Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1993-2022 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
4.8 m of textual records and other material
2619 photographs, b&w and col.
1169 photographic negatives
31 photographic slides
13 photographic contact sheets
31 prints (etchings)
ca. 30 architectural elevation drawings
7 optical discs
2 external hard drives
Note: Other material includes artist multiples, maquettes, installation components, bookwork proofs, colour printouts, and other related materials pertaining to specific works and projects detailed in the finding aid. These are a coin, 4 bound volumes, 2 plaques, 1 contractor button, 1 set of hardcover boards, 1 printed fabric scarf, 5 metal installation components, 1 sample of bronze spray, and 2 metal tile maquettes. Further details about the specific projects these materials relate to can be found in the Scope and Content notes.
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Micah Lexier (1960- ) has established a national and international recognition as an artist, curator, and avid collector. His artistic practice is rooted in conceptual art and is often characterized by its collaborative nature. He works across a multitude of media which include sculpture, drawing, photography, video, and installation. Lexier’s artworks are often recognized for their engagement with concepts such as time, language, and the everyday, which are emphasized through his preference for process over the end product, and an artistic methodology that centers around documenting, collecting, and organizing.
Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Lexier studied at the University of Manitoba, receiving a Bachelor of Fine Art in 1982. He went on to earn a Master of Fine Art from the Nova Scotia College of Art & Design in 1984. Lexier then spent more than a decade living and working in Toronto, before moving abroad to New York in 1999. In 2008 he returned to Toronto, where he has since remained.
In 2015 Lexier received the Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts. His extensive exhibition history includes over 100 solo exhibitions and more than 200 group exhibitions. He has also been commissioned to produce more than a dozen public art installations at venues including the Tom Thomson Memorial Art Gallery (1991), Toronto’s Metro Hall (1992), and Toronto’s Bay-Adelaide Centre (2016). His work is in many major Canadian and international collections including the National Gallery of Canada, the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Vancouver Art Gallery, the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, the British Museum, and the Contemporary Art Gallery (Sydney, Australia). In 2013, Lexier exhibited a landmark solo show at The Power Plant (Toronto, ON) entitled One, and Two, and More Than Two. The “one” portion of the show presented a 30 year retrospective of his work in the form of an artwork entitled Working as a Drawing. It was complemented by parts “two” and “more than two,” which showcased his practice in collaboration with more than 100 Toronto artists.
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Series comprises the working papers of Micah Lexier. Contents are organized by individual project, and include correspondence, press clippings, publicity materials, sketches, and other documents pertaining to the design and fabrication of artworks. The projects included in this series represent more substantial or sustained projects entailing more than one file of records. The projects captured in this series include; Book Sculptures (1993), A Portrait of David (1993), Ampersand (1994), Minute of My Time (1995-), The Hall of Names (1996), Wins/Losses/Ties (1998), Sculptures of Drawings from Photographs of Objects (2002), David Then & Now (2003), I’m Thinking of a Number (2009), Power Plant Exhibition (2013), Two Circles (2016), The Forest and The Trees (2017), The Wind (2018), and Mechanisms for Suspending Coloured Shapes (2020).
Each file contains documents pertaining to the design and fabrication of a specific project by Lexier as identified in the file title, unless otherwise indicated. Any items of note have been indicated in the Scope and Contents field at the discretion of the processing archivist.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Files comprising Series 2 were organized chronologically based on individual projects by the creator. These files were stored separately from the items in Series 1, and were arranged in the following boxes:
• Box P1. Book Sculptures, 1993
• Box P2. A Portrait of David, 1993
• Box P3. Ampersand (Sheppard & Leslie subway station public commission), 1994
• Box P4. Minute of My time, 1995-ongoing
• Box P5. The Hall of Names (public commission), 1996
• Box P6. The Hall of Names (public commission), 1996
• Box P7. Wins/Losses/Ties (public commission), 1998
• Box P8. Sculptures of Drawings From Photographs of Objects, 2002
• Box P9. David Then & Now, 2003
• Box P10. I’m Thinking of a Number (NSCAD monograph), 2009
• Power Plant exhibition 2013 [2 boxes]
• Two Circles 2016 (public sculpture) [2 boxes]
• The Forest and The Trees 2017 (public sculpture) [2 boxes]
• The Wind Paris Embassy 2018 (public sculpture)
• Mechanisms for Suspending Coloured Shapes 2020 (public sculpture)
The original order has been maintained. Files have been transferred to Hollinger boxes as part of archival processing.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Conditions governing reproduction
Language of material
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Several photographs and files in Series 2 are in poor condition due to water damage. Several photographs in file 89-2 are stuck together and require the attention of a conservator.