ABOUT DEREK SIMONS

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When Derek Simons, Richard Pinet, Andreas Kahre and Sourayan Mookerjea began to ask, in September of 2021, how we might explore the registers of fascism and/or authoritarianism that have emerged in the past decade, our initial discussions were very much informed by the Spectacular State project created in 1994 by Derek Simons and Richard Pinet.

 

In September 2023, we introduced the new project to the public, in the context of an exhibition titled Poetics of Possibilities at the Vancouver Roundhouse Arts and Community Centre ( of which Derek had been the original director ). As part of the exhibition, we presented Grotesque Naturalism, a research component that Derek had designed and introduced the 'map'. ​

 

Tragically, Derek Simons passed away in June of 2024, and we dedicate these pages and the project to his memory.