Artists In Residence | Helene Vosters | March 6-17, 2017
During her residency, Vosters hosted two sessions, inviting the public to participate in the labours of critical reflection and action. Together they read aloud from TRC’s 388-page summary report, embroidered sections of the report’s 94 Calls to Action onto Canadian flags, and shared reflections.
Stitch-by-Stitch (formerly called Reconciliation: A Call to Action) engages a labour aesthetic that brings together two necessarily care-filled and time-demanding tasks—embroidery and critical reflection. A work in progress, Reconciliation’s unfinished status is critical to its meaning. It is a reminder that reconciliation, as part of a praxis of redress, requires ongoing, sustained labour.
Helene Vosters is an artist, activist, and scholar who is currently a SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellow (University of Manitoba). Her work explores issues of state violence, social memory, and the role of performance and aesthetic practices in mobilizing resistance. https://helenevosters.com/