Biography

Teresa Dorey is an interdisciplinary artist and MFA candidate at Concordia University in Tiohtià:ke (Montreal). Her work has been exhibited internationally at Art Paris and Milan Design Week and published and exhibited in cities across Canada. Engaging in numerous residencies, including the Banff Centre, which expanded her practice to encompass metal and an upcoming residency at Guldagergaard in Denmark, Dorey’s work is informed by research. Grounded in corporeal references and objects, Dorey’s work explores socio-ecology, relationality, haptics and sensuality, blending various materials to convey biodiversity and nurture empathy towards the environment. Dorey’s work has been supported by Canada Council for the Arts, The Société de Développement des Entreprises Culturelles, Concordia University, and Conseil des arts de Montréal.

I believe individual autonomy is a myth, and recognizing our mutual dependence can help us improve society by acknowledging diverse needs and highlighting community and reciprocity for all.

Informed by materiality and research, my practice explores the body and relational experiences through haptics and objects. Employing mediums such as ceramics and metal, I consider expanding the boundaries of craft, design, and fine art. Blurring these boundaries allows me to delve into the body’s nuances, utility, and historical metaphors. My work is characterized by biomorphic ambiguity, referencing the convergence and shifting between bodily references, inner experiences, and everyday objects, with specific inspiration drawn from interior and exterior landscapes.

Discrimination within institutions is endemic due to the emphasis on surface-level commitments to diversity. Paradoxically, claims of access and equity have been projected in recent years within institutional ecosystems with an emphasis on inclusivity. Aligning these concerns with social ecology, I suggest parallels between discriminatory systems and environmental destruction. By creating interactive installations and sculptures, my work highlights equality and encourages speculative thinking toward treating the environment equally. A newfound hope can be built by caring more for our social and physical environments.

Titled What’s the Use?, this project delves into the intricate relationship between bodies and environments, exploring sculptural objects through a socio-ecological lens. It questions societal norms and hierarchies, reflecting on conditions of privacy, opacity, uncertainty, and vulnerability.

I recycled clay to make new pieces, aluminum to sculpt details, and crushed up broken ceramics to make new glazes. I repurpose abandoned or broken institutional furniture to highlight their use while reflecting upon learning how to build embodied feelings of comfort despite obstacles.

This series aims to highlight materials with renewable histories, emphasizing equity within institutions and challenging the myth of individual autonomy. Encouraging mutual dependence, community, and reciprocity, I address power structures within institutions and draw parallels with environmental destruction. Showcased at Art Souterrain, this work invites public consideration, fostering a new awareness of relationality to the environment and encouraging hope and care for social and physical environments. Thank you for taking the time to look at my work and I hope you enjoy the festival.

What’s the Use? (2023)

Titled What’s the Use?, this project delves into the intricate relationship between bodies and environments, exploring sculptural objects through a socio-ecological lens. It questions societal norms and hierarchies, reflecting on conditions of privacy, opacity, uncertainty, and vulnerability. Dorey reclaims clay, metal, and broken ceramics, repurposing discarded institutional furniture and centering the work on the pedagogy of the body and sustenance, like how to find embodied comfort despite obstacles.

The project aims to highlight materials with renewable histories, emphasizing equity within institutions and challenging the myth of individual autonomy. Encouraging mutual dependence, community, and reciprocity, Dorey addresses power structures within institutions and draws parallels with environmental destruction. Showcased at Art Souterrain, this work invites public consideration, fostering a new awareness of relationality to the environment and encouraging hope and care for social and physical environments.