City building | September 10, 2020
During the First World War, Canadian soldier Lieutenant-Colonel George Stephen Cantlie plucked flowers from the fields of war-torn Europe, sending them home to his baby daughter Celia in Montreal. Artist Viveka Melki presents 10 of these century-old flowers in an exhibition that examines human nature in wartime. Using floriography–the Victorian language of flowers–Melki has created an immersive, multisensory experience featuring Cantlie’s letters, specially-commissioned optical crystal sculptures and original flower-based scents, interwoven with the personal stories of 10 Canadians directly involved in the war.
The Museums of Mississauga is also presenting a local connection to the First World War through the Bradley Museum’s exhibit, Our Boys: Mississauga’s Fallen Soldiers 1914-1918 as well as a Speaker’s Series that focuses on the stories of soldiers from Black and Indigenous communities.
What:
WAR Flowers: A Touring Art Exhibition Preview Event
When:
Thursday, September 17, 2020
5-6 p.m. (media)
6-7 p.m. (dignitaries)
Where:
Living Arts Centre
4141 Living Arts Dr.
Mississauga, ON L5B 4B8
(Duke of York Blvd. east entrance)
Who:
- Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie
- Members of Council
- Local dignitaries
- Viveka Melki, curator, WAR Flowers: A Touring Art Exhibition (available for virtual interviews upon request)
Cost:
Free to the public
Media Registration:
All media must RSVP in order to attend the event. Please register using the link below:
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/war-flowers-limited-attendance-preview-media-tickets-118165280535
