Students participated in an interactive art piece designed to collect perspectives on foreign countries on March 30, according to one of the designers Taib Boyce.
Four Carleton students hosted the exhibit in the University Centre atrium.
The piece required students to select one of six countries and write their thoughts on it. The piece of paper with their thoughts was then added to the map, creating a collage.
Participants were asked two questions about each country—what they think highlights the country on the international stage, and how influential they think the country is.
Boyce said this art exhibit is an “out-of-the-box” way to demonstrate the finer points of the concept of constructivism.
“We felt that art in itself is a subjective type of expression, and we felt that constructivism, from its core, is trying to construct ways of thinking and perceptions of different worldviews,” he said. “Through art, you’re able to kind of deconstruct these perceptions and allow people to see for themselves what their true beliefs are.”
The exhibit displayed geographical outlines of countries from around the globe, each housed in its own picture frame.
“A flag [represents] the perceived ideologies behind a country, but geography is something that’s unchanged and untapped by human interference,” Boyce said. “It’s just what represents the country in its purest form.”
Out of more than 200 countries to choose from, Boyce said the team chose the six best reflecting diversity and representation from each part of the world.
“We have Nigeria having the African representation there, we have the United States, a world power . . . Russia, also a world power and still influencing international relations today. We have France and Britain here as well because of their historical relevance” he said. “And China, because of its emerging status as a powerful nation.”
Adil Skalli, a communications and political science student, participated in the exhibit on his way to class.
He said the exhibit made him think of perceptions about the countries which differ from his own.
“It did ask interesting questions with regards to the position of different countries in the world, and it’s not necessarily questions that you’d ask yourself,”
Skalli said the study puts things into perspective.
“It got me to think about the different power relations each country has, relative to other neighbouring countries,” he said.
Boyce said the team hopes to see a lot of diversity and unique perspectives in the answers, especially with Carleton’s wide representation of international students.
The team will showcase their findings at a presentation for their fourth-year advanced international relations course at the end of the term.
