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Home , David Askevold, Eleanor Antin

The Fourth Floor Gallery

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

December, 1971 – August, 1972

North Gallery, Works by Graham Dube, Robin Peck, Richards Jarden, Ian Murray, Gerald Ferguson, Garry Neil Kennedy, January, 1972

The Fourth Floor Gallery

Executive Director & Curator: Ian Murray

Exhibition Manager: Cyne Cobb

Guest Curators: , Cyne Cobb, Gerald Ferguson, , David Sewell, Doug Waterman

The Fourth Floor Gallery was founded by Ian Murray in September 1971 with assistance from Cyne Cobb, and S. Wayne Stark. It opened to the public in December of 1971 and closed in August of 1972.

Located at 1875 Granville Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, The Fourth Floor Gallery was comprised of a room 35’ x 50’, a room of 35’ x 75’ but on occasion two rooms of the same size in the studios of Ian Murray on the third floor of the same building were also used as were the stairways and entrances. Ceilings were 14’ or more in most places.

It is hard to not consider the importance to The Fourth Floor Gallery of its collaboration with the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. Murray was a student and Assistant in the Visiting Artist Program from 1971-1972, a role Cyne Cobb performed in 1972 – 1973. Many faculty and students exhibited in the Gallery or were lenders to exhibitions and many presentations were made possible through collaboration with NSCAD.

The absence of any competing art scene in Halifax, the spirit of the Eternal Network described by Robert Filliou and George Brecht, mail art, the portability of and the burgeoning development of publication and mass media based art were all elements of the Gallery’s development. At the same time artist run galleries and projects like A Space, Art Metropole, The Parachute Centre, The Western Front were in development across Canada and all of the players were in contact with each other.

In addition to exhibitions in the galleries, The Fourth Floor Gallery presented works on the streets of Halifax, vending machines in workplaces and the Halifax-Dartmouth Ferry; postal, cable and telegraph projects; television works through the Halifax, Dartmouth and Sackville community cable television stations; radio art works on CKDU FM Radio and shortwave; performances and lectures at The Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, and at the Dalhousie University Student Union Building. The National Film Board Theatre hosted some film programs.

School tours and educational activities in the gallery included a number of lectures and classes for Dalhousie University, The Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, The Nova Scotia Technical College, St. Mary’s University, St. Patrick’s High School and Queen Elizabeth High School.

The gallery closed when the building was purchased as part of the development of Historic Properties on the Halifax Waterfront and is now part of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University campus.

The exhibitions and performances planned for the gallery after July of 1972 were moved to the Anna Leonowens and Mezzanine Galleries of the Nova Scotia College of Art where Murray became a Curator from August of 1972 – May, 1973. Most of the files and photo documentation was deposited in the Anna Leonowens Gallery at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design in 1973. The Fourth Floor Gallery exhibited, presented performances by or broadcast works by the following artists:

Vito Acconci, , Eric Andersen, Carl Andre, Giovanni Anselmo, , Ida Applebroog, Arakawara, Diane Arbus, Keith Arnatt, Art & Language, Robert Ashley, David Askevold, Michael Asher, Terry Atkinson, AYO, John Baldassari, Michael Baldwin, Robert Barry, Frederick Barthelme, Iain Baxter, John Jack Baylin, Benard & Hilla Becher, , Karl Beveridge, , Daniel Buren, Ian Burn, Stan Brackage, Wallace Brannen, Ian Breakwell, George Brecht, Stanley Brouwn, , Victor Burgin, Daniel Buren, , John Cage, Larry Clark, Cyne Cobb, Philip Corner, Robert Cumming, Greg Curnoe, Hanne Darboven, Tom Dean, Maya Deran, Gregg Devereaux, Jan Dibbits, Juan Downey, Marcel Duchamp, Graham Dube, Marcel Duchamp, Marty Dunn, Barbara England, Family Dog, Gerald Ferguson, Robert Filliou, Henry Flynt, Ian Hamilton Findlay, Herve Fischer, Fred Forest, Simone Forti, Terry Fox, Robert Frank, Hamish Fulton, Ken Friedman, William Gellard, Gilbert & George, Dennis Gill, John Giorno, Phillip Glass, Michael Goldberg, Dan Graham, Hans Haacke, Richard Hamilton, Al Hansen, Charles Harrison, Michael Heizer, Geoff Hendricks, Doug Heubler, Jim Hewett Band, Dick Higgins, Gary Hill, Nancy Holt, Rebbeca Horn, Robert Horovitz, Nelson Howe, Image Bank, Rick James, Richards Jarden, Ray Johnson, , Donald Judd, Stephen Kaltenbach, On Kawara, Pat Kelly, Garry Neil Kennedy, Roy Kiyooka, , Harald Klingelholler, John Knight, Alison Knowles, , Christine Kozlov, Sharon Kulik, Suzy Lake, John Latham, Barry Le Va, Les Levine, Sol LeWitt, Ardele Lister, Roy Litchenstein, Richard Long, Lee Lozano, Arthur Lippset, Alvin Lucier, George Maciunas, Allan Mackay, Jackson MacLow, Albert MacNamara, Brian Lee MacNevin, Gary Marcuse, Walter de Maria, Tom Marioni, Mario Mertz, Mike Metz, Karl Miller, Larry Miller, Donald Monroe, Robert Moog, Michael Morris, Robert Morris, Ian Murray, N. E. Thing Company, , Garry Lee Nova, Hermann Nitsch, Marcel Odenbach, , Dennis Oppenheim, , Guilio Paolini, Robin Peck, Phillip Pilkington, Adrain Piper, Richard Prince, Pulsa Group, Arnulf Rainer, Mel Ramsden, Robert Rauchenberg, Man Ray, Gerhardt Richter, Steve Reich, Ellison Robertson, Ulriche Rosenbach, , Dieter Rot, Bill Ruffer, Ed Ruscha, David Rushton, , Richard Serra, David Sewell, Seth Sieglaub, Dave “Jimmy Mack” Smith, , Michael Snow, SOMA Group, Alan Sondheim, Daniel Spoerri, Klaus Staeck, S. Wayne Stark, Petr Stembra, Joan Swartz, Ben Vautier, Bill Vazan, Benar Venet, Bill Viola, Jeff Wall, Ian Wallace, Andy Warhol, Doug Waterman, William Wegman, , Konrad Wendt, , Emmett Williams, Stephen Willats, Bruce Wilson, Ian Wilson, Robert Wilson, Martha Wilson, Jon Young, La Monte Young, Marian Zazeela and Tim Zuck.

Many other artists included in publication exhibitions and daily audio presentation are not recorded in the currently available documentation of The Fourth Floor Gallery. Over 300 artists not listed took part in the Halifax International 8 & Super 8MM Film Festival at the National Film Board Theatre, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, April - September, 1972

Much of the access to the work of artists in other countries was due to the then recent proliferation of printed multiples, ephemeral and mail works, the variety of visitors bringing works to Halifax through the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design and the easy shipment of audio and video works at the time. Many works exhibited were from local collections. Exhibitions & Broadcasts by The Fourth Floor Gallery

December 1, 1971 – August 1, 1972

-Ian Murray, Afternoon Performances, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, December 1, 1971 -Evening Performances, works by Jim Hewitt Band, Ian Murray and Bruce Wilson, Fourth curated by Ian Murray, Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, December 1, 1971 - Graham Dube - Recent Works, curated by Ian Murray and Cyne Cobb, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, December 1 - 15, 1971 -Book and Publication Art, curated by Ian Murray and Doug Waterman, included works by Acconci, Anselmo, Atkinson, Antin, Arnatt, Art & Language, Ashley, Askevold, Baldassari, Barthelme, Ben, Beckley, Beuys, Bochner, Brannen, Burn, Byars, de Maria, Dibbits, Ferguson, Fischer, Fox, Fried, Gilbert & George, Graham, Heizer, Heubler, Howe, Jarden, Kosuth, Kawara, Kaltenbach, Kennedy, Kozlov, Latham, Levine, Le Va, Le Witt, Lozano, Lucier, Metz, Murray, Morris, Nauman, Oppenheim, Paolini, Pilkington, Ramsden, Rot, Ruscha, Ruston, Snow, Sondheim, Smithson, Wegman, Weiner and Young, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, December 1 - 15, 1971 -Ian Murray, Photographs In A Row, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, December 1 - 15, 1971 -Audio Works, included works by Askevold, Duchamp, Lucier, Murray, Nauman and Waterman, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, December 15-31, 1971 -Ian Murray, Record Covers, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, December 15-31, 1971 -Lectures, Publication Art, by David Askevold and Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, January, 1972 -Television Works, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, January 2 - March 18, 1972 -Television Doesn’t Work, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, January 2 - March 18, 1972 -Ian Murray, Window and Door, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, January 2 - March 18, 1972 -BRANNEN DUBE FERGUSON GILL JARDEN KELLY KENNEDY KULIK MURRAY PECK ROBERTSON RUFFER SEWELL STARK WATERMEN YOUNG, Curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, January 2 - 12, 1972 -Book Works, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, January 2 - 12, 1972 -New Pieces, offset lithograph by Dan Graham, published by The Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, January 12, 1972 -Dan Graham - PERFORMANCE: NEW PIECES, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, January 17, 1972 -Dan Graham - Retrospective of The Photographic Works, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, February 7 - 20, 1972 -Dan Graham - NEW WORKS, 1969-1972, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, February 7 - 20, 1972 -Ellison Robertson, Jon Young: New Works, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, February 7 - 20, 1972 -Video Works, included works by Askevold, Baldassari, Brannen, Beckley, Fried and Murray, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, February 8, 1972 Exhibitions & Broadcasts by The Fourth Floor Gallery, cont’d

-Film or Video, included works by Dube, Ferguson, Fox, Graham, Jarden, Kulik, MacNamara, Murray, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, February 9, 1972 -Lecture by Ian Murray, Like: Being With Dan Graham, for the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, February 9, 1972 -Video Works II, included works by Acconci, Askevold, Murray, Nauman, Oppenheim and Waterman, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 10, 1972 -HALIFAX: ASKEVOLD BRANNEN DUBE FERGUSON GRAHAM JARDEN KELLY KENNEDY KULIK LOZANO MURRAY PECK ROBERTSON RUFFER WATERMEN WILSON YOUNG, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 15-28, 1972 -Audio Works II, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 15-28, 1972 - Radio Works, program of works for radio by David Askevold & Ian Murray, and audio works by Cyne Cobb, Gerald Ferguson, Joseph Beuys, Jan Dibbits, Ian Murray, Bruce Nauman, Tony Schwartz, Michael Snow and Doug Waterman, curated and produced by Ian Murray, broadcast on CKDU Radio in conjunction with the exhibition Audio Works II, at the Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, February, 1972 - SHUFFLE AND DREAM RECONSTRUCTION, an exhibition by Doug Waterman, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 21 - 27, 1972 -Artists' Film - Askevold, Lipsett, Murray, Snow, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 27, 1972 -Performance by Proposal - Music by Schematic, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 28 - March 18, 1972 -2 ACCONCI, 2 GRAHAM, 2 OPPENHEIM: Lithographs and Working Documents from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, curated by Ian Murray with assistance from Wallace Brannen and Gerald Ferguson, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 28 - March 18, 1972 -International - a local group show, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 28 - March 18, 1972 -Performance by Proposal - Music by Schematic, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 28 - March 18, 1972 -Dennis Oppenheim - Whiteprints, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, February 28 - March 18, 1972 -On Kawara – I Got Up, curated by Ian Murray and Doug Waterman, Fourth Floor Galley, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, March 1 – May 26, 1972 -Broadcast Works, audio and video works by David Askevold, Cyne Cobb, Ian Murray and Doug Waterman curated by Ian Murray in conjunction with The Fourth Floor Gallery and The Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, for the exhibition Halifax-Vancouver Exchange at the Vancouver Art Gallery, broadcast on Vancouver Cable Television, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, March 26 - 30, 1972 -International – a local foreign group show, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, April - May, 1972 -“Postal”, curated by Ian Murray, included works by David Askevold, Eleanor Antin, Joseph Beuys, James Lee Byars, Image Bank, Dan Graham, Ray Johnson, On Kawara, Lee Lozano, Ian Murray, Ben Vautier, Doug Waterman among others, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, April 1 – May 26, 1972

Exhibitions & Broadcasts by The Fourth Floor Gallery, cont’d

-Halifax International 8 & Super 8MM Film Festival, curated by David Askevold and Ian Murray, The National Film Board Theatre and The Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, April - September, 1972 -Recent Sculpture II by Robin Peck, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, July 10 – 17, 1972 -Review: Closing Exhibition, curated by Ian Murray, Fourth Floor Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, July 20 – August 1, 1972