Vignettes of Connectivity: The University Art Gallery as a Critical Space for Promoting Anti-Racism and Anti-Oppression

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Published: Oct 14, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26443/crae.v52i1.2666
Keywords:
Artists-in-Residence, Anti-Racism, Anti-Oppression, Gallery Education

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Natalie LeBlanc
University of Victoria
Natasha Reid
University of Victoria
Michelle Wiebe
University of Victoria
Shadi Moalem
University of Victoria
Yi Qian
University of Victoria

Abstract


In this paper, we present findings from a recent study of an artist-in-residence program aimed at promoting anti-racism and anti-oppression in a university art gallery. This research tested new strategies, grounded in contemporary artistic practices and gallery-based education. We propose that play-, will-, and care-infused practices offer relational and affective learning opportunities with the potential to stimulate empathic response, critical consciousness, and radical imagination through embodied, relational, and community-oriented modes of engagement.


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How to Cite
LeBlanc, N., Reid, N., Wiebe, M., Moalem, S., & Qian, Y. (2026). Vignettes of Connectivity: The University Art Gallery as a Critical Space for Promoting Anti-Racism and Anti-Oppression. The Canadian Review of Art Education, 52(1), 4–25. https://doi.org/10.26443/crae.v52i1.2666
Issue
Vol. 52 No. 1 (2026): Reconnections: Art, Education, and Inclusive Futures
Section
Articles
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Author Biographies

Natalie LeBlanc, University of Victoria

Natalie LeBlanc (Ph.D) is an interdisciplinary artist and researcher working with paint, photography, printmaking, textiles, and digital technologies through a wide range of artistic processes and practices. She is particularly interested in how visual and artistic inquiry actualizes ways of seeing beyond the ordinary or the habitual, providing opportunities for learning that are relational, performative, and complex.  Natalie has made methodological contributions to arts-based educational research, a mode of scholarship that recognizes how art making, thinking, learning, and knowing are interconnected within pedagogical practices. Her work has been published in national and international publications including Arts-Based Research in Education: Foundations for Practice (edited by R. Siegesmund & M. Cahnmann-Taylor) and A/r/tography: Essential Readings and Conversations (edited by R. L. Irwin, A. Lasczik, A. Sinner & V. Triggs). She is currently an Associate Professor of Art Education at the University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.

Natasha Reid, University of Victoria

Natasha S. Reid (she/her/elle) is an Associate Professor of Art Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Victoria (Victoria, BC, Canada), where she teaches undergraduate and graduate studio and community art education courses. She holds a Ph.D. in Art Education from Concordia University and conducted postdoctoral research at the Université du Québec à Montréal and New York University. Using narrative research, arts-based methods, embodied practices, and culturally responsive and sustaining pedagogies, she investigates and activates the lived histories of art educators, emplaced and relational experiences, and diverse cultural identities in museums, galleries, community centres, and other public pedagogical sites, as well as universities. She is the principal investigator on a SSHRC-funded project that is researching artistic approaches to anti-racism and anti-oppression in gallery settings. Currently, she serves on the review boards of the Art Education Journal and the Journal of Social Theory in Art Education.

Michelle Wiebe, University of Victoria

Michelle Wiebe is an Assistant Professor emeritus in art education at the University of Victoria. She is also a registered Graphic Designer and believes that the ways in which we present our ideas impact understanding. Michelle’s research interests have included design education, creativity development, empathy in design thinking, and inquiry learning in art/design. She has been inspired by her involvement in ‘Artistic Approaches to Anti-racism and Anti-oppression.

Shadi Moalem, University of Victoria

Shadi Moalem is a visual artist and a PhD candidate in Art Education at the University of Victoria. In her doctoral research, using narrative and arts-based methods, she investigates how artist-led cultural practices in art museums promote inclusive and dialogical engagements with collections and contribute to critical museum pedagogies. Shadi holds an MFA in visual arts from Iran’s University of Art, and her artistic practice is rooted in painting, drawing, and printmaking. Working across these media, she explores how we can deepen our aesthetic experience of objects, nature, and places. She has taught graduate and undergraduate studio and digital arts courses in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada and is also a museum educator at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria.

Yi Qian, University of Victoria

Yi Qian is a PhD candidate in art education in the University of Victoria's Department of Curriculum and Instruction. Yi Qian uses the pronouns "she/her.” She has a background in digital arts, photography, and filmmaking. Born in China, she comes from a family with three generations in the arts and in education. She earned her bachelor's degree in China before completing her MFA in the US. Her current doctoral studies focus on East Asian international and immigrant students in Western Canada. This study explores their transition experiences in an undergraduate visual arts program. Yi Qian is working to integrate her art-based techniques, particularly documentary filmmaking, into her academic studies in art education.

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