The Common Fag

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  • The Common Fag

  • Artist: Michael V. Smith
  • Artist: Denise Kenney
  • Year: 2019
  • Duration: 4:22
  • Country: Canada
  • Collaborators Kenney and Smith’s cheeky ‘nature doc’ short outlines the being that is ‘the Common Fag,’ here on the banks of Okanagan Lake. “As we can see here, however, despite this adaptive behaviour which accommodates the square lines and beige surfaces, the common fag is not an obvious fit with the box. The box, though, is nevertheless a defining feature for the Common Fag—both due to his birth into it, and his long process of separation from it.”

    In the Okanagan, Smith and Kenney facilitate cultural events to bring together the queer community with the broader population in the Okanagan valley, creating a queer-friendly space, bent on exposing and eliminating stigma. They have also worked with the Syrian community, environmental activist groups, the Living Positive Resource Centre and other local organizations to foster collaboration among residents and artists from diverse disciplines to create original art that intervenes in public spaces, to challenge cultural products, and to redefine community.

  • Accession #: 7021
  • Distribution Status: In Distribution
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