At Global Implications, the Southern Graphics Council Conference held in Chicago in March, a Canadian printmaking panel addressed the topic "Canadian/American Printmaking: Cross Fertilization or Cultural Imperialism". The panelists were Walter Jule, William Pura, Guy Langevin, and Mark Bovey, chosen to represent the views of printmakers from coast to coast across Canada.
The perspectives varied from place to place yet strongly suggested that Canada has come of age and no longer projects a nervous insecurity about its cultural identity. Walter Jule noted that the last 40 years had gradually eliminated the fear that originally accompanied Canada's official embracement of multiculturalism and suggested that this "culture of fragments" has perhaps been unified by geography as well as the passage of time. He described the strong network of connections that Alberta printmakers had developed with international printmakers, especially those in the Far East and Europe, and promoted the success of this international outreach initiative. Bill Pura pointed out that printmaking in Winnipeg had largely developed under the hand of a few key American artists who had settled in the harsh isolated prairie region and therefore had a strong influence there. Guy Langevin's presentation focused on French Canada's cultural "difference" from the "mother socieities" - the rest of Canada, the US, and France itself. While he recognized influences from outside of this cultural enclave, he felt that Quebec's isolation had helped to preserve its cultural integrity. Mark Bovey addressed the situation in Atlantic Canada and brought a fresh perspective to the discussion. Describing Canada as a "country of betweens", he outlined the strong influence that US artists had had in establishing NSCAD but demonstrated Canada's strong contemporary artistic autonomy. The conversation ended with Bill Pura's insightful observations about "conceptual imperialism" in the far north and in Baker Lake specifically. Overall, it seems that Canada recognizes the benefits of the cross-border fertilization it has shared with its neighbour to the south, but that perhaps it is now time to address issues of cultural Imperialism within its own borders.
http://www2.colum.edu/sgc/Panels.html
http://www2.colum.edu/sgc/Panels.html
