In collaboration with LUX and the Ian White Estate, Open City is pleased to present the third Ian White Lecture, given by artist and writer Moyra Davey. This ongoing series celebrates the provocative and enquiring spirit of artist, performer, curator, educator and writer Ian White (1971–2013). The invitation to write and present a new lecture is extended to an individual whose work shares and carries forward this spirit. 

In her talk Moyra Davey immerses herself for the first time in the work of Ian White, and writes of her affinities and sometimes resistance to his ideas. Paralleling this enquiry is a consideration of her artistic process, and a speculation about the Real.

Moyra Davey’s work comprises the fields of photography, video and writing. Her latest film, Horse Opera (2019-2022), will make its North American premiere at Tiff 2022 and will join a decades-spanning survey of her films at MoMA, New York, later this Fall. She is the author of Index Cards (2020), co-author of Davey-Hujar: The Shabbiness of Beauty (2021), and editor of Mother Reader: Essential Writings on Motherhood (2001). Davey’s work is held in major public collections, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, The Reina Sofia, Madrid, and Tate Modern, London. She is a 2020 John S. Guggenheim Fellow and a 2022 recipient of Canada’s Governor General’s award.

Photo credit: Gene Pittman at the Walker

In partnership with LUX