BIO
Catherine Forster is an artist, filmmaker, and independent curator based in the Chicago area. She received an M.F.A from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her artwork has been shown at the Notebaert Museum (Chicago), Flint Institute of Art, Carnegie Art Museum, Grand Rapids Art Museum, South Bend Regional Art Museum, The Rymer Gallery (Nashville), Contemporary Art Centre (Vilnius, Lithuania), Brick City Gallery, Missouri State University, Merwin Gallery Illinois Wesleyan University, Freewaves (Los Angeles), San Diego Art Institute, Llewellyn Gallery, Alfred State College NY, City of Louisville Colorado Sculpture Garden, Orange County Contemporary Art Center, Exit Art (NY), and the Hyde Park Art Center Chicago, to name a few. Films have been screened at the Sao Paul International Short Film Festival, Krakow International Short Film Festival, Currents Santa Fe International New Media Festival, Magmart Film Festival Casoria International Contemporary Art Museum (Italy), East LA International Film Festival, the Great Lakes International Film Festival, Chicago REEL Short Film Festival, the Other Venice Film Festival (CA), Echotrope New Media Arts Festival (Omaha), Simultan Media Arts Festival (Romania), Echo Park Film Center (Los Angeles), Directors Lounge (Berlin), and San Diego International Women Film Festival. Forster is also the founder and director of LiveBox, a roving gallery focused on new-media art.
ME NOT
Dates:
Sat Oct 03, 2015 08:35 - Sat Oct 31, 2015
Location:
Nashville,
United States of America
“ME NOT” explores the essence of femininity beyond the biological. The project includes a series of drawings, videos, digital paintings, and in Nashville, a community outreach performance in collaboration with Vanderbilt University.
In Forster’s interactive cactus plucking at the Rymer Gallery, she asks people to BYOC (bring your own cactus) and pluck off its spine … This is not a young girl tearing off petals from a flower, reciting to oneself “he loves me, he loves me not.” This is the painful removal of the ingrained sharpness of a gender binary. Forster is slowly plucking away the patriarchy until it becomes nothing but a phallus hung up to dry, like the limp cactus devoid of its spine.
Excerpt from an essay by Alicia Eler
In Forster’s interactive cactus plucking at the Rymer Gallery, she asks people to BYOC (bring your own cactus) and pluck off its spine … This is not a young girl tearing off petals from a flower, reciting to oneself “he loves me, he loves me not.” This is the painful removal of the ingrained sharpness of a gender binary. Forster is slowly plucking away the patriarchy until it becomes nothing but a phallus hung up to dry, like the limp cactus devoid of its spine.
Excerpt from an essay by Alicia Eler
ME NOT at 53rd International Exhibition San Diego Art Institute
Dates:
Sat Apr 18, 2015 16:00 - Sat May 30, 2015
Location:
San Diego,
California
United States of America
United States of America
ME NOT includes a looped video of the same name, and drawings from "cactus, flower, f%#k-off, love, roses" series. ME NOT references gender fluidity and resistance to cultural constructs of identity. The drawings evoke my struggle to understand the essence of womanhood, both as a female and a parent. As two of my daughters enter puberty, one for the second time, I question just what does it mean to be female, beyond the biological. I worry about my youngest, what will she leave behind, or embrace, as she forgoes her childhood and becomes a young woman? How will my transgender daughter ever make up for the socialization she has missed? How can she possibly catch-up, or should she?
“Me Not” video documents a woman attempting to remove the needles of a cactus. The task is not so simple and eventually she uses a tiny manicure scissors. The piece alludes to the child ritual, plucking petals while reciting “he loves me, he loves me not”, but “Me Not” is not playful. The video references gender non-conformity, violence against women (cis and trans), and resistance to cultural constructs of womanhood.
“Me Not” video documents a woman attempting to remove the needles of a cactus. The task is not so simple and eventually she uses a tiny manicure scissors. The piece alludes to the child ritual, plucking petals while reciting “he loves me, he loves me not”, but “Me Not” is not playful. The video references gender non-conformity, violence against women (cis and trans), and resistance to cultural constructs of womanhood.
"Temporary" opening July 5th OCCCA and VAALA
Dates:
Sat Jul 05, 2014 18:00 - Sat Jul 26, 2014
Location:
Santa Ana,
California
United States of America
United States of America
I'm pleased to announce that "Temporary" will be included in "Home" at OCCCA and VAALA. VAALA Culture Center (Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association) and OCCCA (Orange County Center for Contemporary Art) are co-hosting the exhibition.
The word “HOME” resonates on cultural, emotional, intellectual, religious, philosophical, political and spiritual levels—as a place, a space, a myth, a source of identity, a promised land, a state of being, a war zone, an impossibility, and/or an inalienable right. The goal of the exhibition is to illuminate and enrich our understanding of the concept of “HOME” through artworks that critically explore the concept and that also allow us to see various interpretations of the concept from different cultural standpoints (i.e. Vietnamese American, Cambodian American, Mexican American, White American, generational, etc.). OCCCA website
Temporary
"Temporary" explores the temporary state of each interaction and every juncture, within the confines of a home. Planting annuals; picking ripe summer tomatoes; the smell of cut grass, laughter and fleeting moments of play; strangers thrown together; all played out under a bright summer sun, as a family and a construction crew share space during a house project. The crew builds an addition on the front of the house while the family carries on their routines at the back of the house. The piece also depicts the transient nature of the crew’s presence, not just in this job, but perhaps more fundamentally as immigrants, moving from job to job - tomorrow, another house, another family.
The word “HOME” resonates on cultural, emotional, intellectual, religious, philosophical, political and spiritual levels—as a place, a space, a myth, a source of identity, a promised land, a state of being, a war zone, an impossibility, and/or an inalienable right. The goal of the exhibition is to illuminate and enrich our understanding of the concept of “HOME” through artworks that critically explore the concept and that also allow us to see various interpretations of the concept from different cultural standpoints (i.e. Vietnamese American, Cambodian American, Mexican American, White American, generational, etc.). OCCCA website
Temporary
"Temporary" explores the temporary state of each interaction and every juncture, within the confines of a home. Planting annuals; picking ripe summer tomatoes; the smell of cut grass, laughter and fleeting moments of play; strangers thrown together; all played out under a bright summer sun, as a family and a construction crew share space during a house project. The crew builds an addition on the front of the house while the family carries on their routines at the back of the house. The piece also depicts the transient nature of the crew’s presence, not just in this job, but perhaps more fundamentally as immigrants, moving from job to job - tomorrow, another house, another family.
LiveBox screening "Barbecue" at Hyde Park Art Center
Dates:
Tue Jul 15, 2014 18:00 - Tue Jul 15, 2014
Location:
Chicago,
Illinois
United States of America
United States of America
Food beyond sustenance has been a topic in literature and art since the gastronomic orgies of Ancient Rome. More recently the moving image has brought us treats of seduction, nostalgia, and excess. Think Ratatouille and Anton’s Ego’s sublime reaction to his childhood meal, or the spaghetti scene in Lady and the Tramp, the big kahuna burger in Pulp Fiction, coffee and cherry pie in Twin Peaks, the prison cooking scene in Goodfellas, Albert Finny sharing a tavern meal in Tom Jones, the entire feast in Barbette's Feast, the 50 eggs in Cool Hand Luke, nearly every scene of Chocolat, and Julia & Julia, Marie Antoinette, A Christmas Story, … Warhol’s film Eat. The following artists have taken a stab at FOOD, providing visual delights and a bit of fun to a universal topic: Hugo de Kok & Kay van Vree, David Lachman, Jeff Warmouth, Center For Genomic Gastronomy, Jungmin Son, Carl Rowe, Celeste Fichter, Peter Millard, Dave Green.
LiveBox "Barbecue” open call for video
Deadline:
Mon Jun 30, 2014 09:00
Location:
Chicago,
Illinois
United States of America
United States of America
“Barbecue”
Food beyond sustenance has been a topic in literature and art since the gastronomy orgies of Ancient Rome. More recently the moving image has brought us treats of seduction, nostalgia, and excess. Think Ratatouille and Anton’s Ego’s sublime reaction to his childhood meal, or the Spaghetti scene in Lady and the Tramp, the Big Kahuna Burger in Pulp Fiction, coffee and cherry pie in Twin Peaks, the prison cooking scene in Goodfellas, Albert Finny sharing a tavern meal in Tom Jones, the entire feast in Barbette's Feast, the 50 eggs in Cool Hand Luke, nearly every scene of Chocolate and Julia & Julia. We’re looking for your creative turn on the themes of food - excess, seduction and nostalgia. Surprise us, and keep it short, maximum of 5 min. All genres accepted, but we’re looking for a truly innovative vision. Deadline June 30th
To apply:
email an artist Statement, synopsis of the piece, a CV, and a URL link to view the video. Do not attach images or mov files.
cf@liveboxgallery.com
Food beyond sustenance has been a topic in literature and art since the gastronomy orgies of Ancient Rome. More recently the moving image has brought us treats of seduction, nostalgia, and excess. Think Ratatouille and Anton’s Ego’s sublime reaction to his childhood meal, or the Spaghetti scene in Lady and the Tramp, the Big Kahuna Burger in Pulp Fiction, coffee and cherry pie in Twin Peaks, the prison cooking scene in Goodfellas, Albert Finny sharing a tavern meal in Tom Jones, the entire feast in Barbette's Feast, the 50 eggs in Cool Hand Luke, nearly every scene of Chocolate and Julia & Julia. We’re looking for your creative turn on the themes of food - excess, seduction and nostalgia. Surprise us, and keep it short, maximum of 5 min. All genres accepted, but we’re looking for a truly innovative vision. Deadline June 30th
To apply:
email an artist Statement, synopsis of the piece, a CV, and a URL link to view the video. Do not attach images or mov files.
cf@liveboxgallery.com
SAVED WORKS (2)