Montreal-based performance artist, writer, and educator Victoria Stanton explores live action, human interaction, video, film, photography, and drawing.
For those who didn’t catch Rest-Oration, the conversation series looking at the pedagogical—and revolutionary—role of rest, pause, refusal, slowness, care, and “doing nothing” within contemporary artists’ time-based works and the parallel social justice implications of integrating slow philosophies in the post-secondary studio art classroom, you can get a preview of my lovely discussion with Coral Short and twinkle that happened on June 17th at 4th Space (Concordia University) in Montreal. So grateful for these moments of deep reflection with each guest (Salima Punjani, Po B. K. Lomami and both Coral and twinkle) and to be able to be in slow conversation. Watch here.
A slow conversation between Victoria Stanton and Salima Punjani looking at the pedagogical—and revolutionary—role of rest, pause, refusal, slowness, care, and “doing nothing” within contemporary artists’ time-based works and the parallel social justice implications of integrating slow philosophies in the post-secondary studio art classroom.
Audience members will be part of research-in-action, while also invited to enjoy the discussion and participate in a Q&A.
This event is part of Stanton’s research for her PhD in Art Education at Concordia University and will be recorded for research purposes.
JUNE 6, 2025 Time: 5 to 7pm Location: Produit Rien, 6909 rue Marconi, Montreal (Métro Jean-Talon) Admission: Free
The event will be taking place in English. The venue is on the ground floor with three steps and can be made accessible with an added ramp for any guests requiring this.
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Bio of Presenting Guest:
Salima Punjani is a multisensory artist grounded in relational aesthetics. A common thread through all of her work is the creation of environments that allow for receptivity of connection. She is particularly interested in how multiple senses can be used to expand the possibilities for people to feel welcome in art spaces as well as to create artful experiences of empathy, intimacy, and connection. Her recent work explores themes such as isolation and resocialization processes related to COVID-19, rest as resistance to systemic injustice and how medical data can be subverted into finding human connection rather than pathologies.
A slow conversation between Victoria Stanton and Po B. K. Lomami looking at the pedagogical—and revolutionary—role of rest, pause, refusal, slowness, care, and “doing nothing” within contemporary artists’ time-based works and the parallel social justice implications of integrating slow philosophies in the post-secondary studio art classroom.
Audience members will be part of research-in-action, while also invited to enjoy the discussion and participate in a Q&A.
This event is part of Stanton’s research for her PhD in Art Education at Concordia University and will be recorded for research purposes.
JUNE 13, 2025 Time: 5 to 7pm Location: Produit Rien, 6909 rue Marconi, Montreal (Métro Jean-Talon) Admission: Free
The event will be taking place in English. The venue is on the ground floor with three steps and can be made accessible with an added ramp for any guests requiring this.
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Bio of Presenting Guest:
Po B. K. Lomami is an indisciplinary interventionist, artist, and educator. They are a Congodescendant (DRC) from Belgium based in Tiohtià:ke-Mooniyang-Montreal since 2017. Their art questions individuals, institutions, and themselves through affection, force, the absurd, and the quotidian. Exploring super-performance and failure, their projects revolve around the displacement of work, the becoming of their subjectivity, and the design of possible collective futures with crip, queer and Afrofeminist perspectives. Their work has been presented in Belgium, Sweden, New York and Canada, and their texts have been featured in French, Quebec and African books and journals.
A slow conversation between Victoria Stanton, Coral Short and twinkle looking at the pedagogical—and revolutionary—role of rest, pause, refusal, slowness, care, and “doing nothing” within contemporary artists’ time-based works and the parallel social justice implications of integrating slow philosophies in the post-secondary studio art classroom.
Audience members will be part of research-in-action, while also invited to enjoy the discussion and participate in a Q&A.
This event is part of Stanton’s research for her PhD in Art Education at Concordia University and will be recorded for research purposes.
JUNE 17, 2025 Time: 2 to 4pm Location: 4TH SPACE, Concordia University, 1400 de Maisonneuve Blvd W., Montreal (Métro Guy-Concordia) Admission: Free
The event will be taking place in English. The venue is on the ground floor with three steps and can be made accessible with an added ramp for any guests requiring this.
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Bios of Presenting Guests:
Coral Short (they/them) is a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner and queer community leader creating spaces for slow healing in Tiohtià:ke/Montreal and beyond. Born in 1973 on lək̓ʷəŋən territories, their life journey weaves together artistic creation, activism, and community building.Through eco-somatic nature immersion and somatic workshops, Coral guides participants toward embodied rest and nervous system regulation. Their trauma-informed approach centers marginalized communities, honoring diverse bodily experiences. Coral’s practice nurtures both personal liberation and community resilience, creating compassionate containers where healing unfolds across individual and collective dimensions.
Ryan ‘twinkle’ Backer is an activist, writer, and educator living in Tiohtià:ke / Mooniyang, colonially known as Montréal, Québec. twinkle is perpetually fascinated by time and our relationship to it, and they work to raise awareness of the universal nature of aging, and undoing ageism within an intersectional context. They’re a white, witchy, non-binary ‘old person in training’ and co-creator of the Old School Hub for age equity & ageism awareness. When they’re not working, they like to deepen their meditation practice, strengthen and uplift the queer community which surrounds them, and explore nature with their adventure cat, Fitz.
The current (neoliberal) state of socio-economic affairs increasingly pressures artists and arts programs to adopt the same language and attitudes as business models do. Art as business means applying an entrepreneurial mentality and in today’s climate of growth, efficiency, and acceleration, that mentality is to always be “on”: always available, always working, and always productive (even when resting).
What happens when we say “no?”
My artistic and academic practice investigates the pedagogical, and revolutionary, role of rest, pause, slowness, and idleness (or “doing nothing”) within contemporary artists’ works (specifically performance artists or adjacent forms that happen in live or time-based ways), and the parallel social justice implications of integrating moments of pause and rest in the post-secondary studio art classroom. Time for rest, just for the sake of resting (and not returning to work refreshed), is a primordial need, and not something generally taught—or talked about—in school. It is certainly not rewarded in our ableist, colonial, capitalist culture.
In the context of La Centrale’s How to Protect a Radical Idea, this keynote addresses various kinds and qualities of “no” that both serve to empower and to consider the role of barriers as boundaries: limits to be acknowledged and respected. No is liberatory and no is also grief. No is scary and no is firm clarity: an inverted yes that’s not always comfortable to hold. No as an assertion of rest, (however complex), is a lifeline to a more sustainable way forward.
The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research and the PHI Foundation Present: FAIL/PASS
PHI Foundation 465 Saint-Jean Montreal, QC
• Friday, February 23, 2024 • Saturday, February 24, 2024 1 PM to 5 PM
Fail/Pass
CALL:
Failure is not always one step on the road to success. Sometimes you just fail. Period. We all have the right to fail.
Everyone has experienced failure at some point. For artists and academics, this even constitutes a rite of passage. One often feels the need to spin failure into a story of success. But what does it mean to simply fail? How does one integrate and articulate unsuccessful outcomes while resisting the ubiquitous capitalist framework of productive potential?
Where in our culture does one openly discuss failures? When is failure an experience in itself, and even an end unto itself? Can one fail on their own? Which is to say, can failure occur without one comparing their worth and identity to another’s?
Interested in these questions? If you would like to take part, send us a one-paragraph description detailing your intended presentation. Lectures, workshops, or any other formats are welcomed. We suggest a length of about 45 minutes for interventions, including a Q & A period. If you would like to use an alternative format, let us know your time, space, and technology needs. Presenters will receive an honorarium.
***Deadline for submissions: February 1, 2024***
EVENT:
Over the course of two days of dialogue, artists, educators and researchers will come together in Rirkrit Tiravanija’s installation untitled (skip the bruising…) (2017) to present their research, offer workshops, reflect on the successes and failures of their respective practices, and discuss failure as a generative tool in the work of public engagement.
These two days have been organized in dialogue with the Bureau of Noncompetitive Research’s public engagement project, and are presented parallel to the PHI Montréal residency program, which is offered in partnership with the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.
The event will take place in French and in English.
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Échouer/Réussir
APPEL :
L’échec n’est pas toujours une étape sur le chemin de la réussite. Parfois, on échoue tout simplement. C’est un fait. Nous avons tou·te·s le droit d’échouer.
Tout le monde a connu l’échec à un moment ou à un autre. Pour les artistes et les chercheur·e·s, cela constitue même un rite de passage. On ressent souvent le besoin de transformer l’échec en une histoire de réussite. Mais que signifie simplement échouer? Comment intégrer et articuler un résultat infructueux tout en résistant à l’omniprésence du cadre capitaliste, qui souhaite que l’on transforme tout échec en expérience positive, en levier pour la productivité?
Quels sont les endroits où l’on peut discuter ouvertement de nos échecs? À quels moments l’échec est-il une expérience en soi, voire une fin en soi? Peut-on échouer seul·e? En d’autres termes, peut-on échouer sans comparer sa valeur et son identité à celle d’autrui?
Ces questions vous intéressent? Si vous souhaitez participer, envoyez-nous une description d’un paragraphe décrivant votre présentation. Les conférences, les ateliers ou tout autre format sont les bienvenus. Nous suggérons une durée d’environ 45 minutes pour les interventions, y compris la période de questions et réponses. Si vous souhaitez utiliser un format alternatif, faites-nous part de vos besoins en termes de temps, d’espace et de technologie. Les présentateur·trice·s recevront des honoraires.
***Date limite pour les soumissions: 1er février 2024***
L’ÉVÉNEMENT :
Lors de ces deux journées d’études, artistes, pédagogues et chercheur·e·s se réuniront dans l’installation de Rirkrit Tiravanija untitled (skip the bruising…) (2017) pour présenter leurs recherches, offrir des ateliers, réfléchir aux bons et moins bons coups de leurs pratiques respectives, et échanger sur l’échec comme valeur générative dans le travail en engagement public.
Ces journées d’étude se sont organisées en écho avec le projet d’engagement public du Bureau de la recherche non compétitive, et sont présentées parallèlement au programme de résidences PHI Montréal, développées en partenariat avec le Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.
L’événement se déroulera en français et en anglais.
The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research andthe PHI Foundation Present:The Interviews (Job Posting & Public Performance)
WE’RE HIRING!
The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research is a collective with varying geometry, and it is actively seeking a fourth member to help fulfill tasks and build a better work environment.
In this public performance that probes the interviewing process to reveal all of its absurdity, the group proposes to meet potential candidates in order to find the ideal employee.
The Interviews is part of The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research, a public engagement project by the collective of the same name. This project is presented at the PHI Foundation in conjunction with the exhibition “Rirkrit Tiravanija: JOUEZ/PLAY.”
• Public performance of our selection process (“The Interviews”): Jan 18, 2024
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Le Bureau de la recherche non compétitive est un collectif à géométrie variable, et il se cherche activement un·e quatrième membre pour remplir toutes tâches connexes et participer à construire une meilleure vie de bureau.
Dans cette performance devant public qui sonde le processus d’entrevue pour en révéler toute son absurdité, le groupe propose de rencontrer certain·e·s candidat·e·s afin de trouver l’employé·e idéal·e.
Les entrevues s’inscrit dans le cadre du Bureau de la recherche non compétitive, un projet d’engagement public par le collectif du même nom. Ce projet est présenté à la Fondation PHI en parallèle à l’exposition «Rirkrit Tiravanija: JOUEZ/PLAY».
Soumettre votre candidature pour le poste de Bureaucrate ici:
The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research andthe PHI Foundation Present:The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research
November 3, 2023 – March 10, 2024 Fondation PHI 465, rue Saint-Jean Montréal, H2Y 2R5
I’m excited to announce that The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research (Stacey Cann, José Cortés and myself), will be taking up residence in the Education room at the Fondation PHI for their Public Engagement program, in conjunction with the Rirkrit Tiravanija exhibition JOUEZ/PLAY. In parallel with the exhibition, The BNCR have created an office; an evolving performative installation (and ongoing life/art performance) that considers relationships between work, rest and (un)productivity as related to labour, pedagogy, and slow philosophy.
Opening November 3rd, we’ll be in residence until March 10th, with regular working hours in the office, and special events happening throughout the tenure of our project. The office will also double as a “co-working” space, for anyone who wants to come hangout/nap/work/eat snacks while we’re there, during “office hours.”
The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research andFolie/Culture Present: Giving Nothing
September 22 – 24 Various Locations Quebec City
Welcome to GIVING NOTHING—a new performative experience brought to you by The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research!
Bringing together ideas around labour, slowness and ritual—and considering more intentional ways of thinking about rest and work—over three consecutive days Stacey Cann and I gift each other three rituals for rest and recovery. And then one for good measure from the both of us to Folie/Culture. The one receiving the gift will not know what these rituals are until they are gifted. Life is full of surprises! As part of the series Savoir [rien] faire, hosted by Folie/Culture.
The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research and the Innovative Social Pedagogy project (ISP) at Project Someone, Concordia University Present: Pedagogy and Time: Walk Your Talk
June 17, 2022 FOFA Gallery (Concordia University) 1515 Rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest, EV 1-715, Montréal, QC H3G 2W1 4pm
Continuing on from Slowness and the Institution, an online discussion series that Stacey Cann and I began (under our moniker, The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research), the next iteration of The Bureau’s offerings is in the form of a collaborative workshop series with a small group of co-researchers called Pedagogy and Time. The first “official” event is a walking discussion, during which we will spend time thinking and talking together about pedagogical practices as well as the implication of slow practices within teaching and learning. We will use the following question as a starting point for discussion: How do we get buy-in from students for slowing down given the culture of “productivity” in the academy and the pressures to keep up?
Please RSVP so that we can let you know any details. If the weather is bad we will postpone until June 18th.
The Sanctimonious Sect of Nothing Is Sacred 