the last place on earth you probably want to be » culture

Henry Morgentaler: Order of Canada

Marissa — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:33:55 +0000

Although somewhat unrelated to the general purpose of this website, I feel compelled to express my gratitude to my country for awarding Dr. Henry Morgentaler the Order of Canada.

(more…)

Books and Movies: The Bias of Lists

Marissa — Wed, 14 May 2008 15:02:21 +0000

So in the last couple of days, kottke.org has unearthed two lists that have been a lot of fun to go through: 1001 Books and 1001 Movies that presumably you must read or see before you die. Of course lists such as these are always bittersweet. I’ve read 45 books on the list but have also read hundreds more that didn’t make the list. In recognizing my frustration, I began to realize that these lists are a great exercise in understanding museum practices.

It might sound far off, but hear me out.

(more…)

How To Visit An Art Gallery

Marissa — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 19:25:39 +0000

I’d like to start by posting an article I wrote for Inside Mississauga, the magazine I used to co-publish between 2003 and 2005. It’s a couple of years old, but it’s a good summation of my interest in improving awareness of and access to art in Mississauga. In working with art in the suburbs, I became extremely turned off by elitist/privileged institutions and organizations (particularly those in Toronto) who were more interested in keeping the “wrong” people out than letting their offerings impact as many people as possible. In this piece I tried to address the three primary apprehensions that Mississauga residents had when their fear of art overpowered their curiosity to explore it: education, money and “worthiness”.

(more…)