SITE SPECIFIC PRACTICES and CITY RENEWAL the Geo-Politics of Hotel Installations in Urban Spaces by MICHELLE H VEITCH a Thesis S
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SITE SPECIFIC PRACTICES AND CITY RENEWAL The Geo-Politics of Hotel Installations in Urban Spaces BY MICHELLE H VEITCH A thesis submitted to the Department of Art in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Queen’s University Kingston, Ontario, Canada February, 2010 Copyright © Michelle H Veitch, 2010 Dedication I dedicate this dissertation to my deceased father Richard Thomas Veitch whose unwavering work ethic and personal integrity inspired me to achieve my goals and ambitions in life. I am grateful for all the ways that he supported my decisions and accomplishments with his patience, commitment and respect which he offered open heartedly until his untimely passing. Abstract This dissertation examines site specific works produced in hotel buildings by exploring the multiple and contending narratives which gave meaning to city spaces where divergent communities lived, worked and socialized. I analyze the ways in which artists altered urban sites on a visual, sensorial and perceptual levels by focusing on installations produced in three hotels from 1980 to the present: the Embassy Hotel in London, Ontario, and the Cameron House and the Gladstone Hotel in Toronto, Ontario. By facilitating critical interventions in these architectural spaces, artists responded to the conflicting agendas of varying constituencies—from city planners and artists to hotel owners and residents. These commercial establishments, which combined bars, cafés, performance venues, galleries and room rentals, demonstrate the ways in which art and cultural production reflect broader social patterns and urban life: economic shifts, questions of diversity, activist struggles, consumerism, unemployment, and community. In addition to providing spaces for creative practices and art installations, the hotels each went through a series of renovations, transforming the once derelict buildings where low income tenants formerly resided into gentrified buildings, thus changing the social, symbolic and historical significance of the architectural sites. Working across these complex socio-spatial patterns creative communities re- envisioned urban geographies through contemporary art practices which impacted how and why people perceived, conceived and experienced the surrounding environment. By producing and exhibiting works in city spaces artists participated in urban regeneration in the local neighborhoods of London and Toronto; yet this was necessarily coupled with gentrification, and the displacement of local residents (including creative communities and people living in poverty) who could not afford rental increases. I evaluate the critical i aesthetics shaping site specific installations by drawing attention to the contradictions and tensions underlying city revitalization which concurrently enabled and disenabled community formations. I argue that artists contended with the geo-politics of identification, dis-identification, belonging and unbelonging by negotiating differing subject positions through which tenants and workers made claims to property rights and ownership. They produced what Michel Foucault referred to as “heteropias” by representing, contesting and inverting the hotel sites, thus creatively and critically engaging with – rather then simply supporting or opposing – the paradoxical possibilities of urban regeneration (Foucault, "Of Other Spaces", 24). ii Acknowledgements This dissertation would not have been possible without the assistance of a number of people who offered their insights, advice and encouragement. First off I extend my deepest gratitude to my supervisors, Dr. Janice Helland and Dr. Katherine McKittrick who were exemplary scholars on both a professional and personal level. They provided me with prompt feedback on every aspect of my dissertation project including chapter drafts, proposals and scholarship applications. Dr. Janice Helland has supported me for a number of years and it is due to her guidance that I have grown as a scholar and achieved my academic goals. She is a dedicated mentor who enables her students to reach their potential and her commitment inspired me to strive for excellence in research and teaching. Dr. Katherine McKittrick stood behind me every step of the way while I completed my writing. She generously offered directions and instructions on my doctoral dissertation and taught me to conduct scholarly work with intellectual acuity and personal integrity. In addition to my supervisors I also thank the following artists, musicians and business owners with whom I conducted interviews: Jamelie Hassan, Ron Benner, Helen Haller, Erich Stach, Lani Maestro, Spring Hurlbut, Wyn Geleynse, Shelagh Keeley, Robert McKaskell, David Merritt, Sybil Goldstein, Tom Dean, Napoleon Brousseau, Pauline Choi, Herb Tookey, Paul Sanella, Deanne Taylor, Christina Zeidler, Millie Chen, Allyson Mitchell, Bruno Billio, Penelope Stewart, Susan Collette and Melissa Levin. They all offered invaluable knowledge and shared insights on the histories of art practices in hotel buildings. I would especially like to mention Jamelie Hassan who provided me with a place to stay on one of my trips to London, Ontario. She gave me access to her files on Embassy Cultural House and supported my research through the Centre for iii Baalqusian Studies. Herb Tookey allowed me to look through his personal archives on numerous occasions for my studies. Peter McCallum permitted me to visit his studio and kindly arranged to have duplicates made of his photographs of Cameron House. Arthur G. McClelland also went out of his way to follow up on my requests regarding the Embassy Cultural House Archives at London Public Library and directed me to duplication services which created copies of the archival documents. The following two people generously photocopied research material and mailed the information to me: Randall Speller, Reference Librarian, E.P. Taylor Research Library & Archives, Art Gallery of Ontario; and John Latour, Information Specialist, Artexte, Montreal, Quebec. A number of scholars offered their academic knowledge and advice and helped me to hone my theoretical analysis including: Dr. Lynda Jessup, Dr. Clive Robertson, Dr. Susan Lord and Dr. William Code. I am also grateful to Jennifer Nelson and Andrew Allen for opening their home to me on my numerous visits to Toronto. Jennifer Nelson in particular has supported my endeavours and guided me to think through the concepts and ideas underlying my dissertation. Laura St. Pierre and Victoria Abboud pulled me through the ups and downs of writing while I was juggling a rigorous teaching load. Thanks to both of you for keeping me on track and for cheering me on during a challenging time period. My mother also encouraged me to pursue my academic career and asked thoughtful questions about my research. Her keen mind and intellectual curiosity taught me the value of education throughout my life. My sister helped me move across the province to start my doctoral studies and regularly checked in with me over the ensuing years. I appreciate all the times she looked out for me and let me know that I was in her thoughts. Finally, I would like to acknowledge the following granting agencies which provided me with funding to iv complete my academic work: Ontario Graduate Scholarship (September 2005-August 2006); Huntley MacDonald Sinclair Traveling Scholarship Grant, Queen’s University, Kingston (January 2007-August 2007); and Gray Fellowship in Canadian Art, Queen’s University, Kingston (September 2007-August 2008). v Table of Contents Abstract ……………………………………………………………………………….....i-ii Acknowledgements ………………………………………………………………….. iii-v List of Figures …………………………………………………………………………vii-x Chapter 1: Introduction………………………………………...……………………….... 1 Chapter 2: Historical Contexts of Hotel Installations ………………………………….. 40 Chapter 3: Heritage Districts and Creative Communities ……………………………… 89 Chapter 4: Cultural Policy and Urban Geographies …………………………………... 134 Chapter 5: Critical Aesthetics in Politicized City Space ……………………………… 188 Chapter 6: Conclusion: Site Specific Practices and Gentrification……………………. 228 Bibliography ………………………………………………………………………....... 234 Appendices ……………………………………………………………………………. 262 vi List of Figures Figure 1. Map showing Embassy Hotel (starred), London, Ontario. Mapquest. 28 Jan. 2008 <http://www.mapquest.com/>……………………………………………………...29 Figure 2. Map showing Cameron House (starred), Toronto, Ontario. Mapquest. 28 Jan. 2008 <http://www.mapquest.com/>……………………………………………………...31 Figure 3. Map showing Gladstone Hotel (starred), Toronto, Ontario. Mapquest. 28 Jan. 2008 <http://www.mapquest.com/>……………………………………………………...33 Figure 4. Embassy Hotel, London, Ontario, ca. 1980. Embassy Cultural House Archives, Ivey Family London Room, London Public Library, London, Ontario…………….........45 Figure 5. Interior View of Beaver Room, Embassy Hotel, London, Ontario, ca. 1980. Embassy Cultural House Archives, Ivey Family London Room, London Public Library, London, Ontario. ………………………………………………………………………...46 Figure 6. Interior View of Sunnyside Lounge, Embassy Hotel, London, Ontario, ca. 1980. Embassy Cultural House Archives, Ivey Family London Room, London Public Library, London, Ontario. ………………………………………………………………………...47 Figure 7. Cameron House, Toronto, Ontario. Photograph by Peter MacCallum. 1987. Peter MacCallum Personal Collection, Toronto. ………………………………………...52 Figure 8. Interior view of bar, Cameron House, Toronto, Ontario. Photograph by Peter MacCallum. 1982. Peter MacCallum Personal Collection,