MEMORY AS A LIGHT IN DARKNESS

The darkness of a rural Ontario winter draws us inward both physically and mentally – a shadowed nocturnal landscape exposing gaps in what we were certain of in the light of day. Malcolm Pate aspires to evoke the elusiveness of our memories in the few flickers of illumination we can find, serving us as both beacon and anchor to what we think we know.

NOCTURNING is a meditation on how we traverse the spaces between that light and dark, remembering and forgetting. Like fragments of memory that slip just beyond recall, Pate’s work inhabits the threshold where truth can be partially obscured by darkness or omission. Much like memory itself, the night creates voids in our perception, leaving us to wonder what lies hidden, just out of reach.

MALCOLM PATE: NOCTURNING is held in conjunction with Lights On Stratford, annual winter festival managed by Destination Stratford, transforming Stratford’s heritage downtown and park system with luminous art and interactive light installations. December 13, 2024 – January 19, 2025