Lorraine Oades is a visual artist, event planner and educator. She has constructed a large body of work that investigates the nature of vernacular materials and modes of expression in order to (re)consider personal, gendered, and historical relationships to the world around us. Her visual arts practice encompasses the initiation of collaborative projects that stress the initiative of artists working together to produce alternative forms of public intervention, such as site-specific art exhibitions, events and critical analyses aimed at addressing timely and pertinent social concerns from a local perspective; demystifying the art object and the activity of art making; and inviting public participation in the creative act of art making as a form of self-determination. Curatorial projects include Science Fair: Feminist Collaborations in Cyberspace; and Used/Goods, a site-specific exhibition held at the Salvation Army in downtown Montreal, co-curated with Gisele Amantea as part of Cut Rate Collective. Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Oades studied at Emily Carr College of Art and Design and Concordia University. Currently living in Montreal, she has exhibited her work in North America and Europe.

E-Mail: oades@alcor.concordia.ca