Art of Peace II / Arrivals

The Art of Peace II / Arrivals project began in the Spring of 2019 in Toronto Canada under the guidance of Gerry Trentham, performer, choreographer, and artistic director of Pounds Per Square Inch Performance (lbs. /sq”), and director, dramaturge, and cultural animator Diane Roberts.  

The participants in the project came together from various artistic backgrounds (performers/dancers, visual artists, and filmmakers). Some of the participants had worked with one another on past projects while others had not, yet each artist brought unique contributions to the table to help generate momentum to launch the project.

Director Diane Roberts suggested that the group participate in her Arrivals Legacy Project Workshop (a two-week hands-on studio class that provided a space for artists to connect to an ancestor in spirit through physical movement, journaling, and researching, thus providing the artist with a deeper understanding of themselves in hopes of contributing to their creativity).  This workshop gave the collaborators a common foundation on which to build this new project.  

As the only visual artist in the group, responsible for the creation of the installed three-dimensional artworks, the workshop allowed me to connect better to the other group members.  I was able to tap into each performer’s aesthetic more readily.   Being present with them for two weeks in a common space allowed me to observe how their bodies moved and to witness the interplay between them all, which helped to ignite ideas for the creation of physical artworks to make for future rehearsals.