Sora Park: To Glide, To Say Bye

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Sora Park, "To Glide, To Say Bye," 2021

The Fort Gallery is pleased to present To Glide, To Say Bye, an exhibition by Langley-based artist Sora Park.

To Glide, To Say Bye will open with a virtual Philosopher’s Cafe featuring the artist in conversation with contemporary dancer/choreographer Katie Cassady on Thursday, June 3, 7:30-8:45pm. This conversation will explore perspectives on dance, the built environment and respective relationships to dance floors.

Viewers are welcome to a socially distanced meet the artist event at the gallery, Saturday, June 19, noon-5pm. Both events are free and require registration. See fortgallery.ca for registration information.

Park’s artistic practice is deeply involved in the investigation of subcultures and particularly, the ways that globalization and migration create and perpetuate these subcultures. In her exhibition at the Fort Gallery, Park turns an ethnographic lens on Latin dancing subcultures. Working primarily in sculpture and installation, Park translates years of quantitative and qualitative data from her research into Latin dancing, into colourful, abstract sculptural forms.

After four years of immersive study in Latin dance around the world, Park decided to quit. When she reminisces about Latin dancing, she sees herself “stepping onto a nicely waxed hardwood floor for a Bachata lesson in downtown Vancouver.” It is this floor, and the many others that she has danced on over the years that form the impetus for this body of work. Through this exhibition, Park considers the “emotions, identity and social hierarchies” embedded in our built environments.

Responding particularly to the Fort Gallery’s architecture, Park creates an immersive experience which invites viewers to notice the floor beneath their feet and consider the stories and emotional content it holds. Merging organic and geometric forms, Park’s sculptures speak to the complex negotiations of bodies and built environments.