WINSTON-SALEM, NC - Bringing outstanding perspective into the international arena of the art of today, Steven Matijcio is joining the staff of the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art (SECCA) as curator Aug. 1.
SECCA director Mark Leach says, “Steven’s insight into international art practices will bring SECCA to the forefront of cutting-edge contemporary ideas and art-making on the global stage. His vision will provide a rich foundation for SECCA’s program as we move into an exciting era in partnership with the North Carolina Museum of Art.”
In December 2007, SECCA became an operating entity of the North Carolina Museum of Art and the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources.
“With his breadth of experience,” Leach continues, “Steven brings the energy and ideas that will infuse SECCA’s exhibits with substantial cultural meaning – fulfilling and pushing forward the purpose and mission of the art center.”
Born in Toronto, Canada and educated in New York, Matijcio has an accomplished background in the gallery and museum field. He has held positions at the National Gallery of Canada, the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery and has organized projects across all media and themes. For the past three years he has worked as curator at the Plug In Institute of Contemporary Art in Winnipeg, Manitoba (one of Canada’s most respected and cutting edge institutions exhibiting contemporary art). During this tenure, Matijcio curated a provocative series of exhibitions featuring the work of Marina Abramović, Marc Bijl, Minerva Cuevas, Nathalie Djurberg, Omer Fast, Sarah Anne Johnson, Hulda Stefánsdóttir, Shaan Syed and Anna von Gwinner.
Matijcio says, “Joining SECCA is an opportunity for me to become part of a team, a mandate, a history, and a gallery known for its willingness to be a trailblazer in today’s art world. I’m looking forward to working in the vibrant Winston-Salem community, alongside Mark [Leach], whose passion, experience, and ambition will undoubtedly lead SECCA into a bright new era.”
Alongside his activities in curating, writing and criticism, Matijcio is an active researcher and lecturer who has been the recipient of numerous awards including a Governor General’s Award and the Orpheus Prize in Humanities. He was named a University of Toronto scholar all four years of his undergraduate study, and received both a fellowship and scholarship to attend graduate school at the Center for Curatorial Studies in New York (Bard College).
Under curators such as Marcia Tucker, Ivo Mesquita, John G. Hanhardt and Christiane Paul, he co-curated an exhibition that investigated the effects of institutional structures on the human body (Instructure). Matijcio was commissioned by the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation to organize an online exhibition highlighting important, but lesser-known works by the iconic Mapplethorpe (Momentum).
Matijcio has also worked in numerous academic arenas. He served as an instructor in the University of Manitoba’s School of Art from 2007 - 2008. He is currently researching the relationship between art and political activism, and has received a number of travel grants to conduct research in countries such as Italy, Germany, Austria and Brazil.
Matijcio has edited and published a number of notable texts. He conducted interviews with Jane Alexander, Shaun Gladwell, Nasrin Tabatabai and Babak Afrassiabi for the 2006 Sao Paulo Bienal Catalogue, and has written for journals such as Canadian Art, Border Crossings, Locus Suspectus, and Canadian Architect. As part of his curatorial practice, Matijcio has contributed essays on the work of Daniel Barrow, Richard Hines, Micah Lexier, Dominique Rey and Diana Thorneycroft, and worked as editor/curator for the recent publication Scratching the Surface: The Post-Prairie Landscape.
He looks forward to employing all of these skills and experiences at SECCA, cultivating a more robust writing program, expanding exhibition geography and organizing public programs to better connect audiences to art. Matijcio notes the importance of community involvement in all these ventures, and seeks to make SECCA a hub for cultural activities of all kinds - connecting with students, artists, colleges and universities, filmmakers, and a range of audiences. With an eye toward August and beyond, he says, “this center has the history, vision, and staff to be a truly special place – I can’t wait to be part of its future.”
SECCA is designed to involve audiences in the art of our time. SECCA, located at 750 Marguerite Drive in Winston-Salem, N.C., is an operating entity of the North Carolina Museum of Art, an agency of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources. SECCA’s programs mirror the Department of Cultural Resources’ 2008 theme of “Telling Our Stories.” SECCA is also a funded member of the Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. For hours of operation, please go to www.secca.org or call 336-725-1904. Admission is free.