A Sense of Wonder

Providing a space for emerging creative practices, the Art Gallery of Guelph presents A Sense of Wonder, a project that extends the gallery beyond its walls through innovative approaches to diverse and inclusive community engagement. With a focus on supporting d/Deaf and disability arts and artists through the convergence of art and social practice, ­­­A Sense of Wonder is led by interdisciplinary artist Dawn Matheson in collaboration with d/Deaf and hard of hearing youth from across southern Ontario.

A Sense of Wonder engages multimedia, performance, and video to provide access and insight into d/Deaf arts in an exploration of the presence of deafness over the absence of sound. The exhibition comprises of multiple video works including All Together Now created in collaboration with the E.C. Drury School for the Deaf, Feels Like Music produced in conjunction with Silence, Guelph, and If a Tree Falls produced in partnership with The Guelph Outdoor School. As part of the Wonder project, the “seen-sound” interpretation of E.E. Cummings’ poem [i carry your heart with me (i carry it in)], performed by Nora Stasinkiewicz, is on view concurrently at the Acker building, located at 42 Carden Street in downtown Guelph. Visible at night to passersby, the second-story video installation is presented by the Art Gallery of Guelph in partnership with 10 Carden Shared Space Inc.

Dawn Matheson is a Guelph-based interdisciplinary artist and writer who collaborates with community groups to create participatory public art projects through performance, video, audio, documentary, installation, and print.