Neon, aluminum, transformer, enamel, each 60 x 60 inches [152.5 x 152.5 cm]
From the collection of the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia: “Tautology” is a series of neon sculptures depicting the thunderbird, a legendary creature in various North American Indigenous cultures. Linklater appropriated this specific thunderbird image from Norval Morrisseau’s seminal painting, Androgyny [1983]. By reanimating the bird in neon – a contemporary, commercial material – Linklater inserts the traditional icon into contemporary discourse.
Working in performance, installation, film, and other media, Duane Linklater addresses issues of cultural loss and recovery as well as authenticity, appropriation, and authorship. He often collaborates with others, reconsidering oral traditions where the transmission of knowledge, stories, or histories is essential to future generations. >> The Artist’s Text
SELECTED AWARDS
2016 // Canada Council for the Arts, Victor Martyn Lynch-Staunton Award for Media Art
2013 // Sobey Art Award hosted by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2016 // New York [us], 80WSE Gallery
2016 // Toronto [ca], Mercer Union
2015 // Salt Lake City, UT [us], Utah Museum of Fine Arts
2014 // Vancouver [ca], Catriona Jeffries
2014 // Philadelphia, PA [us], Institute of Contemporary Art Philadelphia,
2014´// Montreal, QC [ca], Vox Centre de L’image Contemporaine
Since 2005 // regular exhibition activity, mainly in North America
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BACKGROUND
2012 // New York [us], Bard College, MA
2005 // Alberta [ca], University, Fine Arts, BA
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