Sarah Beck

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Sarah Beck is a Canadian artist from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. She received her Bachelor from Ryerson Polytechnic University, and her Masters from The Ontario College of Art and Design University. She currently works and lives in Toronto, Ontario.

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Artistic approach

Beck's artistic practice is characterized by its humour and its accessibility. These characteristics are employed to address her interests, frequently subjects of ecology, economy, labour and questions of fact and fiction. [1] Her work is often large-scale, and can be seen outside of the traditional gallery space as often as inside.

In 2001 Beck entered the art scene with her first artwork ÖDE. ÖDE is a company that designs, markets and produces economically affordable weapons using inexpensive materials. The weapons can be purchased in one of seven seasonal colours and assembled using an allan key. [2] ÖDE premiered in Vancouver at the Third Avenue Gallery in August 2001, [3] going on to be exhibited widely, including in Seattle and Philadelphia, and winning her The Canada Council's Joseph S Stauffer Prize, created to "encourage young Canadians of outstanding promise or potential." [4] The original ÖDE armoured vehicle will be on display in Calgary at The Military Museums until early September, 2018. [5]

Sarah Beck, ODE, 2001 ODE, 2001.jpg
Sarah Beck, ÖDE, 2001

In 2009 Beck created Dirty Loonie [6] as Canada's official entry into the VIièmes International Jeux de la Francophonie in Beirut, Lebanon, winning Canada a silver medal in the sculpture category. [7] This artwork went on to be exhibited at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games in the Cultural Olympiad, [8] and in Toronto's 2012 Nuit Blanche as part of The Museum for the End of the World. [9] [10] Beck also created Postcards from the End [11] as part of The Museum for the End of the World. Beck describes Postcards from the End as "sculptural postcards viewers posed with to commemorate their visit". [12] The three large-scale works were disaster themed life-sized dioramas meant for the taking and sharing of selfies, and meant to blend photo ops with disaster.

In 2015 her work The Light, [13] was exhibited in Jubilee Plaza in Fort McMurray, Alberta at the end of 2015. [14] Created as an epitaph to the last days of the tungsten light bulb, which as of 2015 will no longer be produced in North America, The Light is filled with 360 light bulbs that ran continuously until they all burned out. The channel letters are a line from Dylan Thomas' poem 'Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night'.

Sarah Beck, The Light, 2015 Sarah Beck, The Light, 2015.jpg
Sarah Beck, The Light, 2015

As part of Gallery Galleria , [15] Sarah Beck and her frequent collaborator Shlomi Greenspan [16] exhibited Clean Sweep, a converted claw machine with a miniature imagined version of the aging Galleria Shopping Centre. The exhibition was curated by Aisle 4. [17]

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References

  1. ↑ "About". Sarah Beck. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  2. ↑ "ÖDE". shopode.com. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  3. ↑ "Érudit | Espace Sculpture n59 2002, p. 48-49 | Sarah Beck". www.erudit.org. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  4. ↑ "Joseph S. Stauffer Prizes | The Canada Council for the Arts". canadacouncil.ca. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  5. ↑ "Art as Prescience: Reflections on Sarah Beck's 2001 ÖDE". ActiveHistory.ca. 2018-07-06. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
  6. ↑ "Dirty Loonie". Sarah Beck.
  7. ↑ "Les meilleurs moments des Jeux 2009". www.tv5monde.com. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  8. ↑ "CV". Sarah Beck. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  9. ↑ "Dirty Loonie: powerful art about wildlife and oil". Environmental Law and Litigation. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  10. ↑ "Top 10 Art Shows". NOW Toronto Magazine - Think Free. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  11. ↑ "Postcards from the End". Sarah Beck.
  12. ↑ "Postcards from the End". Sarah Beck. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  13. ↑ "The Light". Sarah Beck.
  14. ↑ "McMurray Musings: Fort McMurray, We Have Ignition". www.mcmurraymusings.com. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  15. ↑ "New art exhibition is a love letter to Toronto's relic Galleria Shopping Centre". www.cbc.ca. Retrieved 2016-05-19.
  16. ↑ "Artist Shlomi Greenspan - HOME". Artist Shlomi Greenspan - HOME. Retrieved 2016-05-19.
  17. ↑ "Aisle 4 | Curatorial Projects". aisle4.ca. Retrieved 2016-05-19.
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