Buffalo Arts Studio presents: Evelyn Leblanc-Roberge: As the Hour Turns Blue May 24 to June 28, 2024

Discover the beauty of the mundane with Evelyne Leblanc-Roberge’s latest installation, As the Hour Turns Blue. By delving into the essence of waiting rooms, Leblanc-Roberge invites the viewer to contemplate the importance of these often overlooked spaces in our daily lives.

Buffalo Arts Studio is pleased to present As the Hour Turns Blue, a groundbreaking installation by renowned artist and educator Evelyne Leblanc-Roberge. Stemming from his long-term research on waiting spaces, this immersive experience combines photography, video projection and narration to offer a new perspective on the concept of waiting.

The exhibition includes multiple elements interacting with the gallery walls and floors, such as large format prints, assemblages of photographic images and small screens. The installation also includes a 60-minute video projection, looping every hour, which acts as a clock in the gallery space. Through computer performances, contemplative collages and meditations on the passage of time, Leblanc-Roberge explores the intricacies of waiting, incorporating short stories, interviews, recreated environments, landscapes, objects and visual poems .

Leblanc-Roberge explains: “What is a waiting room? A chair, or two, or more. Or maybe just a piece of tape on the floor, to mark the start of the wait. There, we are waiting for something. That a train arrives, that a number appears on a screen, that our name is called, that a dear friend meets us. We suspend ourselves in time and space.

As the Hour Turns Blue celebrates nonproductive moments of hesitation, latency, and stillness, inviting viewers to consider boredom as an avenue for observation, learning, and slowing down. Through this installation, Leblanc-Roberge offers a unique perspective on the notion of waiting and its meaning in our lives.

“This facility in Buffalo Arts Studio is an invitation to wander through a collection of waiting room stories and images that I have slowly collected over the past few years,” concludes Leblanc-Roberge.

Live as the hour turns blue at the Buffalo Arts Studio and embark on a journey through the familiar world of waiting rooms, reinvented through the visionary artistic prism of Evelyne Leblanc-Roberge.

Evelyne Leblanc-Roberge (she/her) is an image maker and learner from Canada and currently an associate professor of Art and Lens Based Media at the University of Rochester (Rochester, New York). Leblanc-Roberge received grants from the Canada Council for the Arts for the Arts and the University of Rochester and has participated in several artist-in-residence programs across continents to produce multi-faceted collaborative projects published as books, videos, zines, exhibitions, performances and/or ephemeral installations. She completed her BFA in Photography at Concordia University (Montreal, Canada) and her MFA in Integrated Electronics. arts at Alfred University (Alfred, New York).

Buffalo Arts The studio receives support from the Cameron and Jane Baird Foundation, Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo, Erie County Cultural Fund, Humanities New York, John R. Oishei Foundation, M&T Bank, the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, Simple Gifts Fund, The Andy. Warhol Foundation for the Visual Artsand the New York State Council for Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.

About Buffalo Arts Studio:

Buffalo Arts Studio (BAS) connects diverse communities through visual content arts through inclusive exhibitions, educational programs, mentorships and public activities art while also providing affordable studio space, exposure, paid opportunities, and ongoing professional development for visual artists. BAS is a catalyst for empowerment, innovation and action focused on enhancing our region.

Buffalo Arts Studio connects diverse communities through exhibitions, educational programs and public activities. art while providing support to visual artists. BAS is a catalyst for empowerment, innovation and action focused on enhancing our region.