Performing a simple search on flickr, one finds 5000 images of the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) filed under Creative Commons Licence – which means that one is free to share, copy, distribute and transmit them. By relocating thousands of these images from a virtual space to a public site-specific installation Guillaume Cailleau constructs a double mirror: the public’s photographic interpretation of the ROM is assembled, organized and exhibited, as a new ‘objective’ public artwork. In turn it becomes the object of other experiences and interpretations, no doubt some of which will be turned into yet another set of publicly available images.

In accordance with the Creative Commons License all of the photographers’ names used are listed: not only to pose the question of authorship, but also to potentially create a situation where a visitor might find their name and recognize (or not) their own pictures. Creating a site-specific artwork, Cailleau’s installation loosely recreates the environs and structure of the building that is the focus of his project. He nets an amalgamation of data and substance, animating images to transpose them into dynamic form.

Curated by Mark Andre Pennock.

Presented in partnership with the Institute for Contemporary Culture at the Royal Ontario Museum.

Curated by Mark Andre Pennock