In order to capture my experience at Western Front visually, I thought back to what kind of sensory memories and events stood out to me most. There were always a lot of sounds, and music, playing in the downstairs space and also being performed in the Luxe hall upstairs, as well as the audio that Gabi Dao was putting together in the studio. I spent hours listening to the unedited versions of her podcast with Discorder, transcribing the discussion while also listening in on the points they were discussing about Vancouvers Art and Music community. The Western Front was always buzzing with a vibrant soundscape of new media art and conversation. The Western Front is a place of inclusivity and curiosity, hence I felt that the ears not only described the soundscape, but also conveyed how listening is one of the most important things Western Front does. The curators, and entire team there, do a great job at hosting and listening to new discussions, and ideas by emerging artists, as well as helping these ideas be put into reality.

*I’m unable to upload a photo of it, because apparently I’ve exceeded my upload limit, sorry!

Est. 1973

Founded by 8 artists: Martin Bartlett, Mo van Nostrand, Kate Craig, Henry Greenhow, Glenn Lewis, Eric Metcalfe, Michael Morris, and Vincent Trasov.

Aimed at creating a space for exploration and creation of new art forms, the Western Front has played a major role in the development of electronic and networked art forms in a global context throughout its history.

Western Front was one of the pioneers in connecting artists to technology, and their activities continue to focus on the inception of electronic art, sound, noise and video. They are a crucial platform for interdisciplinary, experimental art practices in Canada and internationally, bringing in artists from all over the world for different events.

The WF’s general curatorial priorities are dedicated to critical investigations surrounding interdisciplinary, media-based, anti-object and ephemeral practices, which pay attention to the contexts and economies in which they are produced.

The internal structure has continued to evolve and several programs were developed and even retired over time, such as the Front Magazine, Literary Arts, and Movement Arts, however the centre still works on such projects from time to time.

The Western Front hosts media-art residencies, and the current artist in residency is Gabi Dao who is just finishing up her last project. In her residency, Gabi worked on producing her podcast series called Here Nor There in which she features emerging artists, curators and organizers based in Vancouver.

Recently, the Western Front hosted Gabi Dao’s Slow Wave Pt. 2 in collaboration with Michelle Mackenzie’s All the Little Objectiles, which featured a sonic sound installation that was distributed throughout the Western Front, from the basement to the Luxe Hall where Michelle was performing live. The event turnt the whole building into various soundscapes, inviting visitors to float about and up the stairs throughout various spaces. The Western Front offers this sensibility to the texture and makeup of its featured exhibits by allowing them to take over beyond the exhibition space and work effectively in a bigger setting and context. The curatorial activities reflect on the contextual surroundings and economies in this way, which was also seen in 2015’s exhibition of Urgent Imagination, which expanded over the exterior of the Western Front.

“About Western Front.” Western Front. N.p., n.d. Web.

western Front poster

Everyone at Western Front has been really welcoming, and it’s been an amazing experience thus far. I’ve had two meetings with Allison Collins, the Media Arts Curator, and Gabi Dao, the Artist in Residency, in which we have discussed the upcoming events and how I can help out, and I have also started working with Gabi on her ongoing projects that she is currently pursuing with Western Front. This includes me transcribing recordings for her podcast series called “Here Nor There”, and the episode I am currently working on is an interview with CITR and Discorder magazine, and it’s been really interesting listening in on the dialogue about the Vancouver Arts community between Gabi and the directors of Discorder.

One thing I really like about helping Gabi with this project is that in addition to being able to pick her brain about the music and arts industry, I also get to learn even more from different perspectives from the people featured in her podcast interviews. For instance, for this current episode in progress the fact that it features Discorder, an initiative that was founded at UBC and operates mainly out of UBC, it’s been really neat to see the overlap and link between the UBC Arts and Culture fanatics and the wider community outside of the university, and also learning about the struggles that this organization shares and experiences within that community.

Then, the other part of my role at Western Front is helping out with the upcoming events, and the first one was actually just yesterday on September 30^th. It was the New Forms Festival Symposium, which featured some workshops and panel discussions. At this symposium I really recognized how Western Front operates as a space that facilitates exhibits, and experimental art practices that also engages audiences in dialogue. My favourite part of the afternoon was the finishing panel discussion, which was hosted by Mutya Macatumpag, who is an interdisciplinary artist and a lovely, really friendly and kind person herself. The discussion was about shifting narratives in the electronic art & music industry and social change through curation and reclaiming of space in the global underground. Even though I am just now getting real exposure to electronic art and music and thus far really have not experimented in this medium at all, and maintained my practice in solely visual art, I could relate to the conversation and the challenges for female and non-binary artists.

It’s hard to put into words how incredible the experience of this panel was, and it far exceeded my expectations of what I would be exposed to and observe during my partnership with Western Front. I left the space with goosebumps, still after the clean up. It was my first time experiencing such an open, honest, empowering and vulnerable discussion. People in the audience, as well as the panellists, were not afraid to open up about their personal struggles and experiences within the electronic music community, and the entire room seemed to share this vision for inclusivity and hope for moral justice. It was one of those moments that sounds cliché when put into words, and you just had to be there.

One thing I took away from the experience is the validation of my passion for art and knowing that I share that passion with a community of people. Which felt really great, and left me incredibly motivated to continue my pursuit of this movement academically and professionally, as an artist, or even better as someone that helps other artists. I think that this experience will be one of many that will push me towards figuring out what part I want to take within this community and how I can make my mark.

Here is the timeline for the next month that I discussed with Allison.

Meetings: every Thursday at 3pm with Allison Collins and Gabi Dao

Ongoing Work:

• Work on transcriptions for Gabi Dao’s Podcast “Here Nor There”

Week 2:

Thursday, September 28^th 3-5pm

• Check-in on transcription #1
• Discussed set up/clean up and assistance for New Forms Festival

Saturday, September 30^th 12 – 7:30pm

• New Forms Festival Symposium
• Assist with drinks, set up, clean up
• Observe the events

Week 3:

Wednesday, October 4^th 6-10pm

• Live Performance by LIVE Bienniale
• Assistance with event space set up/clean up
• Runner throughout evening
• Observe and counting attendance

Thursday, October 5^th 3-5pm

• Meeting to discuss transcriptions
• Preparations for assistance at October 13^th event

Week 4:

Thursday, October 12^th 3-5pm

• Work on transcriptions

Friday, October 13^th 5-11pm

• Assist with set up/clean up
• Work the door and count attendance

Week 5:

Wednesday, October 18^th 6-10pm

• Aki Onda Concert
• Help take tickets
• Runner for front of house in assistance to music program

Thursday, October 19^th 3-5pm

• Staff lunch at 1pm
• Work on Transcriptions