Habits of Care

In a contemporary context in which many individuals and groups feel under-valued and uncared for, Habits of Care addresses the links between the care of the self and collective care, asking where they overlap, and where they diverge and conflict. Recalling the etymological roots of the word ‘curating’ in the Latin word for ‘caring,’ the exhibition is prompted by concerns with how the rhetoric of care plays out in the fields of art, culture and beyond. It points to where care is typically invested, and where it falls short, raising questions about how we might develop new habits of care that encompass both human and non-human others.

Participating artists were:
Lisa Busby 
Claire Fontaine 
Deborah Ligorio 
Paul Maheke 
Raju Rage 
Amie Siegel 
Laura Yuile

The exhibition spanned the two Blackwood Gallery spaces. In the University's lobby it featured a lightbox work (Untitled) Rust/Tears, by Claire Fontaine.

Paul Maheke and Laura Yuile performed as part of the opening reception.

Raju Rage's participation took the form of a remote Skype performance, Yeah but can we listen tho?, during Care Crisis, Care Connective: An Open Forum on Cultural Work, at the University of Toronto, Mississauga.

Also presenting at the Care Crisis, Care Connective forum were participants in a workshop on Curating and Caring, led by Helena Reckitt in collaboration with the Blackwood Gallery staff. They presented New Propositions for Curating With Care that they had collectively developed during two previous meetings of the Workshop.

The Element Choir performed Protocols, Policies, and Proposals Performed at several times and on different sites throughout the University of Toronto's Mississauga campus. The performance was based on scores composed by Lisa Busby which in turn drew on materials documenting efforts to improve care in the cultural sector. Gathered by Helena Reckitt and Christine Shaw, these documents were exhibited in the Blackwood Gallery in tandem with Busby's scorebooks.