Deconstructing Comfort was an interdisciplinary arts exhibition that presented the work of seven contemporary Indigenous artists and artists of colour: Léuli Eshraghi, Jamelie Hassan, Lisa Myers, Nadia Myre, Haruko Okano, Philip Kevin Paul, and Syrus Marcus Ware.
This exhibition was curated by Michelle Jacques, Doug Jarvis and France Trépanier. They developed a process-based methodology to explore contemporary themes present in the Canadian body politic - decolonization and Indigenization; issues raised by Black Lives Matter; calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission; Islamophobia; unsettling settlers and Canada 150 celebrations. Together they engaged in interrogating spaces of [dis]comfort to generate transformation and change. The curatorial strategy was to reveal the artistic and curatorial processes, inviting collaborations about the notions of space and time, ultimately questioning the fixedness of the exhibition format.
The exhibition was presented at Open Space in Victoria from September 8 to October 14, 2017. The official opening took place on September 25 as part of the public program for the Lekwungen Gathering 2017.
