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A CRISTA DAHL MEDIA LIBRARY & ARCHIVE EVENT
THURSDAY JUNE 19th | 7-10 PM
VIVO and the Crista Dahl Media Library & Archive invites you to a reception in honour of artist and friend, Meg Torwl, and in recognition of the establishment of The Meg Torwl Collection at our Archive.
After Meg’s passing on June 21, 2013, the majority of her art works were acquired by the archive in her home country of New Zealand. We are fortunate, however, that her Vancouver friends approached VIVO about including her video works in VIVO’s Crista Dahl Media Library & Archive, Western Canada’s premiere collection of video art and independent video. Due to their efforts, we secured not only her videos, but also biographical information, photographs, writings, publicity materials, and exhibition and performance documentation, ensuring Meg’s broader contribution to Vancouver’s cutural and social landscape will be well represented in the city she made home.
Meg was trained in video production through an Out On Screen Queer Video Scholarship Program at VIVO in 2000. She was a VIVO member, distributed by Video Out, and had performed numerous times at our centre over the years. She was beloved by those of us who knew her, and greatly respected by those who, unfortunately, did not.
Meg’s video works will be available for viewing and select items from The Meg Torwl Collection will be on display.
VIVO is located in the homelands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ílwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples in a warehouse space at 2625 Kaslo Street south of East Broadway at the end of E 10th. Transit line 9 stops at Kaslo Street on Broadway. From the bus stop, the path is paved, curbless, and on a slight decline. The closest skytrain station is Renfrew Station, which is three blocks south-east of VIVO and has an elevator. From there, the path is paved, curbless, and on a slight incline. There is parking available at VIVO, including wheelchair access parking. There is a bike rack at the entrance. The front entrance leads indoors to a set of 7 stairs to the lobby.
A wheelchair ramp is located at the west side of the main entrance. The ramp has two runs: the first run is 20 feet long, and the second run is 26 feet. The ramp is 60 inches wide. The slope is 1:12. The ramp itself is concrete and has handrails on both sides. There is an outward swinging door (34 inch width) at the top of the ramp leading to a vestibule. A second outward swinging door (33 inch width) opens into the exhibition space. Buzzers and intercoms are located at both doors to notify staff during regular office hours or events to unlock the doors. Once unlocked, visitors can use automatic operators to open the doors.
There are two all-gender washrooms. One has a stall and is not wheelchair accessible. The other is a single room with a urinal and is wheelchair accessible: the door is 33 inches wide and inward swinging, without automation. The toilet has 11 inch clearance on the left side and a handrail.
To reach the bathrooms from the studio, exit through the double doors and proceed straight through the lobby and down the hall . Turn left, and the two bathrooms will be on your right side. The closest one has a stall and is not wheelchair accessible. The far bathroom is accessible.
Meg Torwl worked in video, new media, audio, photography, writing, performance and arts advocacy. Her work has been exhibited, broadcast, published and performed in her native New Zealand, Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. She produced five new media projects – meditative colour and water photography based installations: Singing Bowls (2004), AQWAI (2006), TIARIKA (2008), Going Coastal (2010), and PORTAL/PORTAGE (2011), and directed three documentaries distributed by Video Out: Act Your Age!? (2000), where have all the lesbians gone? (2001), and Towards the day…we are all free (2007). Meg also worked in radio, producing 50 half-hour programs with Radio New Zealand National’s One in Five disability community program (2007/8), with a focus on youth, art, multiculturalism and policy. She worked for arts organizations in community outreach and project coordination for the National Film Board of Canada (2004), CBC TV (2006), KickstArt Disability Arts and Culture (2009/10), and BC Regional Integrated Arts Network (2010). Meg was a visual artist, a graduate of The Writers Studio (2011) at SFU, and published numerous books of poetry.
