James Malzahn: The Unselected of the Pinwale
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Gallery 1C03 515 Portage Ave, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 2E9
To complement the main exhibition What Flies Above in Gallery 1C03, we present a selection of photographic works entitled The Unselected of the Pinwale by emerging Winnipeg artist James Malzahn in the gallery's foyer area.
James Malzahn is an emerging interdisciplinary artist whose work draws on his extensive background in Internet technology and data forensics. Malzahn views technology as an artistic collaborator and as an essential component of his practice. His art proposes links between human perception and corrupted digital imagery, advancing a critique of surveillance and the abuse of technology by governments and corporations. By embedding surveillance and security technology into his photographs, paintings, prints, videos and installations he examines and exposes mounting threats to privacy. Malzahn also challenges viewers’ perceptions by incorporating image loss and data corruption to create unsettled atmospheres which also reference the workings of unethical systems. His glitched images create momentary disruptions that prompt viewers to pause and reconsider the content and, paradoxically, re-humanize the subjects portrayed. Malzahn graduated from the University of Manitoba with a BFA Honours degree in 2017. He has been the recipient of multiple grants, scholarships and awards including the Takao Tanabe Scholarship in Painting, and his work has appeared in juried and curated solo and group exhibitions.