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
'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
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
'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
'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
'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)
'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
'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
