Emma Nishimura & Linda Sormin: Gestures of Remembering
Through their distinct artistic practices, Emma Nishimura and Linda Sormin use their chosen mediums as languages to delve into family ancestries, histories of displacement, and personal identities. In Gestures of Remembering, Nishimura and Sormin embark on personal journeys in collaboration with their family members, seeking to recall and unravel the intricate tapestries of their family histories. This exploration brings to light the fallible nature of memory and generational storytelling, emphasizing the profound necessity to hold onto these narratives. As they uncover and confront the inherited traumas of colonial and political violence, Nishimura and Sormin engage in a poignant process of healing, archiving, and honouring these generational wounds. Working with their hands to form and mould clay, reproduce intricate dress patterns, and transcribe interviews and mythologies, both artists present works that stand as testaments to the resilience of memory and the enduring importance of preserving familial legacies.
Emma Nishimura is a Toronto-based artist who works with a range of media, including printmaking, photography, sculpture and installation and has exhibited nationally and internationally. Her work is in a number of public and private collections, including the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Royal Ontario Museum, the Japanese Canadian National Museum and the Library of Congress. She is the recipient of the Queen Sonja Print Award 2018. Emma Nishimura received her MFA from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and her BA from the University of Guelph, and is an Assistant Professor at OCAD University.
Born in Thailand, Linda Sormin immigrated to Canada at the age of five. Sormin lives and works in New York City, and is Associate Professor of Studio Art at New York University. She has taught ceramics at Emily Carr University, Rhode Island School of Design, Sheridan College and Alfred University. In 2023, Sormin presented an immersive multi-media installation on view at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston as part of 'Hokusai: Inspiration and Influence' which then toured to the Seattle Art Museum. Sormin's work has recently been shown at MASS MoCA in North Adams, MA, and Peach Corner Gallery in Copenhagen, and Messums in Wiltshire, UK. Notable collections include the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK, Alfred Ceramic Art Museum, NY, Renwick Gallery at the Smithsonian Museum of American Art, Washington DC, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, and The Gardiner Museum, Toronto.
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Sadia Dao (how far?), 202311 x 40.25 x 5 in.Linda SorminCeramicCAD 12,400.00 -
Sup-sohn (complexity), 201912 x 14 x 12 inchesLinda SorminGlazed ceramic, found shards, epoxy, gold leafCAD 8,800.00
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Baan Rao (my house), 2023 - 202415 x 22.5 x 14 in.Linda SorminGlazed ceramic, handcut paper, metallic pigment powder, epoxy, resin, gold leaf,CAD 10,000.00
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Patterns of Memory, 202425.5 x 15 in.
UniqueEmma NishimuraPhotopolymer relief print on gampi with thread, framed in natural woodSold -
Shikata ga nai: Nothing can be done about it , 202419 x 33.75 in.
Varied edition of 2Emma NishimuraPhoto etching on gampi with thread, framed in natural woodSold -
Shikata ga nai: It cannot be helped, 202436.5 x 12 in.
Varied edition of 2Emma NishimuraPhoto etching on gampi with thread, framed in natural woodSold -
Ingot (to remember), 202125 x 23 x 15 in.Linda SorminGlazed CeramicCAD 14,400.00
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Siak (spicy), 20245.75 x 6.5 x 5 in.Linda SorminGlazed Ceramic, Handcut paper, ResinSold
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Mandai (to taste), 202410.75 x 8.5 x 7.5 in.Linda SorminGlazed ceramic, handcut paper, epoxy, resin, gold leafCAD 4,600.00
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Shirt, 202414 x 17 in.
Varied edition of 3Emma NishimuraPhotopolymer relief print on gampi with thread, framed in whiteSold
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Seeking Solace, 2023Varied edition of 3
14 x 15 in.Emma NishimuraPhotogravure etching and thread, framedSold -
Frederick Avenue, 202414 x 17 in.
Varied edition of 3Emma NishimuraPhoto etching on gampi with thread, framed in natural woodSold -
Sarita , 2023-20248.25 x 25 x 8 in.Linda SorminGlazed ceramic, paper and found shards, including porcelain antler by Rebekah Myers and Tim Berg, metallic pigment powder, epoxy, resinCAD 7,600.00
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Manurat (to write), 2023-20243.5 x 12.5 x 3.8 inchesLinda SorminCeramic tile, inlaid slip, resin, gold leafCAD 4,500.00
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Mambahen (to make happen), 202414 x 11 in x 3 in.Linda SorminCeramic tile, inlaid slip, resin, pencilCAD 4,500.00
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Carrying On, 202417 x 14 in.
Varied edition of 3Emma NishimuraPhotogravure etching on gampi with threadCAD 3,000.00 -
A Present Absence, 202214 x 17 in.Emma NishimuraPhotogravure etching and thread, framed
Varied edition of 3CAD 3,000.00 -
Origin Myths, 202456 x 265 in.Linda SorminHand-cut waterolour and graphite on paper, resin, ceramic and acrylic shards, 3D printed ceramics
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Bokni Ari (evening), 202317 x 35 x 26 in. x 17 x 18 x 14 in.Linda SorminClayCAD 14,600.00
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Slocan City, 20197.75 x 11 in.
Edition of 9Emma NishimuraPhoto etching and gampi chine collé, framed in white
CAD 1,800.00 -
New Denver, 20194.5 x 11.5 in.
Edition of 7
Emma NishimuraPhoto etching and gampi chine collé, framed in whiteCAD 1,800.00 -
Bay Farm, 20195 x 11.5 in.
Edition of 8Emma NishimuraPhoto etching and gampi chine collé, framed in whiteCAD 1,800.00 -
Marjanji (promise), 202423 x 26 in.Linda SorminHand-cut watercolour on arches paper, gold leaf. resin, framed in bleach maple with anti-reflective glass,Sold
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Mala (generous), 202423 x 26 in.Linda SorminHand-cut watercolour on arches paper, goldleaf. resin, framed in bleach maple with anti-reflective glassSold
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Hagogo-on (power), 202427 x 32 in.Linda SorminHand-cut watercolour on arches paper, gold leaf, resin, framed in bleach maple with anti-reflective glass,
