The 2019–2020 Out of the Box exhibition series is dedicated to the works of trained architect and conceptual artist Gordon Matta-Clark, whose writings, photographs, films, correspondence, and select artworks were produced between 1969 and 1978, and donated to the CCA by the Estate of Gordon Matta-Clark in 2011.

The third and final exhibition in this series, curated by Kitty Scott, presents both a geographical and thematic reading of the hundreds of travel photographs taken by Gordon Matta-Clark during his sojourns across Central and South America, Haiti, and Jamaica, as well as Europe and North America. These little-known photographs not only provide detailed documentation of the specific sites captured through Matta-Clark’s touristic gaze; they also reveal a set of recurring themes and subjects—ranging from collective spaces to volcanic eruptions—that contribute to a broader understanding of the artist’s ongoing investigation into social, cultural, and environmental context.

Structured as a study in three acts, this series of exhibitions invites three guest curators from different curatorial backgrounds ranging from contemporary art, film and archival research, to social practice studies, to explore Gordon Matta-Clark’s critical practice within the architectural scene of the time.

Yann Chateigné (Brussels/Geneva), Hila Peleg (Berlin), and Kitty Scott (Ottawa) offer a close reading of a range of archival materials such as personal correspondence, sketchbooks, unseen footage, private photos, and project drafts, to present predominantly unpublished works and materials. While Matta-Clark’s works were a clear product of his time and environment, the themes he addresses in relation to architecture and urbanism—neglect and speculation, distinctions between public and private spaces, questions of access, corporatization and gentrification, history and, memory—are as relevant as ever.

The series is accompanied by a publication. An online finding aid for the Gordon Matta-Clark Collection is available.