In 1973, self-proclaimed “gianthropologist” Henri Robideau set out to document the outsized statuary of North America in a series of pseudo-scientific “digs.” The MacLaren is proud to inaugurate the Henri Robideau Gianthropological Resource Centre, an exhibition-turned-reading-room intended to explore themes from Farther Afield and Road Trip. Robideau’s series, The Pancanadienne Gianthropological Survey, highlights the ways in which Canadian artists have critically and conceptually interrogated the landscape tradition from the 1970s onwards. With photographic postcards and bookworks from the MacLaren’s Permanent Collection, this exhibition highlights the contribution of Vancouver-based photographer Henri Robideau to this evolving form.
Henri Robideau is a senior Canadian photographer. His work is in the collections of the National Gallery of Canada, the Robert Frank Collection at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Surrey Art Gallery. Recent exhibitions include grunt gallery (2015) and Presentation House Gallery (2012) in Vancouver. Robideau taught at Emily Carr University from 1979 to 2015.
