Saving the World from Boredom
April 12 – May 31, 2013
Helen Christou Gallery | LINC | Level 9

Saving the World from Boredom
April 12 – May 31, 2013
Helen Christou Gallery

Curator: Bianca Elke, Museum Studies Intern
Works from the Galt Museum & Archives, Faculty of Fine Arts Theatre and Dramatic Arts Costume Collection and the U of L Art Collection

In conjunction with Historic Lethbridge Festival
May 3 – 10, 2013

During the 1960s, an inspiring and visible counterculture was born. Referring to themselves as hippies, this movement triggered dramatic cultural changes due to the rejection of conventional social norms from the 1940s and ‘50s as well as opposition to powerful institutions. The youth wanted to become more involved in decision making and were determined to speak up about social issues, such as supporting the civil rights movement and objecting to the war in Vietnam. This was an era when new forms of political activism appeared that included “love-ins” and other peaceful protests as well as harsh responses from government and police.

Along with taking a stand on political issues, people were exploring unconventional personal appearance, music, art, drugs and sexual liberation. New forms of music and festivals like Woodstock played a key role in spreading the counter cultural ideas and spirit. Communal living and other alternatives to Capitalist social structures were explored. Artists were moving away from traditional high art forms, such as painting and sculpture, and began producing a profusion of prints and other types of multiples. Influenced by the changes in society, artists drew their inspiration from Life magazine and other aspects of popular culture and embraced unexpected materials, performances and chance. The work shown in this exhibition contain elements of Pop Art, Fluxus, Postmodern and Abstract Expressionist art, movements that were all going on simultaneously during the 1960s.

Bianca Elke
Museum Studies Intern