Welcome to The Employee email archive.
The Employee (2020-2021) was a year-long artwork by Joshua Schwebel that took place at Forest City Gallery (FCG) in London, Ontario. One of Canada's first artist-run centres, FCG has been publicly funded for almost 50 years, yet is staffed by a single, part-time employee whose disproportionate workload is not uncommon in the sector. To realize The Employee, Schwebel obtained a grant from the Canada Council for the Arts to hire a performer, “the employee,” performed by artist Camille-Zoé Valcourt-Synnott, who he delegated to write funding applications on behalf of FCG. With this protocol, Schwebel intended to reinforce FCG’s capacity, while the gallery provided a framework through which administrative activities would be signified as art. Ultimately, none of the employee’s grant applications were successful.
This archive is published in parallel with a printed publication of the same name, edited by Schwebel and Lauren Wetmore with contributions by the editors, Mariane Bourcheix-Laporte, Teresa Carlesimo, Bopha Chhay, Dana Kopel, Michelle Lacombe, Denise Ryner, Camille-Zoé Valcourt-Synnott, and Marina Vishmidt. The Employee is co-published by Art Metropole and FCG. The artist gratefully acknowledges the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, without which this project would not have occurred.
The archive constitutes a trace of the artwork and the publication, documenting the continuous administrative labour of communication involved in cultural work. It contains every email sent and received in connection to the project and throughout its duration. Redactions were made to respect peoples’ privacy, or to indicate correspondence with those who declined permission to include their emails in the archive.
Select an email thread to begin.
 | Josh SchwebelNewReplace: “of different levels. From” with “significant ways. Multiple mandatory closures have required us to” |
| Josh SchwebelNewReplace: “to adapt to multiple mandatory gallery closures” with “, and cancelled fundraisers and events caused” |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA |  |
| Josh SchwebelNewI think this should be in the top para where you describe the mandate of the gallery |
| Josh SchwebelNewDelete: “As we stay committed to paying artists to present their work in a professional gallery setting” |
| Josh SchwebelNewAdd: “is inadequate for the health and safety protocols required by the pandemic” |
| Josh SchwebelNewReplace: “With funding from the London Community Foundation, we propose to move our gallery to a new location …” with “With funding from the London Community Foundation, we propose to move our gallery to a new location …” |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
| Josh SchwebelNewReplace: “he current context and the fact that our programming will primarily occurhappens mainly online for t…” with “his is an ideal time to make” |
| Josh SchwebelNewDelete: “will be smoother than if we had physical exhibitions taking place during that time” |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
| Josh SchwebelNewI think that we should put the “pitch” or the “ask” up here in the first paragraph. Something like: In partnership with the Western Fair, we are seeking support from the LCF to relocate our gallery from its current location to the Arts building on the Western Fair grounds, in order to continue our programming activities in an environment that is safer and more accessible. |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
| Josh SchwebelNewI think since this is a fund about community, it’s strategic to work that word into the pitch when possible :) |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
| Josh SchwebelNewReplace: “This” with “We have been in conversation with the Western Fair District, who own the Arts Building - a property …” |
| Josh SchwebelNewAdd: “Forest City Gallery has been thinking about moving for quite some time, however as our programming i…” |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
 | Forest CityGalleryNewDelete: “, however” Replace: “more difficult” with “proving challenging” |
| Forest CityGalleryNewDelete: “FCGorest City Gallery has been thinking about moving for quite some time, however as our programming…” Add: “While the COVID-19 situation has created a sense of urgency to relocate, the inadequacy of FCG’s cur…” |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
| Forest CityGalleryNewReplace: “inside the building to create” with “to the Arts Building interior,” Add: “creating” |
| Forest CityGalleryNewReplace: “bathroom” with “facilities” Replace: “with an automatic door.” with “, and safe work areas for staff and guests” |
| Forest CityGalleryNewReplace: “which means we will need to build a ramp for one of the staircases” with “including a ramped entryway.” |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
| Forest CityGalleryNewReplace: “A new location where public parking is easily available would” with “Public parking adjacent to the Arts Building” |
| Forest CityGalleryNewDelete: “we will be able” Replace: “to” with “allows us” Add: “to safely” |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
| Forest CityGalleryNewAdd: “Our current location lacks public parking nearby, and in a recent community survey FCG conducted, re…” |
| Forest CityGalleryNewReplace: “By moving to a location with an adjacent green space, we will also have the opportunity to develop o…” with “Lastly, the green space surrounding the Arts Building will allow us to develop outdoor programming t…” |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
| Forest CityGalleryNewDoes the LCF explicitly say they want evidence that we're applying elsewhere? |
| Forest CityGalleryNewDelete: “At thes we start of the renovation process, FCGwe will launch a community-wide fundraising campaign …” |
| Forest CityGalleryNewReplace: “on the exterior of the building when weather permits” with “, talks, and workshops” |
| Forest CityGalleryNewReplace: “amongst our community and our members. (London Arts Council, Canada Heritage Fund).” with “and at the start of the renovation process, FCG will launch community-wide fundraising initiatives.” |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
| Forest CityGalleryDoes the LCF explicitly say they want evidence that we're applying elsewhere? |
| Josh SchwebelNewyes, I was also wondering if we needed to put this in, since it sort of also lets them off the hook (after saying how urgent the move is) |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA | |
