Issues of Censorship

Description:

Issues of Censorship was a touring exhibition initiated by A Space, Toronto. The project was sparked by a significant event on May 31, 1984, when two government officials, acting on behalf of the Ontario Censor Board, entered A Space and seized video tapes and equipment. This act of censorship was not an isolated incident, but rather a symptom of broader mechanisms of cultural control at work in Canadian society.

The exhibition emerged in response to a growing discourse on censorship, which at the time included increasing concern over violent and sexist imagery in the media, as well as the ongoing state harassment of queer communities. Issues of Censorship sought to broaden the debate by examining the historical and political dimensions of censorship in Canada.

The exhibition featured work by Dionne Brand, Krisantha Sri Bhaggiyadatta, Varda Burstyn, Stan Denniston, Lynne Fernie, Vera Frenkel, John Greyson, Peter Greyson, Gary Kibbins, Garry Kinsman, Kerri Kwinter, Cyndra MacDowall, Lisa Steele and Kim Tomczak, and Robert Wiens.

Programming included a panel discussion on art and censorship in Canada presented in collaboration with the Coalition For the Right to View (CRTV) and A Space.

Curated by Jim Miller.