curatorial statement

Stories Told is a group exhibition of Toronto-based artists of distinct backgrounds invited to contribute to the Vector Artist's Journal: A collection of essays written by these artists with each volume focusing on a different city. From New York to Oslo, Berlin and now Toronto, the Journal occupies a territory as suggested by Nicholas Bourriaud: "of global and decentralized negotiations, of multiple discussions among participants from different cultures engaging in heterogeneous discourses located within a translation-oriented modernity."

As an exhibition, Stories Told seeks not only to create a dialogue revolving around the singularity of the art works displayed, but also to forge a connection with the accumulation of texts represented in the journal itself. With innovation rooted native conditions and conversations, the works in the exhibition respond to local and global, social and political circumstances, drawing upon a range of material and discursive resources. The practices of these participating artists hinge not upon their roots, but upon the trajectories of those on the move that combine narrative, form, sign, and symbol in the telling of their stories.

about Vector

The Vector Artists Journal is a project facilitated by artists Peter Gregorio and Javier Barrios with the purpose of spreading the ideas and work of artists globally. Their mission is to build a database of knowledge, online and in publication, as well as through exhibitions, events and lectures. Each issue publishes a collection of essays by contemporary artists—distinct volumes focusing on a different city from around the world. Each volume is a collection of written works by local artists, the form, length, and theme of which is up to the individual contributor.

about the guest editor and curator

JOHN MONTEITH (b.1973 Canada) graduated in 2008 from the MFA program at Parsons the New School for Design. Monteith's work has been represented internationally in a number of collaborations, solo, and group exhibitions at the Tate Modern, X Initiative, PS 1, The DUMBO Art Center and San Art among other venues.

In 2011 Monteith was the resident artist at CAT Cologne, in Cologne, Germany and is a resident fellow this year at Kunsthalle Roveredo. His press and publications include Art In America, Charley, C Magazine, October 135, The Huffington Post, K-48, Petit Mort: Recollections of a Queer Public, The New Yorker, www.disorientations.com, and Toronto Life.

Monteith has been awarded grants from The Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, and the Toronto Arts Council. He lives and works in Berlin, Germany.