Oxygen Art Centre transmits a remote residency featuring Z’otz* Collective
By Contributor
Z’otz* Collective, Nahúm Flores (Honduras), Erik Jerezano (Mexico), and Ilyana Martínez (Mexico|Canada), take up a remote residency in their Toronto studio while transmitting updates and studio visits through our online platforms. The remote residency takes place from August 22 to 28, 2020.
The residency has been augmented due to the pandemic to ensure the safety of the artists and community, while also offering an intimate glimpse into the collective’s studio.
Z’otz* Collective was formed in Toronto in 2004 by three artists of Latin American heritage; Nahúm Flores, Erik Jerezano, and Ilyana Martínez. In a shared studio, they meet weekly to collaborate on works that incorporate drawing, painting, collage, sculpture, and site-specific installation. Their work connects to the storytelling traditions of their Latin American culture. Through the wording of their titles, the Collective gives hints to the narratives contained within their works, while leaving space for viewers to create their own conclusions.
Z’otz* Collective has shown work at multiple galleries and museums across Canada including Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Dunlop Art Gallery, Union Gallery, YYZ Artists’ Outlet, Cambridge Galleries, and the MacLaren Art Centre. All three members have been awarded grants from the Pollock–Krasner Foundation for their individual practices and have received support from the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts.
Z’otz is the Mayan word for “bat”. The direct approach of drawing, their primary means of expression, enables them to create quirky subjects and hybrid creatures. They use humour and play to examine the immigrant experiences of displacement, transition and transformation.
To create their works, the artists use a system of rotation: they work on different pieces at the same time and then exchange them. Intuition and chance drive the process, as they respond to each other’s forms and marks. They converse with one another in a language they invent through the act of creating in community.
The residency will take place from August 22 – 28, 2020 and will be available to the public through Oxygen Art Centre’s social media channels and website.
Z’otz* Collective will also present an exhibition at Oxygen Art Centre following their residency. The exhibition will be on view from August 29 to September 26, 2020 during hours of operation, Wednesdays to Saturdays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
More information about pandemic related protocols will be available to visitors on site and on our website and social media channels.
Photo Caption: Z’otz* Collective, Historical Sneeze 2 (series), 22” x 30”, 2016-2017, mixed media on paper
