Until April 28th, Concordia University’s Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery is hosting Traffic: Conceptual Art in Canada 1965-1980, a two part exhibit featuring works by some of Canada’s most prolific conceptual artists.

Earlier this year, from January to February, the gallery welcomed the first installment, Traffic: Conceptual Art in Canada 1965-1980 part 1, which focused on works by conceptual artists in Quebec and Ontario (Montreal, Toronto, London, and Guelph)

With this second exhibit, we travel to the West Coast of the country with works by Dan Graham, David Askevold, Christos Dikeakos, Ian Wallace, Gerald Ferguson and Martha Wilson.

In the 1970’s, places like Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD), the University of Calgary and the Alberta College of Art in Calgary were at the forefront of this refreshing artistic movement.

Focusing on the influence of conceptual art in the Canadian creative scene Traffic: Conceptual Art in Canada 1965-1980 is the very first event of its kind. Featuring hundreds of artworks and archival documents, by more than 70 artists who were all active participants in the development of the genre here, in Canada from the mid 60’s to the early 80’s.

But what exactly is Conceptual art? Coined in the late 1960’s the term refers to  »an art form in which the artist’s intent is to convey a concept rather than to create an art object »*. In other words, with Conceptual art, the art practice supersedes the object, the creation. A collaborative effort by some of the countries most influential artistic institutions  (Art Gallery of Alberta, the Justina M. Barnicke Gallery, the Vancouver Art Gallery, Halifax INK and Concordia University). There’s no doubt that this second installment will be as successful as part 1 which received positive reviews from critics and the public alike.

The exhibition is organized and circulated by the Art Gallery of Alberta, the Justina M. Barnicke Gallery (University of Toronto), and the Vancouver Art Gallery, in partnership with the Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery (Concordia University), and Halifax INK.

Finally to close the Montreal leg of the project, a round table discussion will be held at the gallery featuring Traffic 2 curators. The curators of the exhibit: Grant Arnold (Vancouver), Catherine Crowston (The Prairies and the Arctic), Barbara Fischer (Toronto), Michèle Thériault with Vincent Bonin (Montreal), and Jayne Wark with Peter Dykhuis (Halifax) will all be present Saturday April 21 at the The Ellen Gallery.

After a stop at the prestigious Vancouver Art Gallery later this year, this traveling exhibition will complete its tour with a final stint in Karlsruhe (Germany) at the Badischer Kunstverein.

For more info, visit Traffic: Conceptual Art in Canada 1965-1980 or the Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery website for more info on the April 21 round table.

* Merriam-Webster.com | 2012