GIFT is a tribute to something that can’t be measured or counted, bought or sold. Exploring the parallels between artists’ work and a gift economy, it’s a reflection on the creative process, and the beauty and challenges of fearlessly giving and receiving.

HOW IT WORKS:

Bring a small, unwrapped, creative, sentimental or practical gift to participate in the exchange.

Cards representing a service or experience you wish to gift are welcome!

Gift exchange and discussion will be facilitated directly after the film inside the theatre.

3:30-4:00 | Gift decorating

4:10-5:40 | Screening

5:40-6:10 | Gift Exchange & Discussion

Want to attend but fuzzy on the gift exchange? Visit www.barbdanielewski.com/updates for more on the details and philosophy behind the exchange.

ABOUT THE FILM:

Inspired by Lewis Hyde’s beloved classic The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World, GIFT is a richly cinematic film, interweaving character-driven stories. On North America’s Pacific Northwest Coast, a young Indigenous man undertakes the elaborate preparations for a potlatch—to make a name for himself by giving everything away. In Rome, Italy, a factory occupied by migrant families is transformed into a living museum, protected by a “barricade of art”: a model of resistance, and an invaluable gift. In the pirate utopia of Burning Man, a mutant bumblebee art car distributes honey in a post-­apocalyptic desert landscape. Meanwhile, in Auckland, New Zealand, artist Mingwei Lee prepares to launch Sonic Blossom – a “transformative gift” of song. GIFT is a tribute to something that can’t be measured or counted, bought or sold. Exploring the parallels between artists’ work and a gift economy, it’s a reflection on the creative process, the reasons we “labour in service of our gifts”, and a celebration of the imagination.

THE CAUSE:

Following the Y2K Youth Summit, Y2K and community screenprinter/arts educator Barb Danielewski have entered a research and development phase for new after school programming.

Funds raised will support young artists and changemakers in using screenprinting to build their confidence and voice.