Truck Driving Artist Performs NAFTA

Nancy does some interesting work and here is the press release



from her most recent project "Exchange", which involves her driving a



giant truck filled with her personal possessions across the entirety of



North America, trading the things with people she meets along the way.



I first heard about this project when she came to speak at the Upgrade



way back in April 2004.

Nancy became certified as a trucker for this project. i always



think it is so interesting the skills people pick up through life: now



she's got something to fall back on if teaching at UBC doesn't work



out! hee. Good luck Nancy, we're looking forward to following the



project en route!

TRUCK-DRIVING ARTIST PERFORMS “NAFTA”














VANCOUVER, BC, Mar. 8, 2006, Multidisciplinary artist




Nancy Nisbet pushes the boundaries of free trade and




surveillance in her new project “Exchange”.









On May 1st, 2006 Nisbet launches Exchange with a




performance of free trade at the Richmond Art Gallery. Now




a Class 1 licensed “trucker”, she will drive a transport




truck over 30,000 km through Canada, the United States and




Mexico. Along the way she will engage in “free trades” of




her personal possessions with people she encounters. Radio




Frequency Identification (RFID) technology labels her




belongings in an effort to raise awareness of the




technology and the potential threats that its use brings




to issues of personal privacy.









In the free trade events of Exchange there is no need for




similar monetary value between traded items. Rather,




Nisbet trades stories and memories of her belongings with




the stories and memories of others. Stories, memories and




relationships become the currency of Exchange.









Nisbet says; “I am very excited about the people that I




will meet and the experiences of trading with so many




people. I know it will be a challenge to drive the truck,




to be on the road for such a long time, to give up my home




and my things ...but that is the essence of the project –




resistance and expansion of boundaries.”









Nancy Nisbet is Assistant Professor of visual art at UBC.




She has lectured and written about human rights,




surveillance and RFID technology and exhibited her artwork




internationally. Exchange is made possible by a grant from




the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of




Canada.

www.exchangeproject.ca