The most transformative art movement of the late 20th century,
conceptual art became a global phenomenon long before it was popularized
by a new generation of artists and institutions in the early 21st
century. Its various manifestations in Canada, however, have remained a
limited concern?a whispered art history circulated among artists and
writers primarily in alternative publications and artist-run centres.
Traffic: Conceptual Art in Canada 1965-1980 is the first publication
and exhibition to track the complex, rigorous and diverse manifestations
of conceptual art in the country. Presenting work by more than 90
artists in a beautifully produced package, Traffic examines the
particular local and geographic needs and interests enacted by
individual artists, collectives and art communities from across the
country.
The book includes essays by six curators, a conversation with an
international group of scholars, an annotated chronology and many
reproductions of conceptual artworks produced in Canada.
Co-published by the Vancouver Art Gallery, Art Gallery of Alberta,
Justina M. Barnicke Gallery (Hart House, University of Toronto), Leonard
& Bina Ellen Gallery (Concordia University) and Halifax, INK
