Saelan Twerdy
Features and Reviews
"Eva and Franco Mattes," Canadian Art (Spring 2020).
"After the Afterparty: Alan Belcher and Friends, in Retrospect," Momus.ca, January 10, 2020
"Ken Lum: Everything is Relevant: Writings on Art and Life, 1991-2018," C magazine 144 (Winter 2020).
"Strike Ends Early at MAC Montreal—but Uncertainty Continues," Canadianart.ca, December 11, 2019.
"Curators and Registrars at Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal Stage One-Day Strike," Canadianart.ca, November 4, 2019.
"Professional Staff at MAC Montreal Vote for Strike Mandate," Canadianart.ca, October 9, 2019.
"How to Break a Painting," Canadian Art (Fall 2019).
“Free Your Mind, or Else: 'Acid Communism' and Contemporary Art’s Futurism," Momus.ca, June 12, 2019.
“The Visionary: Jessica Eaton's Alternate Reality,” Blackflash (Spring 2019)
“Kim Waldron,” esse n. 94 (Autumn 2018)
“Recognition and Reckoning: Montreal’s Alternative Art Spaces at the Crossroads,” Momus.ca, July 27, 2018.
“Chto Delat,” Canadian Art (Summer 2018).
“Touch, Desire, and the Trinket Box: Celia Perrin Sidarous Shifts Time,” Momus.ca, June 1, 2018.
“Speaking from a Wound: Jesse Darling on Faith, Crisis, and Refusal,” Momus.ca, January 9, 2018.
“Living with Crisis: Art, Anxiety, and Vulnerability,” Canadian Art (Winter 2017-18).
“In Search of Expo 67,” Canadian Art (Fall 2017)
“Montreal Report: Darkness in Summer,” Canadianart.ca, June 28, 2017.
“Réponse,” Canadian Art (Spring 2017).
“6 New Montreal Art Spaces to Watch,” Canadianart.ca, November 29, 2016.
“Morbid Symptoms: Searching for the Post-Contemporary at the 2016 Montreal Biennial,” Momus.ca, November 22, 2016.
“Marie-Michelle Deschamps: The Art of the Untranslatable,” Canadian Art (September 2016).
“Who Was Edmund Alleyn? Rediscovering a Mercurial and Untimely Talent,” Momus.ca, August 4, 2016.
“The Sadean Woman: Tricia Middleton and the Violence of Art,” Momus.ca, February 9, 2016.
“This Is Where It Ends: the Denouement of Post-Internet Art in Jon Rafman’s Deep Web,” Momus.ca, July 9, 2015.
“Aiming to Please: Division Gallery Surveys Post-Internet Entertainment,” Momus.ca, March 17, 2015.
“Bad Dream of the Bauhaus: Juan Ortiz-Apuy’s IKEA Fantasia,” Momus.ca, February 16, 2015.
“Year in Review: Montreal from the Ground Up,” Momus.ca, December 31, 2014.
“Playing the Double Agent: Kathleen Ritter’s ‘Camoufleurs,” Momus.ca, December 29, 2014.
“Saelan Twerdy’s Top 3 of 2014: Shifting Landscapes,” Canadianart.ca, December 22, 2014.
“Notes On the Art of Writing–And Rewriting,” Canadianart.ca, November 14, 2014.
“Future Forecast: The Montreal Biennale 2014,” Momus.ca, November 10, 2014.
“A Theory of Everything: On the State of Theory and Criticism (Part II),” Momus.ca, November 3, 2014.
“A Theory of Everything: On the State of Theory and Criticism (Part I),” Momus.ca, October 30, 2014.
“Julie Favreau: Mastering the Moment,” Canadian Art v.31 n.1 (Spring 2014).
“Saelan Twerdy’s Top 3 of 2013: New Views,” Canadianart.ca, December 18, 2013.
“Construction Ahead: John Zeppetelli,” Canadian Art v.30 n.4 (Winter 2013).
“Eccentric Anarchy: Staging the Work of Christopher D’Arcangelo,” Magenta v.4 n.3 (Fall 2013).
“Sherry Walchuk: For My Dad,” Canadian Art v. 30 n.3 (Fall 2013).
“Karen Kraven’s Magic Evident at Centre Clark,” Canadian Art v. 30 n.2 (Summer 2013).
“Noel Rodo-Vankeulen,” Border Crossings n. 125 (Feb. 2013).
“How Luc Paradis’ First Big Show Rocked the White Cube,” Canadian Art v. 30 n. 1 (Spring 2013).
“Laurent Grasso Creates Must-See Labyrinth in Montreal,” Canadianart.ca, February 14, 2013.
“Re-uses of Language: the exhibition Postscript brings together experimental literature and contemporary art,” Magenta, Oct. 11, 2012.
“Zin Taylor,” Border Crossings n. 123 (Sept. 2012).
“Laurie Kang: Empty Vessels Make the Most Noise,” ION magazine, June 1, 2012.
“Jon Rafman: Mapping Google,” Canadianart.ca, May 17, 2012.
“Garden of Forking Paths: a conversation with Derek Sullivan,” C magazine n. 113 (Spring 2012).
“Steven Shearer,” Bad Day n. 11 (July 2011).
“Emerging: Alex Kisilevich,” BlackFlash 28.2 (Winter 2011).
“Liam Crockard,” Border Crossings n. 120 (Dec. 2011).
“Shary Boyle,” Bad Day n. 9 (November 2010).
“Projections: Music Video,” C magazine n.108 (Winter 2010/11).
“New Vision Revisited: Jessica Eaton’s Critical Abstraction,” BlackFlash 28.1 (Fall 2010).
Book Chapters
“A Theory of Everything: On the State of Theory and Criticism,” and “Morbid Symptoms: Searching for the Post-Contemporary at the 2016 Montreal Biennial,” in Momus: A Return to Art Criticism Vol. 1, 2014–17, ed. Sky Gooden. Toronto: Momus and /edition, 2017.
Catalogue Essays
"Curatorial Art Against Network Cuture: Guillaume Adjutor Provost's Conceptual Materialism," in Guillaume Adjutor Provost, ed. Ji-Yoon Han. Montreal: Fonderie Darling, 2019.
“Nicolas Grenier’s Working Systems” in Nicolas Grenier. Montreal and Los Angeles: Antoine Ertaskiran & Luis de Jesus, 2018.
“Alexis Dirks,” in Reflections & Refractions, ed. Noa Bronstein. Gallery 44 and Black Dog Publishing: Toronto and London, UK, 2016.
“Gesture and Ritual in the Work of Julie Favreau,” in Julie Favreau: an entire day an entire month, ed. Jake Moore. FOFA Gallery, Concordia University: Montreal, 2014.
“Form and Pattern in the Texture of Being: Zin Taylor’s Unit Operations,” in Zin Taylor: Lichen Voices/Stripes and Dots, ed. Rosemary Heather and Nicholaus Schafhausen. Fogo Island Arts/Sternberg Press: Toronto, 2013.
“The Tangibilities of Form,” and“Interview: Jaime Angelopolous,” in trans/FORM: Matter as Subject, ed. David Liss. Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art: Toronto, 2012.
Exhibition Texts
“Shana Moulton: Whispering Pines,” Centre Clark, Montreal, Sept. 7 - Oct. 13, 2018.
“Loving and Leaking: Katie Bethune-Leamen’s Cute Blobs,” Eastern Edge, St. Johns, Oct. 24 – Nov. 28, 2015.
“FrameWork 2/12: Saelan Twerdy on Althea Thauberger,” Susan Hobbs Gallery, Toronto, Jan. 26 – March 3, 2012.
“Chopped & Screwed” at MKG127 Gallery, Toronto, July 6 – 30, 2011.
“Jessica Eaton: Strata” at Red Bull 381 Projects, Toronto, Nov. 18 – Dec. 18, 2010.
“Mystic Heathers & Virgin Snow: Tim Barber,” at LES Gallery, Vancouver, Sept. 25 – Oct. 25, 2009.
“I Need a Miracle: Mark Delong” at LES Gallery, Vancouver, March 13 – April 21, 2009.
Book Reviews
“Lane Relyea, Your Everyday Art World,” C magazine n. 124 (Winter 2014).
“David Balzer, Curationism: How Curating Took Over the Art World and Everything Else,”Momus.ca, October 15, 2014.
“Claire Bishop, Artificial Hells: Participatory Art and the Politics of Spectatorship,” C magazine n.116 (Winter 2012), p. 59-60.
“Mystical Idiots: Lars Iyer’s Spurious and Dogma,” The New Inquiry, April 6, 2012.