Joanna Staniszkis
Silk City

Exhibition
Saturday November 4 - December 9, 2006
Opening Reception
Friday, November 3, 8:00 pm

Centre A is pleased to present an exhibition of new works by Vancouver
textile artist Joanna Staniszkis, featuring installation, sculpture, and
multimedia works. ³Silk City² is a continuation of the artist¹s ongoing
investigation into the history, aesthetic potential, and ecology of silk.

In ³Silk City², the juxtaposition of giant cocoons, architectural models and
live silk worms animate the space of the gallery and disrupt one¹s sense of
normal scale. This series of works addresses the tensions between processes
and product, nature and culture, and creates a complex dialogue between
Vancouver¹s past and present.

Staniszkis makes reference to the contemporary urban geography of Vancouver
and evokes the city¹s history as a port for ships arriving from Asia laden
with raw silk. This valuable cargo would be loaded onto high priority ³Silk
Trains² and rushed across the country, past the current site of Centre A, to
destinations in Eastern Canada. Journeys, cycles of transformation, and the
possibilities therein, are resonant themes in Staniszkis¹ work. In ³Silk
City² the metaphor of personal growth is linked to economies of
globalization and social change at play in the urban core.
Staniszkis engages with her material at every stage, raising silk worms,
growing mulberry trees to feed these hungry collaborators, and watching them
spin their tightly woven cocoons. This investigation brings the artist, and
the audience, to a discovery and understanding of this precious natural
resource.

* * * * *
Joanna Staniszkis is Professor Emerita of the Landscape Architecture Program
at the University of British Columbia. She is the recipient of many awards
and is recognized internationally for her work in the textile medium. She is
especially well known for large-scale architectural commissions on display
at prominent buildings around the world. Since the late 1960s, Staniszkis
has worked with a wide variety of natural fibres and dyes, often including
cross-cultural references. She involves herself in all aspects of textile
production and expresses her vision though the use of unconventional
materials and techniques.

Centre A is grateful for the generosity of our exhibition patron, Anndraya
T. Luui. This exhibition is also made possible through the support of the
Vancouver Foundation, the City of Vancouver, B.C. Arts Council, and the
Canada Council.

Vancouver International Centre for Contemporary Asian Art
2 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC, Canada, V6B 1G6
t. 604-683-8326; f. 604-683-8632
centrea@centrea.org; www.centrea.org
Gallery Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 11am-6pm