Skip to content
Contemporary Art Gallery

555 Nelson Street
Vancouver, Canada
Open from Tuesday to
Sunday 12 pm → 6 pm

Admission always free
ArchiveExhibition
30 Oct 93until27 Nov 93

Rebecca Belmore

WANA-NA-WANG-ONG

555 Hamilton St

A closeup of a dense bed of moss, with several small pieces of coiled and rusty wire poking through. The moss is pale yellow-green and the wire is different shades of orange-brown.

The Contemporary Art Gallery is pleased to present a new exhibition by Ontario-based Ojibwa artist Rebecca Belmore. Belmore's work encompasses both performance and installation pieces that employ various mediums and focus on giving voice to the Aboriginal community.

The exhibition at the Contemporary Art Gallery is titled WANA-NA-WANG- ONG, the Anishinaabe word for sandy bay, and is comprised of two 8 feet by 14 feet suspended panels made from spruce roots, dried mud, and vines. The materials were gathered and the pieces constructed at Sioux Lookout in northern Ontario where Belmore's parents and grandparents once lived. WANA-NA-WANG-ONG is a tactile and contemplative work that literally brings the northern Ontario landscape to the west coast. Cedar tea will be served throughout the exhibition.

Rebecca Belmore has performed and exhibited extensively in Canada, most recently in the 1992 National Gallery of Canada exhibition LAND/SPIRIT/POWER. WANA-NA-WANG-ONG will be Belmore's first exhibition in Vancouver.

A gallery with several artworks on the walls and floor, including 3 life-scale photos. A colour photo shows a person standing on a rocky shore, dressed warmly. The other 2 show the rest of the shore.
A closeup of 3 artworks on a white wall. They are made of thin glossy material, stretched out and pinned. 2 of the works include enlarged text from hand-written documents about the queen of England.
A closeup of the base of a wall in a gallery. The wall is painted clay-red, and has a flat handmade dish resting on the floor in front of it. The dish contains a mound of powder that matches the wall.
A large installation in a gallery. The work is a large plane of coils of rusty wire on one side, and green moss on the other. The work is curved and pieces of each material poke out on either side.
A large installation in a gallery. The work is a two large plane of coils of rusty wire on one side, and green moss on the other curved into an incomplete cylinder, suspended above the ground.

Documents

Essay: “This Is Not About Landscape, It's About Land.,” Lee-Ann Martinpdf11mbPoetry: Florene Belmorepdf11mb

Publications & Editions

PublicationRebecca Belmore$12.00
A closeup of a dense bed of moss, with several small pieces of coiled and rusty wire poking through. The moss is pale yellow-green and the wire is different shades of orange-brown.
A gallery with several artworks on the walls and floor, including 3 life-scale photos. A colour photo shows a person standing on a rocky shore, dressed warmly. The other 2 show the rest of the shore.
A closeup of 3 artworks on a white wall. They are made of thin glossy material, stretched out and pinned. 2 of the works include enlarged text from hand-written documents about the queen of England.
A closeup of the base of a wall in a gallery. The wall is painted clay-red, and has a flat handmade dish resting on the floor in front of it. The dish contains a mound of powder that matches the wall.
A large installation in a gallery. The work is a large plane of coils of rusty wire on one side, and green moss on the other. The work is curved and pieces of each material poke out on either side.
A large installation in a gallery. The work is a two large plane of coils of rusty wire on one side, and green moss on the other curved into an incomplete cylinder, suspended above the ground.