ECfdV_EC.mov

Shaheer Zazai

March 1–June 30, 2023

Shaheer Zazai, still from ECfdV_EC.mov, 2023. Image courtesy of the artist.

Libby Leshgold Gallery is pleased to announce the launch of Shaheer Zazai’s ECfdV_EC.mov, as part of the City of Vancouver’s Public Art Program for Emily Carr University’s Urban Screen. The screening will run March 1 through June 30, 2023.

ECfdV_EC.mov is a digital work created specifically according to the parameters of the ECU Urban Screen, and incorporating data and metrics directly relating to the institution’s curriculum, student population and other statistical information. Stemming from Zazai’s long-standing interest in Microsoft Word as a creative medium, the work combines familiar word processing technologies with traditional Afghan carpet-making processes. Each “knot” in his designs is created by a typed letter; through a painstaking process of formatting and re-formatting, Zazai’s characters become elaborate compositions that reference design and textile histories—and the diasporic experiences interwoven with them.

Public Programmes

A Conversation with Shaheer Zazai and Emily Hermant
Libby Leshgold Gallery, Emily Carr University of Art + Design
March 9, 6 PM

Biographies

Shaheer Zazai is an Afghan-Canadian artist with a current studio practice in painting and digital media. Zazai received a BFA from OCAD University in 2011 and was artist in residence at OCAD University as part of the Digital Painting Atelier in 2015. Zazai is a recipient of Ontario Arts Council grants and he was a finalist for EQ Bank’s Emerging Digital Artist Award in 2018. Zazai has exhibited at Capacity 3 Gallery, CAFKA Biennial 2019, Art Gallery of Mississauga, Glenhyrst Art Gallery, Double Happiness Projects and Patel Brown Gallery. Current and upcoming exhibitions include a solo exhibition at the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, an off-site group exhibition curated by The Power Plant Contemporary and a solo exhibition at the Owens Art Gallery at Mount Allison University.

Urban Screen

Located outdoors in the campus’ southeastern plaza, the Urban Screen is a public art initiative of the City of Vancouver’s Public Art Program in partnership with Libby Leshgold Gallery at Emily Carr University of Art + Design.  

Offering 4–6 new commissions a year, the Urban Screen spotlights local and international artists and filmmakers working across diverse media disciplines of art, design, media, and technology. The screen operates daily from 8 AM–9 PM. 