thinkers in Canada today, and the chance for them to have such an intimate and rich conversation with a visionary creative mind is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I am sure they will not soon forget” stated ACAD President + CEO Dr. Daniel Doz.
Arguably the one of the world's most popular - and influential - performance artists, Laurie Anderson last performed in Calgary in 2005, with her piece The End of the Moon, created after a time as artist-in-residence for NASA. Now, 7 years later, Laurie returns as High Performance Rodeo’s Artist-in-Residence, with Another Day In America, an intimate work-in-progress about exactly that. Another Day In America is being presented alongside her installation, The Gray Rabbit, which will be exhibited at the Glenbow Museum and which will feature the work of ACAD’s four selected students.
The work of the selected four ACAD students will be incorporated into Anderson’s upcoming The Gray Rabbit exhibition at the Glenbow Museum this winter and spring. This is the third year that ACAD has partnered with One Yellow Rabbit, and Calgary’s High Performance Rodeo to bring some of the best voices in contemporary art and music to our students. In 2010, ACAD welcomed Phillip Glass to our College for a standing room only public lecture. Last year, ACAD welcomed Brian Eno to our studio space for a special one day experience with our Media Arts + Digital Technology students.
ACAD is a leading centre for education and research, and a catalyst for creative inquiry and cultural development. We engage the world and create possibilities.
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For more information or to arrange an interview:
AnneMarie Dorland, Director of Communications
t. 403.284.7656 c. 403.472.2322 e. AnneMarie.Dorland@acad.ca
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