Multisite public art exhibition Infinite Scroll showcases GIF artworks that use abstraction and repetition to simulate the hypnotic effects of social media scrolling. GIFs by Khadija Aziz, Justine Durand, Peter Rahul, and Shaheer Zazai are presented by Digital Arts Resource Centre (Ottawa), Factory Media Centre (Hamilton), InterAccess (Toronto), and Trinity Square Video’s Virtual Vitrine (online). Infinite Scroll is curated by Megan MacLaurin and presented as part of Vector Festival 2021.

The exhibition was restaged by Art Spin on August 8, 2021 at the button factory at 300 Geary Avenue, Toronto.
 

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Khadija Aziz investigates image-making with textiles using manipulation, experimentation, and the ever-shifting nature of cloth. Her process-based practice bridges the gaps between textile-making techniques and digital technologies to generate unexpected outcomes through translation, chance, and distortion. She is currently pursuing an MFA at Concordia University’s Fibre & Material Practices program. In recognition of her creative practice, Khadija has most recently received the Shanks Memorial Award in Textiles from Craft Ontario and the Creative Promise Award from Surface Design Association in 2020. 

Justine Durand lives in Montreal. Her artistic approach is based on the mixing of analog signals from videos synthesizers and digital remodeling resulting in a minimal and hypnotizing atmosphere. Since 2016, she has made several live performances, music videos and video installations.

Peter Rahul is a Toronto-based visual artist who specializes in video and interactive installation. His research into vintage video equipment and contemporary computer graphics results in video art that looks simultaneously futuristic and nostalgic. Rahul's art practice has taken the form of animation, stage design, interactive video sculptures & VHS mixtapes. Peter Rahul currently sits on the board of BUMP TV, Toronto's online public access television station.

Shaheer Zazai is a Toronto based Afghan-Canadian artist with a current studio practice both in painting and digital media. Zazai received a BFA from OCAD University in 2011 and was artist in residence at OCAD University as part of the Digital Painting Atelier in 2015. Zazai’s practice focuses on exploring and attempting to investigate the development of cultural identity in the present geopolitical climate and diaspora. The digital works revolve around Microsoft Word and imagery drawn from traditional Afghan carpets. Through mimicking carpet-making methods, Zazai creates his own designs in Microsoft Word, where every knot of a carpet is translated into a typed character.

ABOUT THE CURATOR

Megan MacLaurin is a curator and arts facilitator born and based in Toronto/Tkaronto, Canada. She holds an M.A. in Art History & Curatorial Practices from York University and a B.A. in Art History and Arts Administration from the University of Ottawa. Her research and curatorial practice explore the intersections between natural and technological ecologies in a changing climate. Megan is currently the Programming Coordinator at InterAccess and Co-Director/Curator at Bunker 2 Contemporary Art Container.

ABOUT VECTOR FESTIVAL

Vector Festival is a participatory and community-oriented initiative dedicated to showcasing digital games and creative media practices. Presenting works across a dynamic range of exhibitions, screenings, performances, lectures, and workshops, Vector acts as a critical bridge between emergent digital platforms and new media art practice. The festival was founded in 2013 as the “Vector Game Art & New Media Festival” by an independent group of artists and curators: Skot Deeming, Clint Enns, kris kim, and Katie Micak, who were later joined by Diana Poulsen and Martin Zeilinger.