29 April 2022

SUMMER EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES AT OXYGEN ART CENTRE

EMPLOYMENT DETAILS: RESEARCH ASSISTANT (CSJ)

$16.00/hour
8 week contract, 30 hours/week
Position duration: July 4, 2022 – August 26, 2022

Oxygen Art Centre is an artist-run centre located on the tum xula7xw of the sn̓ʕay̓ckstx (otherwise known as Nelson, B.C.) engaging communities throughout Nelson and the West Kootenays, and wider audiences regionally and nationally.

Oxygen Art Centre provides space and programming for artists and the public to engage with the creation, study, exhibition, and performance of contemporary art in all disciplines. Oxygen Art Centre’s activities include: Exhibition & Residency Program, Adult Arts Education, Children and Youth Arts Education, and a Presentation Series which consists of literary, film, music, and theatre events.

We are currently looking for a Summer Research Assistant to add to our dynamic team.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Reporting to the Executive Director, the Research Assistant will assist with day-to-day arts administrative duties, as well as conduct contemporary art research to support the Education program and assist with the production, promotion, and communications of the Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 Education program and adjunct educational materials.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Research Assistant will conduct the following tasks and responsibilities both remotely and in person (if applicable), utilizing their personal computer to access online platforms such as Gmail, Google Drive, and Zoom, as well as digital platforms such as Word and Excel, of which will be provided by the organization. The Research Assistant will also have access to the Centre’s facilities and equipment, if applicable.

This position is funded by Canada Summer Jobs (CSJ). Additional administration through the CSJ portal will be required at the beginning and end of employment contract. Candidates are required to state their eligibility for the CSJ program in their Cover Letter and/or email.

TASKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Oxygen’s Research Assistant will develop skills in arts administration, contemporary art research, and exhibitionary contexts. This project involves independent work and research with the opportunity to collaborate with artists, instructors, and experts in the field. The Research Assistant will be able to focus the project to best suit their interests, aspirations, and background.

Arts Administration

The Research Assistant will assist with day-to-day duties at the Centre including gallery hosting, arts writing, communication, and outreach. The Research Assistant will directly engage with the research and production of Oxygen’s Education program including the forthcoming Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 semesters.

Contemporary Art Research

Contemporary art research regarding artists and topics explored in Oxygen’s Education and Events program will form the foundation by which the Research Assistant will conduct this project. Developed with the Executive Director, theoretical texts, lectures, and artworks will be determined as a “reading” list. Research will be guided by the candidate’s interests and future career aspirations.

Final Report

A final report will summarize their research findings. This report can include creative and/or interactive aspects, should this be applicable to the project and candidate.

Communication

The Research Assistant will be responsible for communication with their supervisor, as well as liaising with fellow employees, artists, and mentors in their field of enquiry.

This position will be multi-faceted and offer experience throughout all aspects of Oxygen Art Centre under the supervision of the Executive Director.

Due to the pandemic aspects of the position have been altered to ensure a safe working environment for the employee. The Research Assistant will be responsible for working in a hybrid fashion, which includes working from home, tracking hours and workplans, maintaining Google Doc files and documentation, virtual and phone meetings with supervisors, and facilitating digital administration from a far, as well as conducting on site labour (if applicable). Necessary alterations will be made to the employee’s workplan should pandemic restrictions alter during the employee’s contract.

NATURE AND SCOPE OF THE POSITION

Reporting to the Executive Director, the Research Assistant will develop arts administration skills and conduct research into contemporary art practices.

QUALIFICATIONS

The ideal candidate:

Is enrolled in a post-secondary program in Art History, Art Education, Curatorial Studies, Visual and/or Media Arts, Museum Studies or a related discipline;
Demonstrates a keen interest in contemporary art and/or museum practices;
Is responsible, hard-working, enthusiastic, and dynamic;
Has a proven ability to communicate effectively.

The Research Assistant position is dependent on funding from Canada Summer Jobs program.

Candidates for the position must:

Be legally entitled to work in Canada;
Be a Canadian citizen nor a permanent resident, or have refugee status in Canada (unfortunately, non-Canadian students holding temporary work visas or awaiting permanent status are not eligible);
Be between 16 and 30 years of age at the start of employment;
Intend to return to full-time studies in the fall of 2021.

EMPLOYMENT DETAILS

$16/hour
8 week contract
30 hours/week, 240 hours total
Position duration: July 4, 2022 – August 26, 2022

APPLICATION DEADLINE

24 May 2022, by 5:00 PM PST

Please submit a Cover Letter and Resume to info@oxygenartcentre.org with the subject line: “ATTN: Research Assistant Application.”

Please include confirmation of your CSJ eligibility.

Oxygen Art Centre is an equal opportunity employer. We thank all applicants for their interest, however only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

Learn more information about Oxygen Art Centre by visiting our website, www.oxygenartcentre.org and social media.

21 April 2022

Oxygen Art Centre

SUMMER EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY AT OXYGEN ART CENTRE

EMPLOYMENT DETAILS: GALLERY ASSISTANT (YCW)

$17.00/hour
9 week contract, 30 hours/week
Position duration: June 20, 2022 – August 19, 2022

JOB DESCRIPTION

Reporting to the Executive Director, the Gallery Assistant will assist with day-to-day arts administrative duties, as well as conduct contemporary art research to support the Exhibition & Residency program and assist with the production, installation, and implementation of exhibitions, catalogues, residencies, and adjunct educational materials.

This position is funded by Young Canada Works (YCW). Additional administration through the YCW portal will be required at the beginning and end of employment contract. Candidates are required to state their eligibility for the YCW program in their Cover Letter and/or email.

TASKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Oxygen’s Gallery Assistant will develop skills in arts administration, contemporary art research, and exhibitionary contexts. This project involves independent work and research with the opportunity to collaborate with artists and experts in the field. The Gallery Assistant will be able to focus the project to best suit their interests, aspirations, and background.

Arts Administration

The Gallery Assistant will assist with day-to-day duties at the Centre including gallery hosting, exhibition and facility maintenance, arts writing, communication, and outreach. The Gallery Assistant will directly engage with the production of an exhibition catalogue for Angela Glanzmann and Stephanie Yee’s exhibition (April 2022), assist in the run of a group exhibition entitled dig a hole in the garden(June – July 2022), and prepare and research for the forthcoming residencies and exhibitions with Lucie Chan (September – October 2022) and Tyler Wright (December 2022 – January 2023).

Contemporary Art Research

Contemporary art research regarding artists and topics explored in Oxygen’s Exhibition & Residency program will provide inspiration for the Gallery Assistant’s contemporary art research project. Developed with the Executive Director, theoretical texts, lectures, and artworks will be selected as a “reading” list.

A final report will summarize the Gallery Assistant’s research findings. This report can include creative and/or interactive aspects, should such formats be applicable to the project and candidate.

Communication

The Gallery Assistant will be responsible for communication with their supervisor, as well as liaising with fellow employees, artists, and mentors in their field of enquiry.

QUALIFICATIONS
The ideal candidate:

Is enrolled in a post-secondary program in Art History, Art Education, Curatorial Studies, Visual and/or Media Arts, Museum Studies or a related discipline;
Demonstrates a keen interest in contemporary art and/or museum practices;
Is responsible, hard-working, enthusiastic, and dynamic;
Has a proven ability to communicate effectively.

The Gallery Assistant position is funded by the Young Canada Works program. Candidates for the position must:

Be legally entitled to work in Canada;
Be a Canadian citizen nor a permanent resident, or have refugee status in Canada (unfortunately, non-Canadian students holding temporary work visas or awaiting permanent status are not eligible);
Be between 16 and 30 years of age at the start of employment;
Intend to return to full-time studies in the fall of 2022.

Application deadline: 16 May 2022, by 5:00 PM PST

Please submit a Cover Letter and Resume to info@oxygenartcentre.org with the subject line: “ATTN: Gallery Assistant Application.” Please include confirmation of your YCW eligibility.

Oxygen Art Centre is an equal opportunity employer. We thank all applicants for their interest, however only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

Learn more information about Oxygen Art Centre by visiting their website, www.oxygenartcentre.org and social media.

24 March 2022

Oxygen Art Centre

OXYGEN WELCOMES ANGELA GLANZMANN AND STEPHANIE YEE AS ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE

Oxygen Art Centre is excited to welcome artists Angela Glanzmann and Stephanie Yee as Artists-in-Residence from April 10^th to the 23^rd to create an installation for their forthcoming exhibition entitled EAT IT UP.

Expanding on their own histories, ethnicities, and social positions, Glanzmann and Yee invite viewers behind the scenes into the weird and obscure world of competitive cooking reality TV.

Their installation takes place on the set of a fictional show EAT IT UP, complete with a presentation table, competitor’s kitchen stations, and pantry/food storage. Constructed out of common household supplies, food sculptures speak to the culinary resourcefulness and resilience of their ancestors as they had to adapt to new cultures and customs.

During their residency the artists invite the public to “Open Kitchen” to take part in the artistic process and create a favourite dish of their choice in papier mâché or clay on Saturday, April 16 and Saturday April 23 from 1:00 – 3:00 PM. Contributed food sculptures will be included in the exhibition, on view from 27 April to 28 May 2022.

Join us on Saturday, April 30 at 1:00 PM (PST) for an online artist talk to learn more about the residency, exhibition, and artists. Admission is free or by donation, everyone welcome to attend. To register, visit EventBrite: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/artist-talk-angela-glanzmann-stephanie-yee-tickets-301494878297 or Oxygen’s website for more information.

Oxygen Art Centre is an artist-run centre located at #3-320 Vernon Street, Nelson, BC via alleyway entrance. The exhibition will be open to the public Wednesdays to Saturdays from 1:00 – 5:00 PM. Prior to your visit please review Oxygen’s COVID-19 prevention protocols on our website, https://oxygenartcentre.org/about-us-2/covid-19-prevention/.

Artists Angela Glanzmann and Stephanie Yee are Oxygen Art Centre Artist-in-Residence from 10 – 23 April 2022. The public are welcome to take part in the “Open Kitchen” on Saturday, April 16 and Saturday April 23 from 1:00 – 3:00 PM. The exhibition, EAT IT UP, will be on view from 27 April to 28 May 2022 on Wednesdays to Saturdays from 1:00 – 5:00 PM.

This exhibition is generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts.

– 30 –

Image Credit: (L) Angela Glanzmann; (R) Stephanie Yee, Courtesy the artists

Artist Bios:

Angela Glanzmann is an artist, cultural worker and professional beekeeper currently based in her birth place of Tkaronto (Toronto). Her institutional education includes a BFA from NSCAD University and an MFA from the University of British Columbia. Her artistic and writing projects address settler relationships to land, queer possibilities, jokes about critical theory and the connection between violence and cuteness. Glanzmann’s work has appeared in galleries, publications and artist-run centres both nationally and internationally. She is currently reading lots about pollinators in preparation for spring.

Stephanie Yee is a second-generation Chinese Canadian artist and cultural worker based in Kjipuktuk (Halifax), the unceded territory of the Mi’kma’ki. Her education includes a BFA in Intermedia from NSCAD University where she began her exploration into community and identity. With a practice rooted in storytelling, her work manifests as gatherings, performance, writing, installation, video and playing with food. Often beginning with familiar imagery, processes, and materials, Yee playfully interjects as a means of exploring and questioning preconceived notions. She has participated as an artist, facilitator and curator in artist-run centers, festivals, residencies and galleries both locally and internationally.

24 March 2022

Oxygen Art Centre

JOIN US FOR AN ONLINE TALK WITH WRITER AND POET BILLY-RAY BELCOURT ON QUEERER TIMES

Guest Speaker 3: Billy-Ray Belcourt

April 14, 2022, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM PST

Register via EventBrite

Admission is free. Everyone welcome to attend.

Oxygen Art Centre launches the second phase of an online youth arts education program entitled freezer cheese. Generously supported by the BC Arts Council Pivot Program and Osprey Community Foundation, the second phase offers an online youth workshop series and public speaker series throughout March and April 2022. Part one of freezer cheese, here.

Led by researcher and curator Hanss Lujan Torres, the freezer cheese: queerer times series presents weekly workshops and visiting speakers to explore alternative ways of thinking about time and the ever-changing present moment. Rooted in 2SQTBIPOC experiences, these events will engage with broader timescapes like pandemic time and colonial time and try to make sense of the “queerer” times we are all experiencing.

The third and final online public event features Billy-Ray Belcourt, writer and academic from the Driftpile Cree Nation. He is an Assistant Professor in the Creative Writing Program at the University of British Columbia. He is the author of three books: This Wound is a World, NDN Coping Mechanisms: Notes from the Field, and A History of My Brief Body. His fourth book, A Minor Chorus, will be published in the fall of 2022 by Hamish Hamilton (CAN) and W.W. Norton (US).

“freezer cheese” is derived from the fated piece of cheese—dairy or otherwise—that sits safely in the freezer, awaiting the moment it is needed for nutrition, for comfort, for enjoyment. These workshops and speaker series consider what lessons can be pulled from the theories of queer temporality and ask how we can use these to navigate moments of unease, pause, and disorientation brought on by the pandemic while also evoking a sense of play and curiosity.

Those interested in attending the speaker series are invited to register via EventBrite links above. All events are free and open to the public.

This project is generously supported by British Columbia Arts Council, Osprey Community Foundation, and Cowan’s Office Supplies Ltd.

– 30 –

Image Credit: Billy-Ray Belcourt

Bios:

About the Facilitator

Hanss Lujan Torres is an artist, curator and researcher from Cusco, Peru, working between the unceded territories of the Syilx/Okanagan Nation and Tiohtià:ke/Mooniyang/Montréal. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Minor in Art History and Visual Culture from the University of British Columbia Okanagan and is an MA candidate in the Department of Art History at Concordia University. His research and curatorial practice consider subjugated archives, queer temporalities, and alternative futures in contemporary art. Hanss is the research coordinator for the Indigenous Futures Research Centre. In addition, he has worked with several arts organizations in British Columbia, including past president of the Alternator Centre for Contemporary Art and a curatorial assistant at the Kelowna Art Gallery.

Instagram

About the Guest Speakers

Kama La Mackerel is a Montreal-based Mauritian-Canadian multi-disciplinary artist, educator, writer, community-arts facilitator and literary translator who works within and across performance, photography, installations, textiles, digital art and literature.

Kama’s work is grounded in the exploration of justice, love, healing, decoloniality, hybridity, cosmopolitanism and self- and collective-empowerment. They believe that aesthetic practices have the power to build resilience and act as resistance to the status quo, thereby enacting an anticolonial praxis through cultural production.

Kama has exhibited and performed their work internationally and their writing in English, French and Kreol has appeared in publications both online and in print. ZOM-FAM, their debut poetry collection published by Metonymy Press was named a CBC Best Poetry Book, a Globe and Mail Best Debut, and was a finalist for the QWF Concordia University First Book Award and the Writers’ Trust of Canada Dayne Ogilvie Prize for Emerging LGBTQ2S+ Writers.

Website + Instagram

Léuli Eshrāghi is a Sāmoan/Persian/Cantonese interdisciplinary artist, writer, curator and researcher working between Australia and Canada. They intervene in display territories to centre global Indigenous and Asian diasporic visuality, sensual and spoken languages, and ceremonial-political practices. Through performance, moving image, writing and installation, they engage with Indigenous futurities as haunted by ongoing militourist and missionary violences that once erased faʻafafine-faʻatane people from kinship and knowledge structures. As a curator, speaker and educator, Eshrāghi contributes to growing international critical practice across the Great Ocean and North America through residencies, exhibitions, publications, courses and rights advocacy. They are Curator of the 9th TarraWarra Biennial of Australian Art in 2023 at the TarraWarra Museum of Art, Curatorial Researcher in Residence (Blue Assembly) at the University of Queensland Art Museum, and Scientific Advisor (Reclaim the Earth) at the Palais de Tokyo.

Website + Instagram

Billy-Ray Belcourt is a writer and academic from the Driftpile Cree Nation. He is an Assistant Professor in the Creative Writing Program at the University of British Columbia. A 2018 Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Scholar, he earned his PhD in English at the University of Alberta. He was also a 2016 Rhodes Scholar and holds an M.St. in Women’s Studies from the University of Oxford and Wadham College. In the First Nations Youth category, Belcourt was awarded a 2019 Indspire Award, which is the highest honor the Indigenous community bestows on its own leaders. He is the author of three books: This Wound is a World, NDN Coping Mechanisms: Notes from the Field, and A History of My Brief Body. His fourth book, A Minor Chorus, will be published in the fall of 2022 by Hamish Hamilton (CAN) and W.W. Norton (US).

Website + Instagram
—

11 March 2022

Oxygen Art Centre

JOIN US FOR AN ONLINE TALK WITH Léuli Eshrāghi ON QUEERER TIMES

Guest Speaker 2: Léuli Eshrāghi

March 31, 2022, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM PST

Register via EventBrite

Admission is free. Everyone welcome to attend.

Oxygen Art Centre launches the second phase of an online youth arts education program entitled freezer cheese. Generously supported by the BC Arts Council Pivot Program and Osprey Community Foundation, the second phase offers an online youth workshop series and public speaker series throughout March and April 2022. Part one of freezer cheese, here.

Led by researcher and curator Hanss Lujan Torres, the freezer cheese: queerer times series presents weekly workshops and visiting speakers to explore alternative ways of thinking about time and the ever-changing present moment. Rooted in 2SQTBIPOC experiences, these events will engage with broader timescapes like pandemic time and colonial time and try to make sense of the “queerer” times we are all experiencing.

The second online public event features Léuli Eshrāghi, Sāmoan/Persian/Cantonese interdisciplinary artist, writer, curator and researcher working between Australia and Canada. They intervene in display territories to centre global Indigenous and Asian diasporic visuality, sensual and spoken languages, and ceremonial-political practices. Through performance, moving image, writing and installation, they engage with Indigenous futurities as haunted by ongoing militourist and missionary violences that once erased faʻafafine-faʻatane people from kinship and knowledge structures.

The final speaker series event will feature writer Billy Ray Belcourt, who will offer readings of his work and discuss their relation to time and queerness. In conversation with the facilitator Hanss Lujan Torres, these events will emphasize anticolonial approaches and Indigenous understandings of time.

“freezer cheese” is derived from the fated piece of cheese—dairy or otherwise—that sits safely in the freezer, awaiting the moment it is needed for nutrition, for comfort, for enjoyment. These workshops and speaker series consider what lessons can be pulled from the theories of queer temporality and ask how we can use these to navigate moments of unease, pause, and disorientation brought on by the pandemic while also evoking a sense of play and curiosity.

Those interested in attending the speaker series are invited to register via EventBrite links above. All events are free and open to the public.

This project is generously supported by British Columbia Arts Council, Osprey Community Foundation, and Cowan’s Office Supplies Ltd.

Image Credit: Léuli Eshrāghi, Portrait by Rhett Hammerton, 2019

Bios:

About the Facilitator

Hanss Lujan Torres is an artist, curator and researcher from Cusco, Peru, working between the unceded territories of the Syilx/Okanagan Nation and Tiohtià:ke/Mooniyang/Montréal. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Minor in Art History and Visual Culture from the University of British Columbia Okanagan and is an MA candidate in the Department of Art History at Concordia University. His research and curatorial practice consider subjugated archives, queer temporalities, and alternative futures in contemporary art. Hanss is the research coordinator for the Indigenous Futures Research Centre. In addition, he has worked with several arts organizations in British Columbia, including past president of the Alternator Centre for Contemporary Art and a curatorial assistant at the Kelowna Art Gallery.

Instagram

About the Guest Speakers

Kama La Mackerel is a Montreal-based Mauritian-Canadian multi-disciplinary artist, educator, writer, community-arts facilitator and literary translator who works within and across performance, photography, installations, textiles, digital art and literature.

Kama’s work is grounded in the exploration of justice, love, healing, decoloniality, hybridity, cosmopolitanism and self- and collective-empowerment. They believe that aesthetic practices have the power to build resilience and act as resistance to the status quo, thereby enacting an anticolonial praxis through cultural production.

Kama has exhibited and performed their work internationally and their writing in English, French and Kreol has appeared in publications both online and in print. ZOM-FAM, their debut poetry collection published by Metonymy Press was named a CBC Best Poetry Book, a Globe and Mail Best Debut, and was a finalist for the QWF Concordia University First Book Award and the Writers’ Trust of Canada Dayne Ogilvie Prize for Emerging LGBTQ2S+ Writ

Léuli Eshrāghi is a Sāmoan/Persian/Cantonese interdisciplinary artist, writer, curator and researcher working between Australia and Canada. They intervene in display territories to centre global Indigenous and Asian diasporic visuality, sensual and spoken languages, and ceremonial-political practices. Through performance, moving image, writing and installation, they engage with Indigenous futurities as haunted by ongoing militourist and missionary violences that once erased faʻafafine-faʻatane people from kinship and knowledge structures. As a curator, speaker and educator, Eshrāghi contributes to growing international critical practice across the Great Ocean and North America through residencies, exhibitions, publications, courses and rights advocacy. They are Curator of the 9th TarraWarra Biennial of Australian Art in 2023 at the TarraWarra Museum of Art, Curatorial Researcher in Residence (Blue Assembly) at the University of Queensland Art Museum, and Scientific Advisor (Reclaim the Earth) at the Palais de Tokyo.

Website + Instagram

Billy-Ray Belcourt is a writer and academic from the Driftpile Cree Nation. He is an Assistant Professor in the Creative Writing Program at the University of British Columbia. A 2018 Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Scholar, he earned his PhD in English at the University of Alberta. He was also a 2016 Rhodes Scholar and holds an M.St. in Women’s Studies from the University of Oxford and Wadham College. In the First Nations Youth category, Belcourt was awarded a 2019 Indspire Award, which is the highest honor the Indigenous community bestows on its own leaders. He is the author of three books: This Wound is a World, NDN Coping Mechanisms: Notes from the Field, and A History of My Brief Body. His fourth book, A Minor Chorus, will be published in the fall of 2022 by Hamish Hamilton (CAN) and W.W. Norton (US).

Category: Oxygen Art Centre

EMPLOYMENT DETAILS: GALLERY ASSISTANT (YCW)