Journeys: How travelling fruit, ideas and buildings rearrange our environment

Although immigration is a dominant topic in contemporary culture, its discussion is often limited to the human experience, such as the crossing of borders and issues about national identity. The upcoming exhibition at the CCA takes a different perspective: how movements impact on the environment. Examples range from the coconut that can drift freely on the ocean current and re-seed wherever it finds land, to government-enforced relocation, the uprooting and rearranging of communities in a way that changes landscape and society forever. The exhibition is comprised of fifteen stories to question and debate issues raised by increased global movement. What is the cultural significance of a border today? How does the drawing of a map change the reality on the ground? What happens to citizens and their houses if, for environmental reasons, or due to government intervention, entire towns are moved? How do different cultural approaches to the use of public space define a city? Do we need to preserve our regional or national landscape, or can we accept and incorporate changes brought from other parts of the world? How can architectural projects be modified to allow for new and multiple uses and cultural needs? Journeys: How travelling fruit, ideas and buildings rearrange our environment is curated by Giovanna Borasi, CCA Curator of Contemporary Architecture, with Anders Bell, Lev Bratishenko, Meredith Carruthers, and Peter Sealy. Graphic design for the project is being developed in collaboration with Alex DeArmond, and design with New York-based artist Martin Beck. Canadian Centre for Architecture