Vernon Ah Kee: cantchant
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Art Gallery of Alberta 2 Winston Churchill Square, Edmonton, Alberta T5J 2C1
Vernon Ah Kee, "Cantchant," 2009
three-channel digital video installation, 6:50 min., installation dimensions variable. National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa Photo © NGC
Referencing the 2005 Cronulla race riots that took place near Sydney, Australia, cantchant provides a compelling statement on the racially motivated conflicts between white Australians and more recent, non-Western immigrants to the country. Vernon Ah Kee ironically transforms the riot chant “we grew here, you flew here” into the proclamation “we grew here”, which is reinforced by the suspended “shields/boards” which are presented with a video of professional Aboriginal surfer Dale Richards riding one of the boards. In the video, the surfboard becomes a metaphor for Aboriginal peoples. On exiting the space, portraits of the artist and members of his extended family are revealed on the bottoms of the “shields/boards”, signifying continuing Aboriginal presence.
Presented alongside Boarder X, Vernon Ah Kee’s cantchant explores similar notions of cultural identity, ownership and land claims in response to political conflict and disputed territories in Australia.
Organized by the National Gallery of CanadaOrganisée par Musée des beaux-arts du Canada
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