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The Opening - Shannon Oksanen

THE OPENING is all about introducing the fascinating, quirky and wonderful people working in and around the visual arts in Vancouver.



THE OPENING is all about introducing the fascinating, quirky and wonderful people working in and around the visual arts in Vancouver. Each week, we'll feature an artist, collective, curator or administrator to delve deep into who and what makes art happen!


'Simone and Jean-Paul', 2007, printed wallpaper, dimensions variable

Nostalgia, or the yearning for the past, is everywhere right now. From Mad Men to the re-issue of the classic Penguin book cover, we as a culture certainly seem to be reaching back for a time that we perceive to be simpler and perhaps, more beautiful. When I ask Shannon Oksanen (b. 1967) what she is nostalgic for, she finds the question hard to answer. As an artist mining the culture of the past to situate herself within tradition, that comes as no surprise.


Oksanen uses the images of a number of revered cultural figures in her works. She painted a whole series based on well-known photographs of Elvis Presley – Elvis in uniform, Elvis playing guitar, Elvis young, and Elvis old. He appears soft and almost dewy in some images, this perfect musical and manly specimen that changed modern music and left the world too soon. In other works, she used the images of French existentialist philosophers Simone de Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Sartre. In addition to being among the most well known philosophers and intellectuals of the 20th century, de Beauvoir and Sartre were lifelong, polyamorous partners. Oksanen created puppets in their image, complete with their own curtained vitrine. Puppets were once common toys in a household - even I can recall putting on shows with my collection in the late 80s. But with the surge of video games and accompanying consoles, they have almost completely disappeared as outlets for a child’s imagination. In addition to the puppets, she also made wallpaper with a pattern of portraits of the philosophers. Oksanen was “curious to look at their star status in the 1950's as icons of seriousness and as a romantic couple and to present them in an implied contrast with contemporary celebrity culture and with today's celebrity couples - say Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes - humorously, in the context of décor.”


'little boat', 2007, 16 mm film projection, 4 min 41 sec

Quite a bit of Oksanen’s work is either film or based around film. “Film has a 'hands on' craft aspect that I am also playing with in my sculptural work,” she explains. “Especially the craft of the short documentary film essay and the visual poetry of films like [French filmmaker Albert Lamorisse's] ‘The Red Balloon’.” These types of films were sources for her film ‘Little Boat,’ a black and white 16mm film projection of a toy boat floating through a lake to upbeat music. Like ‘The Red Balloon,’ her film uses a simple idea to really get inside the human experience. Her aim is “for a kind of simplification in my work that could be associated with the past and a 'simpler' time,” so it only makes sense for distractions to be minimal and the focus to be singular. ‘little boat’ reminds us of those idyllic moments in childhood using our own imagination to play, spending an afternoon sailing a boat into the uncharted lands and waters found our minds.


'Summerland', 2008, Cinemascope

Inspiration can come from all kinds of places though. Her film ‘Summerland’ is a re-creation of a scene from the musical film ‘Viva Las Vegas,’ starring Elvis Presley and Ann-Margaret. Elvis plays a racecar driver trying to woo swimming instructor Ann-Margaret, while a Count also competes for her affections. To win her over he takes her on a daylong adventure date, and ultimately succeeds in gaining her love. Oksanen recreates part of their date – a playful scene in which they water-ski in a dam. Released in 1964, ‘Viva Las Vegas’ came out on the cusp of great cultural change. While the Beatles were headlining the British Invasion, protests against the Vietnam war began as American bombing escalated, and the civil rights movement gained ground with the abolition of racial segregation, amongst dozens of other significant events. Her outtake is like an escapist interlude – two beautiful and fit people, against a beautiful backdrop, gliding through the water as if nothing has happened and everything is hunky dory. They are still gorgeous, young and in love for the moment.


Installation views of 'Sculptress' at Union Gallery

More recently she has been sculpting small pieces in her modest studio, a selection of which were shown at Union Gallery in London earlier this year for her show 'Sculptress'. Oksanen “was looking at a lot of the sculptural works of Cy Twombly, Calder's small playful works, Klee's puppets, Franz West's papier mache, etc in the context of home crafts.” Constructed with plaster, found objects, and other items typically associated with craft, she is playing with the minimalist form of the 50s. What could be more minimalist than using the items around you to construct minimalist forms? Their installation itself is akin to a different time in art, when showing individual sculptures on tables in close-knit groups was not frowned upon. These bulbous or pointy forms seem to exist in another era, when art was art and not an extravagant show.

So what is she nostalgic for? “I really long for life without so much media. Family life seemed so much better when we weren't all plugged into various devices.” I can definitely agree. Oksanen is continuing to work with sculptural forms, as well as portrait paintings of Henry Moore. She is also planning to finally master surfing.

Shannon Oksanen obtained a degree in art history from the University of British Columbia in 1993. She has exhibited at the Contemporary Art Gallery, Vancouver; Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver; Charles H Scott Gallery, Vancouver; Union Gallery, London; 303 Gallery, New York; Seattle Art Museum, Seattle; Wattis Art Institute, San Francisco; and Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh.

All images courtesy Shannon Oksanen