School of Art Welcomes Visual Artist Cassils to Lecture Series

Graphic by School of Art, Cassils by Robin Black

SoArt Visiting Lecture Series

The School of Art in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences is excited to welcome artist Cassils to the Visiting Lecture Series. The virtual lecture will be held this Thursday, Nov. 11, at 5:30 p.m.

Cassils is a transgender artist who makes their own body the material and protagonist of their performances. Their art contemplates the history(s) of LGBTQI+ violence, representation, struggle and survival. 

For Cassils, performance is a form of social sculpture: drawing from the idea that bodies are formed in relation to forces of power and social expectations, their work investigates historical contexts to examine the present moment. 

Referencing conceptualism, feminism and body art, Cassils powerfully trains their body for different performative purposes, committing to a process of extreme physical and psychological endurance. By positioning their body as a battleground, it is with sweat, blood and sinew that Cassils shares experiences for contemplating histories of violence, representation, struggle and survival.

"There could not be a better time to bring Cassils to the School of Art," said John Blakinger, art history program director and endowed associate professor. "At a moment when transgender rights are under threat across the country, their work is incredibly relevant and urgent. Cassils uses the body as medium to explore what it means to be trans and nonbinary today. Their multimedia art interrogates how society shapes the politics of gender."

In a recent article by CNN, Cassils describes growing up thinking to be an artist meant to be a painter. Their perception changed and a new path emerged through their education at Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. 

They graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Nova Scotia College of Art and Design and an Master of Fine Arts degree in art and integrated media from California Institute of the Arts.

Cassils recently opened their first solo exhibition in the United Kingdom, a 10-year survey of screen and print-based work. Curated by Bren O'Callaghan for HOME, Manchester, the exhibition is accompanied by the world premiere of Cassils' first piece of contemporary dance, Human Measure. 

The performance is a collaboration with choreographer Jasmine Albuquerque and draws upon personal safety, vulnerability and problematizes visibility in a moment of heightened violence against the GNC/trans community.

"I see being an artist as being a service provider," Cassils said, "and I will do whatever it takes to create something that is meaningful and that can make the world a safer and better place for people."

The School of Art is thrilled to welcome Cassils and invites everyone to learn more about their work Thursday, Nov. 11, at 5:30 p.m.