Leadership

As we enter into autumn and a major exhibition changeover at Remai Modern, we reflect with gratitude on a vibrant summer at the museum. From varied exhibitions and programs to WEGO, a partnership with the Nutrien Children’s Festival of Saskatchewan that animated the riverbank for all ages, we are thrilled to be able to connect people with art and one another.

While we still face many challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are encouraged by the public response to our programs and the return of our visitors. We feel fortunate to be seen as a safe and inspiring place to visit. Things are constantly changing but our team is closely monitoring the situation and meeting regularly to adjust our safety protocols as needed. As an added precaution, we recently returned to a mask requirement for visitors. Head to remaimodern.org/visit to see our latest guidelines. We appreciate everyone’s efforts to help keep everyone in our community safe.

Recently, Remai Modern opened one of its largest exhibitions to date. Postcommodity: Time Holds All the Answers spans multiple gallery spaces and expands into other unexpected areas of the museum. We are delighted to be part of this artist collective’s most significant museum exhibition to date. Postcommodity, currently comprised of Cristóbal Martínez and Kade L. Twist, make work using a shared Indigenous lens and voice. Though they are based in the U.S., their work tackles themes that resonate from north to south and back. Through the curation of Gerald McMaster, adjunct curator for Remai Modern and member of the Siksika Nation, and a consultation with Wanuskewin Heritage Park, the exhibition is in dialogue with this place, inviting conversations about resource extraction and land use, toxicity and containment, translation across Indigenous and colonial languages, and more. There will be many opportunities to discuss these works and themes through a series of talks, workshops and online programs. 

Remai Modern’s collection includes 350 Inuit artworks. At the end of October, the museum opens Atautchikun | wȃhkôtamowin, an exhibition that presents works from Remai Modern’s permanent collection that illustrate the diversity and complexity of work by Inuit artists. The pieces on view defy stereotypes associated with so-called “authentic” northern Indigenous art. We are committed to sharing the breadth and depth of works from our collection, particularly when exhibited with contemporary context and situated alongside new works, showing connections across geography and time. Atautchikun | wȃhkôtamowin, guest curated by Missy LeBlanc and Kablusiak, features new commissions from artists with relationships to Inuk artists represented in the museum’s collection. The show gives us an opportunity to look at what Inuit art is and can be outside of colonial frameworks that focus on monetary gain.

On October 8, guest curator Dr. Alma Mikulinksy takes a unique approach to the work of Pablo Picasso, with an exhibition centred on contemporary interpretations of his iconic anti-war painting Guernica from 1937. The artists in Guernica Remastered produce works that emulate Picasso’s composition while speaking to present-day concerns. We are fortunate to have the opportunity to bring these works into contemporary dialogue and to utilize Dr. Mikulinsky’s expertise on Picasso.

Remai Modern continues to offer programs both on site and online, giving people from Saskatchewan and beyond access points to art and artists on view at the museum. Recently, we launched a new online magazine called Currents. There, you can see behind-the-scenes videos, learn more about the artists on view, see the impact art makes on our community and more. We invite you to explore this new platform and make a deeper connection with Remai Modern.

Moving into this busy fall season, we continue to be thankful for the support of our partners and donors, including the Frank and Ellen Remai Foundation. We are also grateful to all of our members and visitors. Thank you for supporting and engaging with Remai Modern!
 

Aileen Burns & Johan Lundh
Co-Executive Director & CEOs