Joshua Vettivelu:
prayers for a word
(or a lack that builds the world)

February 4 - March 6, 2022

Open on weekends only, Friday to Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm, dates below.

Exhibition dates:

February 4, 5, 6 - 10 am - 4 pm
February 11, 12, 13 - 10 am - 4 pm
February 18, 19, 20 - 10 am - 4 pm
February 25, 26, 27 - 10 am - 4 pm
March 3, 4, 5, 6 - 10 am - 4 pm

Joshua Vettivelu’s installation, prayers for a word (or a lack that builds the world) presents hundreds of slowly melting castings of their grandmother’s hands, made out of beeswax infused with ‘Ceylon’ cinnamon.

Vettivelu’s research investigates how the language we use to understand ourselves is informed by the material conditions that surround us. Prayers for a word (a lack that builds the world) connects the material history of the spice trade with the psychic impact of European missionary work to explore how frameworks of redemption and salvation have been used to ensure enthusiastic labour and unfettered access to resources.

The installation is intentionally housed in the Visual Art Centre of Clarington, recalling its role as a decommissioned barley mill. The building was constructed in 1905 for the processing of grits and barley, later revitalized into a hub of cultural production by the Town of Newcastle in 1976. In collaboration with Nicolas Fleming and Andreas Buchwaldt, Vettivelu refigures the VAC’s architecture into a factory that continually produces and destroys something that is simultaneously material and immaterial, public yet deeply private.

Please note that the Loft Gallery is located on the third floor of the VAC with restricted access by four flights of stairs equipped with a handrail.

Image: Joshua Vettivelu, (detail) prayers for a word (or a lack that builds the world), beeswax, cinnamon, dimensions variable.

Exhibition Programming

Join us on an artist-led tour and talk with Joshua Vettivelu as they discuss their exhibition prayers for a word (or a lack that builds the world) on Saturday, March 5, 2022. In accordance with provincial guidelines, the VAC will host two scheduled artist talks to safely limit the number of visitors to the gallery. A free shuttle bus will depart Toronto to bring visitors to the first scheduled artist talk from 12:00 - 1:30 pm. The second artist talk will be from 2:00 - 4:00 pm.

This final installment of Public Space, curated by Matthew Kyba, features hundreds of castings of the artist's grandmother's hands, created using beeswax infused with 'Ceylon' cinnamon. Visitors can view Vettivelu's exhibition every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday beginning on February 4, 2022, and ending on March 6, 2022, during the hours of 10 am to 4 pm.

Watch the talk

Artist Biography

Joshua Vettivelu is an artist, programmer, and educator working within sculpture, video, installation, and performance. Their works explore how larger frameworks of power manifest within interpersonal relationships. Recently, their practice examines the tensions that emerge when personal experiences are mined for art production, and how this allows institutions to posture themselves as self-reflexive.

Recent projects include; A public artwork in PEI, Digitalia, an exhibition at the Gallery of the Academy of Performing Arts, Prague, This Light; a public artwork at Sheridan College's Learning Commons, and Surface Tension; a 40-tonne sand sculpture in St. John's, NL exploring the 1986 landing of Tamil migrants and the psychic effects of citizenship. Vettivelu sits on the board of CARFAC National and is the recipient of the 2019 Toronto Arts Foundation Emerging Artist Award. Vettivelu is currently the manager of Ryerson University's Artspace Gallery, a student-led artist-run center, and was the previous Director of Programming at Whippersnapper Gallery, an artist-run centre for emerging artists