When I moved to Calgary late in 2014 I definitely never expected to see the NDP win a provincial election. It was the most pleasant of surprises. Still harbouring trauma from BC’s most recent provincial election, I walked around for weeks in disbelief. Things are pretty grim in Alberta these days, but I’m still cautiously hopeful that this shift will be good for arts and culture in the city. I feel the same federally. 
Patrick Cruz’s Otherings at Secret 8 Project Space
The not-ARC, not-commercial gallery, not-museum upstart space has become increasingly interesting here. Places like Secret 8 (operated out of the bottom of a skateboard shop) and AVALANCHE! (a studio/exhibition space/multiples shop) had some the most compelling exhibitions I’ve seen this year. People in Calgary are really great at making their own fun. Take both the now ten-year-old indie culture juggernaut Sled Island and the brand new Femme Wave feminist art festival as indicators of the spectrum of cool shit that people are working on. With Contemporary Calgary, the Illingworth Kerr Gallery, and the Glenbow all currently without full-time director/curators of contemporary art, this community is picking up the slack and leading culture in the city from the grassroots up.
I admittedly have not spent much time in Alberta outside of Calgary (I’ve been to, uh, Banff), but I have spent some time in Lethbridge at the Southern Alberta Art Gallery. Here’s another instance of a super-strong regional gallery (like Oakville Galleries in Ontario and Presentation House in BC). The SAAG is killing it with their exhibitions and programming, including shows from Antonia Hirsch, Elaine Stocki, and Brendan Fernandes. It seems to be one of the only institutions in Alberta that is actively participating in contemporary art nationally and internationally (through primarily exhibiting Canadian artists), all the while attracting a remarkably dedicated and enthusiastic local audience.
Sarah Todd is a curator currently based in Calgary. She has previously worked at Western Front, InterAccess Electronic Media Arts Centre, XPACE Cultural Centre, and The Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery. She has also produced projects with a range of organizations including Vtape, Kunstverein München, The Goethe Institute, The Pacific Cinematheque, Glenbow Museum and The Illingworth Kerr Gallery. She is Akimblog’s Calgary correspondent and can be followed on Twitter @sarahannetodd.
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2015 Critic's Picks
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