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Art for Community Health & Social Change

 Community-engaged Arts |Arts Facilitation | Cultural Production

My creative practice centers around projects that improve mental health, prioritize gender & racial equality, share prosperity and promote environmental sustainability. I curate substance-free experiences centered around art, music, movement, and dialogue that not only build community, but also increase our awareness of ourselves, others, and nature.

Tomoyo Suzuki Visual Art #3.jpeg

Tomoyo Suzuki

'Nature as Muse' Poetry, Visual Art and Nature Immersion Workshop Series

People from across Canada gathered weekly for 2 months in a virtual setting to learn about and create poetry, Indigenous legends and visual art together. Their creations were inspired by a walk in nature taken during the workshop or in the days leading up to it. Over 100 poems, stories and visual art pieces were created by 15+ participants as part of this community project made possible by the Futures/forward mentorship program, an initiative of the International Centre of Art for Social Change and Judith Marcuse Projects, in partnership with Sierra Club Canada Foundation - Prairie Chapter and with the mentorship of Laura Barron, Artist and Executive Director of Instruments of Change.

Zoom

August 2020 - March 2021

Roles: Community-Engaged Artist, Co-Producer, Co-Facilitator

Elements Project Debra Thornington.jpg
Sabine Modder Visual Art 2.JPG.jpg
Katharine Fletcher monoprint collage hai
LindsayBoucherResilience.jpg
World Poetry Day Open Mic + Spring Equin

Debra Thornington

Katharine Fletcher

Lindsay Boucher 

Sabine Modder

'From parking lot into a vibrant community hub' 

is a community-engaged placemaking project that will transform a shipping container into a unique community space in the Vanier neighbourhood.

Ottawa, Ontario

September 2020

Role: Community-engaged Supporting Artist/Producer

Lead artist, producer & photo credit: Kseniya Tsoy

Community-engaged Creative Placemaking V

'COVID-19 Online'

During physical distancing, we continued to engage with the community by hosting:

 

- Monthly Women's Creative Circles

- Open Mic Events for Emerging Artists

- Virtual Dance Parties for Workplaces

- Music, Movement & Self-massage Wellness Events

Zoom

April 2020 - present

 

Roles: Producer, Arts Facilitator, DJ, Emcee

Virtual Dance Party.png

'Girlfriends Women's Circle'

A monthly gathering for women to hold meaningful and vulnerable conversations and connect around artmaking.

 

Themes include:

- Inclusion & Racism

- The Environment & Wellness

- Femininity & Masculinity

Ottawa, Ontario & Zoom during distancing

January 2020-Present

Roles: Co-producer, Co-facilitator

Womens Circle August 2020.jpg

'The Poverty Challenge' & 'The Mental Health Challenge'

Community-engaged education events whereby participants were assigned roles and asked to physically navigate simulated systems of care. They later found out that their experience was based on an individual's real story and spoke with the person in whose shoes they had just walked.

University of Ottawa

Ottawa, Ontario

May 2018 & November 2019

Roles:

Lead Producer, Emcee, Scriptwriter (2019), Co-producer (2018)

Mental Health Challenge October 2019.jpg

'Francophone Culture Conference & Flash Mob'

As part of a day-long French culture gathering for 250 French immersion high school students, I produced an unexpected flash mob to start their day, complete with original music created by an emerging French-second language artist.

University of Ottawa

Ottawa, Ontario

May 2014

Role: Lead Producer, Dancer

Flash Mob May 2014.jpg

'Francophone Culture Event & Concert'

As part of the annual French for the Future conference to promote FSL studies to youth, I produced a field trip that included French culture workshops, a traditional sugar shack lunch and  a musical performance by Mehdi Cayenne.

University of Ottawa

Ottawa, Ontario

May 2014

Role: Lead Producer

Mehdi Cayenne Concert May 2013.jpg
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