‘Unknown Area’ Carleton exhibit incorporates touch into gallery

The Carleton University Art Gallery unveiled a new exhibit, Unknown Area, this fall — with a premise that’s unconventional, to say the least. 

Guests act as archeologists discovering evidence of a society where the blind ways of being — like exploring the world through touch — were normal parts of daily life. Curators and placards throughout the exhibit encourage viewers to touch and interact with the art, pushing the boundaries of traditional galleries. 

Jennifer Anderson, Carleton University’s Art Gallery interim director and curator, said that the unique concept is what makes the exhibition stand out. 

“They really want to encourage people to handle things, and the premise for this exhibition is this conceptual narrative that they’ve presented where it’s this kind of speculative archeology,” she said.

The exhibit is a project from Emily Cook and Andy Slater, two artists on the blind spectrum.

“This project began with a shared interest in the kind of world-building that [people on the blind spectrum] do every day, as we explore a world built for sighted folks,” reads a sign at the exhibit’s entrance. 

Near the entrance hangs a roughly 10-foot boat-esque sculpture made with smooth sticks and a rough mâché holding the stick frame together.

A smaller model of the sculpture hangs on the wall behind it.

A large tapestry with rough edges and brown, green hues with the texture of dead leaves hangs on a wall further in the exhibit.

Anderson said that making fabric-like material is Cook’s area of expertise. 

“This was inspired by lichen, almond trees, and she’s even put these on like a cloak,” Anderson said.

There are three white pillars, in the same room, holding gold-coloured metallic sculptures.

They are smooth to the touch with different shapes hinting at their uses. One is bowl-shaped, made of small circular pieces of metal, held together by three longer strips of metal at the top forming a triangle shape. 

These pieces stand out to Anderson as some of the most interesting in the gallery. 

“I love that these bronze [statues] are really heavy and that they’re presented as kind of relics that you can handle,” she said. “So many people are conditioned to not touch objects when they come into a gallery, so this is fun that they get to touch everything.”

On the wall hang five smaller tools made of the same sticks and rough mâché as the boat-esque structure. 

To Anderson, these pieces serve an important part in the narrative Cook and Slater created. 

“And then these objects on the wall that are these twigs, stick branches, and paper are, within their narrative, are kind of presented as a kind of map that you can use as a mapping tool,” she said.

On the other wall is a black and white wallpaper with raised lines displaying cube-like patterns and intricate circles.

Part of what guided Cook and Slater in creating this exhibit, Anderson said, is a mutual love for science fiction, reflected in the geometric patterns located on the raised wall. 

“You’re invited to touch, touch that and try to imagine what the significance of these geometric patterns could be,” Anderson said.

In the next room, sits three plexiglass plaques on a small white shelf.

They’re a similar design to the previous wallpaper, with raised white lines displaying a machine-like layout.

On the other side of this room sits a table with two pairs of headphones connected to cassette players. On the table sits a white tray with pages of transcriptions.

“There’s audio that you can sit down and listen to. One of them has a transducer speaker that makes the seat rumble a bit,” Anderson explained.

The audio translations are not in English or Braille, Anderson added, but are visual translations of the various sounds heard on the tapes.

In the final room, we see the exhibit through the eyes of an archeologist cataloguing artifacts, with shelves holding boxes of textiles.

There are two tables in the centre of the room. One holds two black boxes with holes on the sides for viewers to stick their hands in. 

“It’s very much this invitation to come along on this kind of journey with [archeologists] and participate,” Anderson said.

The final table holds various geode-shaped materials made of a dried clay. They’re small and have a light weight feel with jagged edges.

Cook and Slater’s interactive exhibit will be running until mid-December. 

Featured image by Syd Robbescheuten/the Charlatan