University of Toronto Magazine – Eliminating Excessive Force 2020

Editor: This is Owen Gent's "University of Toronto Magazine – Eliminating Excessive Force" from 2020, and it's done with mixed media. I find the work so serene, yet unsettling. What is your interpretation of this work? Curator: This piece hits hard given our current cultural moment. Gent uses the visual language of restraint, or perhaps forced restraint. Notice how the individual's eyes are closed, almost in resignation. Considering the title, "Eliminating Excessive Force," how do you see the lines in the background operating in relationship to the figure? Editor: They look like arrows, trajectories…like a diagram illustrating force, but also maybe avoidance? Curator: Precisely. And within the context of excessive force, this visual language is complicated. Who is avoiding whom? And at what cost? Gent is commenting on the disproportionate application of power, while also subtly pointing towards potential solutions: control, awareness, perhaps meditation as ways to avoid brutality. Editor: That's a perspective I hadn't considered, focusing on solutions rather than just the problem. So the meditative pose isn’t just passive. Curator: Exactly. Think about the moment it was created. The piece offers a powerful, intersectional understanding of how systemic forces affect individuals, while still pointing towards resilience. What do you make of the flatness of the picture plane combined with the subject matter? Editor: It almost flattens the figure, not in a literal way, but symbolically suggesting a feeling, making him vulnerable or without power. Curator: I agree. It is fascinating how this image captures so many layered intersections, asking questions about how power affects our personal agency, without easy answers. Editor: I now have so much to consider when looking at illustrations on social topics.