I’ve been a regular reader of Art:21’s blog (affiliated with the PBS educational series, Art:21-Art in the Twenty-First Century) for quite a long while now, and was happy for the recent opportunity to contribute a post to their current Flash Points topic. Of the many art blogs I follow, Art:21 fosters the sort of academic rigour I can really respect in terms of discussing contemporary art in an expanded pedagogical framework that is both challenging and accessible - it’s a fine balance, and one I enjoy when I see it done well.

Since Art:21 is based in the US, I was intrigued to see today’s introduction of a new column, ‘Calling from Canada’, which “chronicles the burgeoning art scene across the border.”

Immediately, my eyes narrow on that word “burgeoning” to describe the entirety of Canada’s art. The word isn’t without its positive connotations - a quick check of my dictionary is rampant with talk of budding and blooming - but the sense of something incomplete or only-just-begun sticks unpleasantly in my teeth. Still, I can let that slide; even within Canadian art criticism there are frequent calls upon ourselves to step up our game and compete more favourably for the international spotlight. Perhaps that sort of burgeoning-as-wake-up-call is itself the point of the column. Or so I think, uncharacteristically optimistic, to myself.

Instead, CBC Radio host and fashionista Raji Sohal opens her first column with the requisite opening line on “The Great White North” followed by a broader mandate that is less an incisive instrument for critique and more a game of show-and-tell:

In my following posts in this column, I will look at exhibitions in Montréal, Toronto, and Vancouver and provide an entry point to begin to talk about art in Canada and how it shapes the nation’s identity and cultural landscape. For a country that normally gets treated like the kid sister across the border, the arts are surprisingly vibrant in Canada, with many of its artistic exports doing well internationally. And this deserves some attention. Let’s start things off with Montréal.

Okay, leaving aside the “surprisingly vibrant” part of that paragraph (talk about your backhanded compliments), talking about how Canadian art shapes Canadian culture is circular to the point of nonsense. A more honest intent might simply be to draw attention to Canadian artists active in Canada for the benefit of this American context. While not exactly deep in scholarship, there’s at least a noble cause at hand. This much, I can also accept as a, let’s say, burgeoning effort.

But here’s the kicker. After a travel-guide introduction to Montréal and fleeting references to three Canadian artists represented in exhibits at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (only one of whom, David K. Ross, merits any discussion of his work), the article proceeds to devote roughly half its girth to a loving appreciation of Runa Islam’s projected film works, complete with Vimeo documentation of the installations at MAC.

Runa Islam, Be The First To See What You See As You See It, 2004.

Oh, I know exactly what you’re asking yourself. “But… isn’t Runa Islam a British artist?” Too damn right, she is! So that’s a gold star for you and no Turner Prize for Runa (though she was shortlisted in 2008, and deservedly so). And definitely no medals yet for Raji’s mission “to talk about art in Canada and how it shapes the nation’s identity and cultural landscape.” I read her rather lightweight descriptions of Islam’s work twice just in case I had missed the subtle point at which she placed the artist’s work within a Canadian cultural context, but no dice.

Unless, of course, the point is that Canada is - as my former English schoolchildren used to delight in reminding me - “the Colonies,” and British art is just about the same as Canadian anyway because we’ve got the same Queen and know how to spell properly. If that’s the case, may Elizabeth’s matching hat and handbag save us all. Or at least compel Raji Sohal to actually talk about Canadian art next time.

Note to my Hamilton readers: James North Art Crawl recap pending shortly, unexpected rant was unexpected. -SV