David Wojnarowicz: Photography & Film 1978–1992

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David Wojnarowicz, "Untitled (Culture Mask II)," 1990

Courtesy Of The Estate Of David Wojnarowicz And P·P·O·W Gallery, New York

TEMPORARY CLOSURE March 17 – April 7, 2020

In light of the evolving COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, the Belkin will be temporarily closed to the public beginning Tuesday, March 17 until Tuesday, April 7. All tours, public programs and events during this period are also cancelled. 

While there have been no presumptive or confirmed cases of COVID-19 at the Belkin or at the University of British Columbia, and public risk in Canada remains low, this decision has been made out of an abundance of caution as we strive to be part of the local solution to this global situation.

At the Belkin, we promote an understanding and discussion of contemporary art and the fostering of a civil society. We encourage you to keep art and culture in your daily life while you care for your wellbeing in these difficult times.

For further updates, please continue to check our social media channels and our website.

Reception: Thursday, January 9 from 6 to 9 pm 

Reading Otherwise: Queer Art and Culture Discussion Group  Mondays, January 20, February 10, March 2 and 16 at noon 

Listening Party: David Wojnarowicz, CROSS COUNTRY / Great Dreams Thursday, January 23 at 5 pm

Film Series: The Rage to Live Friday, January 31 to Sunday, February 2 The Cinematheque, 1131 Howe Street, Vancouver

The Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery is pleased to present David Wojnarowicz: Photography & Film 1978–1992, the first exhibition to solely concentrate on the artist’s photographic and filmic work.

The exhibition presents over 100 works including photographs, test prints, silkscreens, 16 mm and Super 8 film and collaborative video works. David Wojnarowicz (1954–1992) came into prominence in the New York art world of the 1980s, actively embracing all media and forging an expansive range of work both fiercely political and highly personal. Although largely self-taught, he worked as an artist and writer to merge a sophisticated combination of found and discarded material with a deep understanding of literary influences. First displayed in storefront galleries in the East Village, his work had already gained national prominence by the time he was diagnosed with HIV in 1988. From the late 1970s until his death in 1992, Wojnarowicz produced a body of work that was as conceptually rigorous as it was stylistically diverse, resolutely and fervently political at a time when the AIDS epidemic was cutting down a generation of artists due in large part to government inaction. David Wojnarowicz: Photography & Film 1978–1992 reflects on Wojnarowicz as a source for both art-making and activism at a time of political and personal uncertainty. The exhibition sheds light on a practice that has been exemplary and inspirational, not only for his contemporaries but also for current generations.