Nationalism and Sports: the only way to love exhibtion

Vivarium Gallery | Emilio Rojas | April 16- May 2

Emilio Rojas
Nationalism and Sports; The only way to love.
In collaboration with Patrick Blaeser.

What builds nationalism in sports? Why did thousands of people wear flags and paint their faces with Canadian maple leafs? Why does nationalism constructed through an identity of competitive sports excludes diversity? Is there any legacy left behind after these moments of vibrant Canadian "identity" fueled by a hockey game, and gold medals?

Nationalism and sport are repeatedly entangled, as sports provide a framework for symbolic competition between nations; one of the primary forms of banal nationalism.
Contrary to the fundamental ethos of sports this type of nationalist antagonism is charged with deep hatred, violence triggered by competition, and passionate behaviors that allow interactions outside of the norms of conduct. Traditionally the Olympic Games are the highest stage fornationalist competition, being reflected in their history of political conflicts going back to their re-establishment at the end of the 1800's. Consider a matter of national pride, sport events like the final hockey game (Canada vs. the U.S.), allow homoerotic interactions between supporting members of the same team, and homophobic remarks against the adversaries that otherwisewould be consider unacceptable.

Nationalism and Sports; The only way to love, a multilayered video installation by Emilio Rojas critiques the construct of the stereotypical Canadian male, translated into white, heterosexual, and hypermasculine. The video portrays the contradictions that these buoyant instances of nationalism offered, and the branding of nationalism present during the Olympics. Capturing an unrepeatable moment in Canadian history where two of the most homophobic spheres; nationalism and sports, ironically come together through homoerotic imagery and the fragmentation of the boundaries of Canadian politeness. Going far beyond a simple documentation of a performance the piece invites the viewer to reflect upon the futility of banal nationalism in this post-Olympic moment.

Vivarium Gallery.
2130 Yew Street, Vancouver, B.C.
Vivariumgallery.com

Projected from dusk to 11pm.

Closing party TBA.

Reserved Sitting for the Olympics.

Performed by Emilio rojas
February the 22nd to 24th
" After finding a designer's broken chair on grandville island, and seeing the crowds waiting for public transportation or fighting for a place to sit on the bus , I decided to bring my own chair and have a reserved seat in any situation" said Emilio Rojas. The artist carried this chair around Vancouver during the second week of the Winter Olympics and used it to sit in the skytrain, buses, bus stops, touristic events, lines where people were waiting ( hotdogs, vancouver art gallery,bars, sport events entrance, etc). The chair was also broken which prevented the Emilio from showing any chivalry to an old lady or pregnant mother. "Coming from Mexico, Im used to give my sit to any women, older person, child, or even someone who looks tired, as a sign of chivalry and respect. Yet, the chair is broken and its a hazard, in a way it prevented me from having any guilt while sitting in any of these spaces when most of the people were standing." People that surrounded Emilio Rojas, usually laugh, commented on the action, or took pictures with the artist. Unfortunately the documentation was lost, yet the performance remains in the mind of the viewers and the only evidences are a few photographs taken on a cellphone ,and the broken chair itself.

re-directing traffic

Performance by Heidi Nagtegaal


The performer redirected traffic on the Hastings and Hawks, on Sunday February 21, 2010. Using a set of 4 crotched flagging tape Pylons, which looked exactly as real pylons, and a Flaggers Uniform. She Re-directed Traffic until the police arrived and her friendliness and positive attitude caught them off guard. She was asked to stop, and the police left the scene.

Nationalism and Sports. The only way to love

Nationalism and sports. the only way to love.

What builds nationalism in sports? Why are thousands of people wearing flags and painting their faces with the Canadian Mapple leafs? When does nationalism constructed through an identity of competitive sports during the Olympics, exclusively builts homogeneity excluding diversity? This diversity is erased by creating the construct of an stereotypical Canadian male, which can be translated into white, heterosexual, and hipermasculine. Yet this is only a formula that proclaims itself true in moments of competition and chaos. Examples of this can be seen in war conflicts, or hockey. What interests me the most is how this branding of nationalism creates exclusion of any type of heterogeneity, which translates in a way to homophobia, and is strongly supported by corporate branding. It is known that an openly gay athlete runs the risk of loosing their corporate sponsors. This can be observe in the two of the most homophobic spheres; sports and the military. An example of this is how Extra West (Canadian Queer Newspaper), unsuccessfully tried to find an openly gay athlete competing in any of the Olympic teams to give an interview for an article. Nationalism and sports. The only way to love. juxtaposes these two concepts being critical of the lack of queer representation in both. Performed during the beginning of the final hockey game of the Olympics, between the United States and Canada, in the height of patriotism in sports. The performance challenged the construct of nationalism, and played between the boundaries of representation. The performers interacted with the public, (mostly canadian fans), their disguise and personification of passionate hockey fans was so effective that they were stopped for photographs by tourists and interviews by VANOC media.

performed by artist duo:
Emilio Rojas & Patrick Blaeser.
Sunday the 28th, Robson Square.

White Pillows "sleepover"

VIVO2010;Safe Assembly presents WHITE PILLOWS SLEEPOVER

February 27th, 8 P.M. to Sunday 28th, 9 am.

by donation

VIVO Media Arts Centre

1965 Main Street,


VIVO2010:Safe Assembly, closes its programming with a celebration organized by the White Pillows collective. Come join us for an night of performance, games, interactions and dialogue. The collective will present documentation, ephemera, and stories of their performances during the Olympics. Naufus Ramirez-Figueroa will be performing a special piece for the evening. Heidi Nagtegaal will be cooking pancakes in the morning.

Ikbal Singh, will be silk-screening the logo of the collective, Albrecht Durer’s Sechs Kissen (6 Pillows), made in 1493. Please bring a t-shirt, paper, cloth or surface that you want the design to be silk-screened on.

Covering Up, a project by Lois Klassen and Pierre-André Sonolet will also be presenting documentation. The project involved participants to impose the personal by using household linen and bedding on a rapidly changing urban landscape producing momentary gestures of resistance.

Bring your pillows, sleeping bags, and comfortable clothes for pillow fights. Be ready to let go of any stress that the last two weeks of chaos have caused upon yourself, enjoy, and acknowledge the legacy of VIVO2010;Safe Assembly in our community.

White Pillows "Sleepover" VIVO2010:Safe Assembly

It was a night of performances, presentations, videos, installations, fun, interaction, and dialogue. The sleepover didn't end up happening, but the intention was there. These are some of the photos of the night which went until 1 am. I want to thank VIVO staff; Amy Kazymerchyk, Alex Muir, Dinka Pignon, and Crista Dahl, and all our volunteers for their support and enthusiasm. There was silk-screening and pillows. Thank you for attending the event and engaging.



Performance by Manolo Lugo






presentation of performance by Heidi Nagtegaal





Performance by Alexandra Phillips






Performance by Patrick Cruz

"Our Time to Shine"

Performance Art Criticizes VANOC Trademarking of Common Words

Saturday, February 27, 12 noon, Granville Island Public Market

This Saturday Alexandra Phillips will enact "Our Time to Shine" a
live performance critical of VANOC's trademarking of common words.
Standing beneath a transparent umbrella emblazoned with
the words "FREE SPEECH ZONE," the artist will utter the long
list of ordinary words such as "winter" and "games" that
the Vancouver Organizing Committee has trademarked for its own use.

The performance challenges VANOC's
special exemption from the trademark laws that overrides Canadian's
constitutional rights to freedom of speech.

Multi-disciplinary artist Alexandra Phillips is an Associate
Professor at Emily Carr University of Art and Design.