Where were their Mothers?
Linda Duvall’s Where Were the Mothers? is a multimedia exhibit that explores the uneasy fluidity of truth, and reveals the contradictions in trying to assert a singular or absolute narrative. “We are deluged by reports of violent acts and seemingly senseless criminal activities, and we often look for someone to blame,” Duvall says. A common response is ‘Where were their mothers?’ Duvall explores the assumptions behind this phrase by focusing on the relationship between “people who have taken alternative life paths” and their mothers.
The exhibit presents the complicated narratives of people who have had run-ins with the law, lived or worked on the street, dealt with addictions or participated in illegal street gangs. Each of these participants collaborated with a professional musician to produce an original song about their mother. Condensing a lifetime of stories into three minutes of music both compresses and alters the original narratives. Duvall juxtaposes videotaped excerpts of the song production process alongside the finished songs.
A second layer of complication results from the staging of the encounter between two strangers – in this case the participant and the musician. Thorny issues of roles and authorship emerge. Who really shaped each song, and what preconceptions were brought to the interaction by each party?
The exhibit also includes Duvall’s interviews with other mothers whose offspring have deviated from conventional paths. Areas of discussion include issues of blame, available support systems for mental health or addiction needs, and the secrecy surrounding such stories.
Where were the Mothers has been presented at:
Art Gallery of Mississauga, Mississauga 2009
Adelaide Resource Centre for Women, Toronto (launch of CD) 2009
Dunlop Art Gallery, Regina 2010
Toronto Dismas Fellowship for Ex-Offenders – Toronto 2010
White Buffalo Youth Lodge, Saskatoon (co-presentation with Mendel Art Gallery) 2010
“Journeying Through Grief”, Grief Training Program, Jane and Finch, Toronto 2010
Aboriginal Funders Event hosted by Saskatchewan Arts Board, Saskatoon 2010
Gang Prevention Forum, Western Development Museum, Saskatoon 2010
Community Memorial and Celebration of Life, Jane Finch Community, Toronto 2010
Social Work Program, First Nation University of Canada, Saskatoon 2010
Str8-Up Saskatoon, 2021
A long time coming by Peggy Gale
Singing the Abject and Listening Obliquely by Rubén Gaztambide-Fernández
Engaging Strangers by David Garneau
Visit the article Difficult stories shared in Saskatoon artist’s songwriting project
by Jeanette Stewart, The Star Phoenix
Read Bart Gazolla’s comments in his THE A WORD blog
Scroll to the section Road tripping to Regina…..
A review of the CD Where were the Mothers? is available in Robert Francos’ column in Jersey Beat
http://www.jerseybeat.com/quietcorner.html
A November 6, 2009 article on the exhibition Where were the Mothers? is at
Mississauga News
Click here to read article
Julia Le
Nov 06, 2009 – 8:13
AGM opens mother of all shows
New show opens. Artist Linda Duvall is presenting her multimedia exhibit entitled Where Were The Mothers? at the Art Gallery of Mississauga. Staff photo by Rob Beintema
A unique new show that that explores the relationship between people who take different paths in life and their mothers opened last night at the Art Gallery of Mississauga at City Hall.
Where Were The Mothers? presents the life stories of people who have run afoul of the law, lived or worked on the street, dealt with addictions or belonged to street gangs. Professional musicians have translated those tales into music.
“We are deluged by reports of violent acts and seemingly senseless criminal activities, and we often look for someone to blame,” said visual and media artist Linda Duvall, who completed the exhibit last week after working on it for the last three years in Toronto and Saskatoon.
In creating the exhibit, the artist was initially attempting to answer questions about her own life.
“My son had been jailed, he’d been addicted and actually done nearly everything that the participants had done, and I knew that I wanted to talk to people who had been through similar experiences,” Duvall said during an informal discussion that followed the exhibit’s opening reception. “So I just did.”
Over three years, the project evolved beyond Duvall’s expectations.
Videos depicting the musicians working with the subjects are featured along with the songs in the exhibit. They include interviews with mothers whose children have strayed off the straight and narrow path of life.
Music producer Christian Hurst and Leroy Sinclair, whose life is examined in the exhibit, said the experience has taught them about human nature.
Sinclair talks about being abused as a child, dealing with racism and fending for himself on the streets. At first, he said, he didn’t want to rehash old memories, but now feels he can be a role model to children in similar situations.
“I feel stronger about going out and helping kids,” said Sinclair, 46, adding that it was cathartic to share his story. “I feel the more things that are out there for kids who are struggling, the more changes they will have (to live a better life).”
For Hurst, translating Sinclair’s story into a song was a rewarding experience.
The song runs for seven minutes and is a mix of hip hop, church music and reggae.
It is included in a compilation CD, which is available for purchase at the AGM.
Also opening at the AGM last night was a multimedia exhibit that examines capitalism, fair trade and the social implications of consumerism.
Made In India by Harrell Fletcher and Wendy Red Star tells the tale of the two American artists who buy a rug, but receive two by mistake. Rather than returning the extra rug, they sell it and set out to find the factory worker who made it so they can give him the $1,500 they made on the deal.
Both exhibits run until Dec. 24.