In an emerging digital environment, artistic productions across the globe have moved onto our computer screens and iPhones. Despite digital restrictions, however, Union Gallery managed to keep the spontaneous energy of film and the art of sculpture alive in its two virtual exhibitions, Lens/Visions and Growing ; pains.
On Nov. 12 and 13, Lens/Visions, a virtual screening of 11 short films created by Queen’s students and recent graduates was streamed on Facebook Live. The amalgamation of creative projects ranged from themes of environmentalism to romantic relationships, and varied in terms of film approaches, showcasing the breadth of creativity at Queen’s.
The production was curated by Roy Zheng, Union Gallery curatorial assistant, who introduced the films and led a Q&A session following the screenings. This collaborative space where viewers could actively engage with artists created a real sense of community and proved how impactful film can be in the midst of global unrest.
The films were organized into two guiding themes, with ‘Mobile Lens’ on the first day and ‘Critical Visions’ on the second. The films of ‘Critical Visions’ encompassed the more palpable themes of isolation and unrest, which carried a heavier tone compared to films in the ‘Mobile Lens’ collection.
James P. Hoban’s Dinner was an emotionally tense six minutes, expertly shot in a single take. The short film revolved around a young couple struggling to sit down for dinner, as sounds of violence and destruction were present outside. Though dialogue was minimal, the film captured the existential fear and chaos around us as we struggle to maintain normality.
Other notable productions included Ming Winx and Siyang Hu’s Lahu in the Clouds, which depicted the Lahu peoples living in the high mountains of China’s Yunnan Province. The cinematography and imagery were particularly breathtaking, transporting viewers to a completely different cultural landscape.
Winx and Hu’s poetic documentary juxtaposes Nanpo—a quiet paradise—with the spread of COVID-19 around the rest of the world. It specifically emphasizes the relationship between contemporary Chinese ethnic minorities and nature. Undertones of the pandemic were present in multiple films, both explicitly and covertly.
After the festival screening on Facebook Live, Lens/Visions was transformed into an on-site exhibition at the Union Gallery in the Project Room.
In addition to Lens/Visions, Union Gallery also displayed Growing ; pains, which the Gallery described as a portrayal of “the oftentimes painful journey of growth through whimsical and vulnerable larger-than-life sculptures.”
Growing ; pains featured the work of Hannah Gommerman, who is a third year BFA student at Queen’s studying sculpture and painting. Her work is described as interactive, and at times humorous, bridging the poetic with the often uncomfortable and funny reality of opening up.
Gommerman’s sculpture Heart Strings required viewers to physically engage with an oversized geometric heart, folding the sculpture open to reveal inner details. It was a profound exercise on deepening human relationships and the hard truths buried under layers of emotional protection.
Both exhibitions displayed the talent of young artists in the Queen’s community, captivating audiences both virtually and in-person. The innovative work in Lens/Visions and Growing ; pains reminds us that deep connection can be catalyzed in varying ways—allowing us to reflect on our own unpredictable emotions.
LONDON (AP) — With a few daubs of a paintbrush, the Brontë sisters have got their dots back.
More than eight decades after it was installed, a memorial to the three 19th-century sibling novelists in London’s Westminster Abbey was amended Thursday to restore the diaereses – the two dots over the e in their surname.
The dots — which indicate that the name is pronounced “brontay” rather than “bront” — were omitted when the stone tablet commemorating Charlotte, Emily and Anne was erected in the abbey’s Poets’ Corner in October 1939, just after the outbreak of World War II.
They were restored after Brontë historian Sharon Wright, editor of the Brontë Society Gazette, raised the issue with Dean of Westminster David Hoyle. The abbey asked its stonemason to tap in the dots and its conservator to paint them.
“There’s no paper record for anyone complaining about this or mentioning this, so I just wanted to put it right, really,” Wright said. “These three Yorkshire women deserve their place here, but they also deserve to have their name spelled correctly.”
It’s believed the writers’ Irish father Patrick changed the spelling of his surname from Brunty or Prunty when he went to university in England.
Raised on the wild Yorkshire moors, all three sisters died before they were 40, leaving enduring novels including Charlotte’s “Jane Eyre,” Emily’s “Wuthering Heights” and Anne’s “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.”
Rebecca Yorke, director of the Brontë Society, welcomed the restoration.
“As the Brontës and their work are loved and respected all over the world, it’s entirely appropriate that their name is spelled correctly on their memorial,” she said.
