Monthly Archives: January 2022

Conscient Podcast: e85 tracey friesen – narratives of resilience for a post carbon world

Conscient Podcast 
My #conscientpodcast conversation with media producer and cultural impact leader Tracey Friesen of Vancouver about increasing the power of media to affect social change, her book and organization Story Money Impact, and the good work of Good Pitch. Including quotes from e26 klein and e54 garrett.
https://vimeo.com/647589433

I first met Tracey on September 21, 2021 at a Processing the federal election during a climate emergency Zoom event organized by the Climate Emergency Unit. Since then, we have kept in touch through our participation in SCALE (the Sectoral Climate Arts Leadership for the Emergency network). 

Our 30-minute conversation covered a lot of ground, however, we only touched the surface of Tracey’s vast experience and network of collaborators in the cultural industries, so I hope that another conversation is in order down the road!

Tracey has over 30 years’ experience in Canada’s cultural sector. She spent more than a decade at the National Film Board in Vancouver, where she earned producer or executive credits on dozens of documentary film, animation and digital projects. She’s also held contracts with organizations like Inspirit Foundation, Mindset Foundation, DOC, Roundhouse Radio, and the David Suzuki Foundation. Tracey is author and founder of Story Money Impact, the charitable society that brought us Good Pitch Vancouver and Story to Action, plus other initiatives to advance education around media impact. In 2013 she was named ‘Woman of the Year’ by Women in Film & TV Vancouver. She is currently Managing Vice-President, BC Branch, at the Canadian Media Producers Association, where she passionately represents and supports BC-based independent film and television producers.  

I was touched by this quote from Tracey near the end of the conversation:

I’m mindful that with the climate emergency, it’s so existential that it’s captured my attention perhaps most strongly because I really hope that in the kind of complicated dynamic of the wonderful, wild world that we’re in right now, that it’s one thing that will impact all of us. Not the same way, certainly, there are those of us living in different parts of the world that will be affected in different ways, but it’s such a global community, it has to come together in all the ways that they can. So, we do need the scientists and we do need all of the work being done across all of the important social issues that are happening right now. And we really do need the storytellers to validate that their story driven, narrative driven, emotionally driven pieces of work will help to touch people now to change their behaviour or will help to soothe or reassure or be with them in the world post transition.

Tracey mentioned the following links during our conversation:

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Ma conversation #baladoconscient avec la productrice de médias et leader dans le domaine de l'impact culturel Tracey Friesen de Vancouver sur l'augmentation du pouvoir des médias pour affecter le changement social, son livre et l’organisation Story Money Impact et le bon travail de Good Pitch.

J’ai rencontré Tracey pour la première fois le 21 septembre 2021 lors de l’événement sur Zoom, Comment comprendre l’élection fédérale sur l’urgence climatique, organisé par la Climate Emergency Unit. Depuis lors, nous sommes restées en contact grâce à notre participation à LeSAUT (Leadership Sectoriel des Arts pour l’urgence de la transition écologique). 

Notre conversation de 30 minutes a couvert beaucoup de terrain, mais nous n’avons fait qu’effleurer la vaste expérience de Tracey et son réseau de collaborateurs dans les industries culturelles, alors j’espère qu’une autre conversation s’imposera un jour !

Tracey a plus de 30 ans d’expérience dans le secteur culturel canadien. Elle a passé plus de dix ans à l’Office national du film à Vancouver, où elle a obtenu des crédits de production ou de direction pour des dizaines de films documentaires, d’animation et de projets numériques. Elle a également eu des contrats avec des organisations comme Inspirit Foundation, Mindset Foundation, DOC, Roundhouse Radio et la David Suzuki Foundation. Tracey est l’auteure et la fondatrice de Story Money Impact, la société caritative qui nous a donné Good Pitch Vancouver et Story to Action, ainsi que d’autres initiatives visant à faire progresser l’éducation sur l’impact des médias. En 2013, elle a été nommée “Femme de l’année” par Women in Film & TV Vancouver. Elle est actuellement vice-présidente directrice de la branche de la Colombie-Britannique de l’Association canadienne des producteurs de médias, où elle représente et soutient avec passion les producteurs indépendants de films et de télévision de la Colombie-Britannique.  

J’ai été touché par cette citation de Stacey vers la fin de la conversation :

Je suis consciente qu’avec l’urgence climatique, c’est tellement existentiel que cela a capté mon attention peut-être plus fortement parce que j’espère vraiment que dans le genre de dynamique compliquée du monde merveilleux et sauvage dans lequel nous sommes en ce moment, c’est une chose qui aura un impact sur nous tous. Pas de la même manière, certes, certains d’entre nous vivant dans différentes parties du monde seront affectés de différentes manières, mais il s’agit d’une communauté tellement mondiale qu’elle doit se rassembler de toutes les manières possibles. Nous avons donc besoin des scientifiques, nous avons besoin de tous les travaux réalisés sur toutes les questions sociales importantes qui se posent actuellement, et nous avons vraiment besoin que les conteurs valident le fait que leurs travaux axés sur l’histoire, la narration et l’émotion contribueront à toucher les gens et à modifier leur comportement, ou à les apaiser, les rassurer ou les accompagner dans le monde de l’après-transition.

Tracey a mentionné les liens suivants au cours de notre conversation :

The post e85 tracey friesen – narratives of resilience for a post carbon world appeared first on conscient podcast / balado conscient. conscient is a bilingual blog and podcast (French or English) by audio artist Claude Schryer that explores how arts and culture contribute to environmental awareness and action.

———-

About the Concient Podcast from Claude Schryer

The conscient podcast / balado conscient is a series of conversations about art, conscience and the ecological crisis. This podcast is bilingual (in either English or French). The language of the guest determines the language of the podcast. Episode notes are translated but not individual interviews.

I started the conscient project in 2020 as a personal learning journey and knowledge sharing exercise. It has been rewarding, and sometimes surprising.

The term ‘conscient’ is defined as ‘being aware of one’s surroundings, thoughts and motivations’. My touchstone for the podcast is episode 1, e01 terrified, based on an essay I wrote in May 2019, where I share my anxiety about the climate crisis and my belief that arts and culture can play a critical role in raising public awareness about environmental issues. The conscient podcast / balado conscient follows up on my http://simplesoundscapes.ca (2016–2019) project: 175, 3-minute audio and video field recordings that explore mindful listening.

Season 1 (May to October 2020) explored how the arts contribute to environmental awareness and action. I produced 3 episodes in French and 15 in English. The episodes cover a wide range of content, including activism, impact measurement, gaming, arts funding, cross-sectoral collaborations, social justice, artistic practices, etc. Episodes 8 to 17 were recorded while I was at the Creative Climate Leadership USA course in Arizona in March 2020 (led by Julie’s Bicycle). Episode 18 is a compilation of highlights from these conversations.

Season 2 (March 2021 – ) explores the concept of reality and is about accepting reality, working through ecological grief and charting a path forward. The first episode of season 2 (e19 reality) mixes quotations from 28 authors with field recordings from simplesoundscapes and from my 1998 soundscape composition, Au dernier vivant les biens. One of my findings from this episode is that ‘I now see, and more importantly, I now feel in my bones, ‘the state of things as they actually exist’, without social filters or unsustainable stories blocking the way’. e19 reality touches upon 7 topics: our perception of reality, the possibility of human extinction, ecological anxiety and ecological grief, hope, arts, storytelling and the wisdom of indigenous cultures. The rest of season 2 features interviews with thought leaders about their responses and reactions to e19 reality.

my professional services

I’ve been retired from the Canada Council for the Arts since September 15, 2020 where I served as a senior strategic advisor in arts granting (2016-2020) and manager of the Inter-Arts Office (1999-2015). My focus in (quasi) retirement is environmental issues within my area of expertise in arts and culture, in particular in acoustic ecology. I’m open to become involved in projects that align with my values and that move forward environmental concerns. Feel free to email me for a conversation : claude@conscient.ca

acknowledgement of eco-responsibility

I acknowledge that the production of the conscient podcast / balado conscient produces carbon. I try to minimize this carbon footprint by being as efficient as possible, including using GreenGeeks as my web server and acquiring carbon offsets for my equipment and travel activities from BullFrog Power and Less.

a word about privilege and bias

While recording episode 19 ‘reality’, I heard elements of ‘privilege’ in my voice that I had not noticed before. It sounded a bit like ‘ecological mansplaining’. I realize that, in spite of good intentions, I need to work my way through issues of privilege (of all kinds) and unconscious bias the way I did through ecological anxiety and grief during the fall of 2020. My re-education is ongoing.

Go to conscient.ca

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Horses, Dancers, and Environmental Stewardship

Artists and Climate Change

By JoAnna Mendl Shaw

THE EQUUS PROJECTS FILMING OF IMPRINTED, APRIL-OCTOBER 2021

October 2021. It is a bright, sunny, crisp October morning and the cast and production crew for our documentary film, Imprinted â€“ three dancers, two equestrians, our sound technician, our second camera person, and our filmmaker Stefan Morel – are on a forest walk. As we pass under a canopy of magnificent autumn foliage, we pause to gaze upwards, noting the height of the huge tulip poplar and oak trees in this small New Jersey forest, nestled between suburban homes. Our forest guide is Roger Smith, a forest ranger and lifetime lover of forests and tress.

Roger’s passion for trees is evident as he describes the stunning intelligence nature displays: the interdependence of root systems and ground cover, waning chlorophyl leaving brilliant orange leaves on the sassafras trees and scarlet on the dogwoods. The seeds of the trees, acorns of the oaks, and nuts of the hickory and beech feed the squirrels and deer. If uneaten, they may sprout new trees for the future.

I am struck by the staggering intricacy of this ecosystem, the intelligence of nature going about its business despite human interference. It is the same intelligence I feel in the presence of the horses. These large animals give birth to babies that can stand and nurse within 20 minutes of emerging from their mothers’ wombs. Nature has created an elegantly calibrated creature of flight in this equine, its offspring poised to flee within moments of being born. The elegant interconnectedness of our animal and plant ecosystems is ever-present in my mind as I direct a dance company – The Equus Projects– which creates performance works that bring dancers and horses into shared landscapes. Equus has created works sited in urban and rural parks and even in a National Park – Pullman National Monument in far south Chicago. The company has performed in equestrian arenas, on museum grounds, on hillsides and in urban parks. We shot a full-length documentary film deep in a Swedish forest. The Equus Projects’ work has been commissioned by arts and equine presenters throughout the United States.

For most performance projects the company creates the works with local equestrians and their horses. For every project, the physical and emotional well-being of the animals comes first. The equine choreography is calibrated to showcase the individual animals’ strengths and personalities. The rehearsals are planned to keep the horses curious and engaged… which means no tedious repetition and drilling.

In October 2021, the company was in the final stretch of filming Imprinted, a documentary about how three dancers co-create a shared language with two mares and their young foals. The two mares in Imprinted â€“ Roxy and Pegasa – are horses that we have been training and dancing with for well over two years. One of the mares is owned by our trainer, Carrie Christiansen. The other mare is owned by her close friend Terry Smith, Roger’s wife.  Friends since they were teenagers, Carrie and Terry have shared their mutual love of horses through multiple phases of their lives and these two mares have been integral to that history. In the early summer of 2020, the women had Roxy and Pegasa inseminated, and a plan was hatched to investigate how the dancers might kinetically imprint ourselves on the young foals. While not hoping to literally imprint on the foals, we thought of this imprinting process as a gradual co-creation of a movement language with them. Carrie wondered if perhaps the foals would naturally take to the dancers, seeing as their mothers had been dancing with them in utero. I thought this entire idea was magical! 

In January 2021, I decided that our foal research would offer rich material for a documentary film, and I set about finding a compatible filmmaker. Within a week I had found the perfect candidate: Canadian filmmaker Stefan Morel is a passionate equestrian, known for his equine films. I assembled a small cast of dancers and a production team, and we began filming in April 2021. We first filmed dancers-in-training with the pregnant mares, and by end of June we filmed our company dancing with the foals. The staging ground for our film was Roger and Terry’s small horse farm in Cookstown, NJ. We took a huge leap of faith and propelled ourselves into truly uncharted territory.

Stefan was determined to capture the birth of both foals – not an easy feat. Mares tend to give birth at night out in a pasture. To make sure the births were captured on film, Roger and Stefan engineered a lattice of soft lights which they suspended above a small paddock next to the barn, and Terry introduced Roxy to this dimly illuminated paddock as her nighttime space well before her delivery date. Carrie followed this strategy with Pegasa. Both mares gave birth in that paddock, with the humans gently assisting when needed but otherwise watching this miraculous process in silent awe.

Are we humans interfering with nature? The question continuously occurred to me throughout our filming.

Kat and Roxy

For thousands of years, horses have played pivotal roles in human societies, helping early farmers plow their fields, and giving warriors a competitive edge in battle. Over 4,000 years ago, horseback riding allowed people to travel farther and faster than ever before, spurring migration throughout Europe and Asia. Human domestication of these animals is evidenced in archaeological finds in the steppe lands north of the Black Sea from Ukraine to Kazakhstan, indicating that the domestication of horses began approximately 6,000 years ago.

Today horses are used for sport. For some owners, horses are expensive possessions – much like sports cars – used for competition, fox hunting, and eventing. For others, horses are companions, cared for as members of the family. For folks like Terry and Roger, horses are part of a vision for environmental stewardship. Roger has a strong vested interest in keeping the forest adjoining his farm healthy and vibrant, protected from developers. His equine pasture thrives in part because it is adjacent to a thriving forest ecosystem.

Terry and Carrie take care of their mares and new foals with vigilant attentiveness. They provide on-going physical training for the mares and gently teach the foals to respect the human space. Like all equines, the foals began to test our human leadership early on by crowding and barging into our space. Our objectives as dancers are different from the objectives of a horse owner. An equestrian is most likely hoping that their foals will grow into ride-able horses. Carrie and Terry must make sure that their foals’ playful behavior does not become dangerously aggressive as they enter puberty. Our desire as dancers is about finding shared moments of engagement, perhaps co-creating a movement language. I fully acknowledge that our goals occupy the rather privileged position of simple curiosity. We are seeking synchronous movement conversations, an exchange of information rather than a desire to shape the horses’ behavior.

A human-equine conversation beyond simply hanging out together requires an understanding of equine behavior and the non-verbal language of equines. To reallydance with a horse calls for a fair amount of dedicated horsemanship training. Imprintedwill include many interludes of dancers engaged in horsemanship ground skills training. All three of us are experts in our own field, dance. We are relative beginners in the world of equine training. The journey is a humbling one.

Improvising with foals

Roger is deeply committed to preserving the natural balance of the ten acres of forest bordering his property. He works hard to be a good steward for this ecosystem, and the horses on his small southern New Jersey horse farm are part of that ecosystem. They play a role in Roger’s grand plan for ecological stewardship. Whether the forest is a few acres or a few thousands, he believes that he has been tasked to care for this plot of earth and leave it in an improved state. He manages the native trees and shrubs as well as the resident wildlife or those plant species just passing through. He uses the forest for products to improve his life – firewood to keep the home warm, lumber to build with, or the sap from the maples which yields “liquid gold,” aka maple syrup. Foremost, is the privilege of simply walking among these trees. As I walk through the forest, listening to Roger’s narrations about buds and nuts, ground cover and forest canopy, I feel a sense of awe for how powerfully efficient and intelligent nature is. It is the same sense of awe I felt watching Pegasa give birth to a jet-black filly, Lyra. The filly’s legs are still inside her mother when she opens her eyes, ears immediately tuning to her surroundings. Within 15 minutes of being born, Lyra is standing on her long spindly legs, gingerly walking around her mother. Within 20 minutes, she has found her mother’s nipples. We sit quietly, witnessing in awe the gentle and gradual bonding of mare and her newborn foal: Nature functioning magnificently, without human intervention.

As dancers, we use our improvisation skills to create a kind of shared physical language with the foals. In truth, the foals mostly choreograph us. Their movement gently carries us along next to them, their object of interest – mostly grass – directs our gaze as well. We shape the angle of our arm to drape gently over their backs, as our fingers pick up the tempo of their biting and chewing. Occasionally, we offer a flexed foot or wiggling fingers, actions that capture their attention momentarily.

Stefan, JoAnna, Lorenzo 

I explore simply freezing, holding a shape like a human statue. Lyra finds this unusual behavior for a human fascinating – and she touches her nose to my elbow. I move just my elbow. She touches my chin and I shift the position of my chin. Lyra is curious. I hope that she is enjoying this, if only for a moment. These inventive improvisations with the foals alternate with lots of scratching itchy places on their haunches and withers. Throughout the filming process, our foal interludes gradually integrate some basic natural horsemanship communication: I flap my arms to say “do not crowd me please;” a gentle guiding with our hands is a polite request to back up; a small rhythmic shooing motion sends them away.

Perhaps with this film, we will find new ways of interacting with young horses that gently shape their behavior. Our team of filmmaker and dancers have been a constant presence in these young equines’ lives. Who knows, perhaps our foal dancing will bring some magical innovation to the horse world. To be sure this journey has transformed each one of us.

Lyra and Stephan

(Top image: Peg in birthing paddock.)

___________________________

JoAnna Mendl Shaw has been choreographing performance works for stage, rural and urban landscapes since the 1980s. Artistic Director of The Equus Projects, Shaw tours throughout the States and Europe creating site-specific performance works that often bring dancers and horses into shared landscapes. Shaw has taught on faculty at NYU, The Juilliard School, Ailey BFA Program, Marymount, Princeton, Mount Holyoke and Montclair State. Shaw is the recipient of NEA Choreographic Fellowships and multiple National Endowment for the Arts grants for Interdisciplinary Performance.

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Artists and Climate Change is a blog that tracks artistic responses from all disciplines to the problem of climate change. It is both a study about what is being done, and a resource for anyone interested in the subject. Art has the power to reframe the conversation about our environmental crisis so it is inclusive, constructive, and conducive to action. Art can, and should, shape our values and behavior so we are better equipped to face the formidable challenge in front of us.

Go to the Artists and Climate Change Blog

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Conscient Podcast: e84 viviane gosselin + mauro vescera of the museum of vancouver

Conscient Podcast 
My conversation with Viviane Gosselin, Director of Collections & Exhibitions, Curator of Contemporary Culture and Mauro Vescera, Chief Executive Officer of the Museum of Vancouver (MOV) about greening their operations and addressing the climate emergency and issues of climate justice through exhibitions.  
https://vimeo.com/646293649

I worked with Mauro in 2006 on the Art in Ecology – A Think Tank on Arts and Sustainability and was happy to reconnect and learn about his leadership of this institution. I met Viviane through SCALE, the Sectoral Climate Arts Leadership for the Emergency, notably on the Education working group and was impressed by her passion for the environment and institutional engagement on the climate emergency. 

This conversation was recorded in 3 spaces: office, collections and exhibitions. I learned about the MOV’s 4 engagement priorities (redress and decolonization, immigration and diversity, environment and sustainability and urban and contemporary issues) and how they are greening their operations and addressing climate change and climate justice through their exhibitions.  

Viviane also spoke about her work with the Coalition of Museums for Climate Justice. 

Mauro and Viviane in the MOV collection, November 15, 2021
Exhibition at MOV, November 15, 2021
Exhibition at MOV, November 15, 2021
Entrance of MOV, November 15, 2021

*

Ma conversation avec Viviane Gosselin, directrice des collections et des expositions et conservatrice de la culture contemporaine, et Mauro Vescera, directeur général duMuseum of Vancouver (MOV) au sujet de l'écologisation de leurs opérations et de la prise en compte de l'urgence climatique et des questions de justice climatique dans leurs expositions.   

J’ai travaillé avec Mauro en 2006 dans le cadre du projet “Art in Ecology – A Think Tank on Arts and Sustainability” et j’ai été heureuse de renouer le contact et d’en apprendre davantage sur la façon dont il dirige cette institution. J’ai rencontré Viviane par le biais de LeSAUT, le Leadership sectoriel des arts pour l’urgence de la transition écologique, notamment au sein du groupe de travail sur l’éducation et j’ai été impressionné par sa passion pour l’environnement et l’engagement institutionnel sur l’urgence climatique. 

Cette conversation a été enregistrée dans 3 espaces : bureau, collections et expositions. J’ai appris les 4 priorités d’engagement du MOV (réparation et décolonisation, immigration et diversité, environnement et durabilité et questions urbaines et contemporaines) et comment ils écologisent leurs opérations et abordent le changement climatique et la justice climatique à travers leurs expositions.  

Viviane a également parlé de son travail avec la Coalition of Museums for Climate Justice. 

The post e84 viviane gosselin + mauro vescera of the museum of vancouver appeared first on conscient podcast / balado conscient. conscient is a bilingual blog and podcast (French or English) by audio artist Claude Schryer that explores how arts and culture contribute to environmental awareness and action.

———-

About the Concient Podcast from Claude Schryer

The conscient podcast / balado conscient is a series of conversations about art, conscience and the ecological crisis. This podcast is bilingual (in either English or French). The language of the guest determines the language of the podcast. Episode notes are translated but not individual interviews.

I started the conscient project in 2020 as a personal learning journey and knowledge sharing exercise. It has been rewarding, and sometimes surprising.

The term ‘conscient’ is defined as ‘being aware of one’s surroundings, thoughts and motivations’. My touchstone for the podcast is episode 1, e01 terrified, based on an essay I wrote in May 2019, where I share my anxiety about the climate crisis and my belief that arts and culture can play a critical role in raising public awareness about environmental issues. The conscient podcast / balado conscient follows up on my http://simplesoundscapes.ca (2016–2019) project: 175, 3-minute audio and video field recordings that explore mindful listening.

Season 1 (May to October 2020) explored how the arts contribute to environmental awareness and action. I produced 3 episodes in French and 15 in English. The episodes cover a wide range of content, including activism, impact measurement, gaming, arts funding, cross-sectoral collaborations, social justice, artistic practices, etc. Episodes 8 to 17 were recorded while I was at the Creative Climate Leadership USA course in Arizona in March 2020 (led by Julie’s Bicycle). Episode 18 is a compilation of highlights from these conversations.

Season 2 (March 2021 – ) explores the concept of reality and is about accepting reality, working through ecological grief and charting a path forward. The first episode of season 2 (e19 reality) mixes quotations from 28 authors with field recordings from simplesoundscapes and from my 1998 soundscape composition, Au dernier vivant les biens. One of my findings from this episode is that ‘I now see, and more importantly, I now feel in my bones, ‘the state of things as they actually exist’, without social filters or unsustainable stories blocking the way’. e19 reality touches upon 7 topics: our perception of reality, the possibility of human extinction, ecological anxiety and ecological grief, hope, arts, storytelling and the wisdom of indigenous cultures. The rest of season 2 features interviews with thought leaders about their responses and reactions to e19 reality.

my professional services

I’ve been retired from the Canada Council for the Arts since September 15, 2020 where I served as a senior strategic advisor in arts granting (2016-2020) and manager of the Inter-Arts Office (1999-2015). My focus in (quasi) retirement is environmental issues within my area of expertise in arts and culture, in particular in acoustic ecology. I’m open to become involved in projects that align with my values and that move forward environmental concerns. Feel free to email me for a conversation : claude@conscient.ca

acknowledgement of eco-responsibility

I acknowledge that the production of the conscient podcast / balado conscient produces carbon. I try to minimize this carbon footprint by being as efficient as possible, including using GreenGeeks as my web server and acquiring carbon offsets for my equipment and travel activities from BullFrog Power and Less.

a word about privilege and bias

While recording episode 19 ‘reality’, I heard elements of ‘privilege’ in my voice that I had not noticed before. It sounded a bit like ‘ecological mansplaining’. I realize that, in spite of good intentions, I need to work my way through issues of privilege (of all kinds) and unconscious bias the way I did through ecological anxiety and grief during the fall of 2020. My re-education is ongoing.

Go to conscient.ca

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Conscient Podcast: e83 the greatest mass movement in history

Conscient Podcast 
e83 is my narration of a November 13th, 2021, tweet by British writer and climate activist George Monbiot about ‘raising the scale of civil disobedience until we have built the greatest mass movement in history’. I agree and thank George. 
https://vimeo.com/645907065

This episode lasts 59 seconds. I want to share a November 13th, 2021, tweet by British writer and climate activist George Monbiot: 

‘Now we have no choice but to raise the scale of civil disobedience until we have built the greatest mass movement in history. We do not consent to the destruction of our life support systems’.

I agree with George and thank him. I find that his statement is both devastating and heartening. Here it is again: 

‘Now we have no choice but to raise the scale of civil disobedience until we have built the greatest mass movement in history. We do not consent to the destruction of our life support systems’.

Climate action rally in Vancouver, November 12, 2021 see https://www.conscient.ca/podcast/e82-washable-paint/)

*

e83 est ma narration d'un tweet le 13 novembre 2021 par l'écrivain et activiste climatique britannique George Monbiot, qui parle â€˜d'augmenter l'échelle de la désobéissance civile jusqu'à ce que nous ayons construit le plus grand mouvement de masse de l'histoire’. Je suis d'accord et je remercie George.

Cet épisode dure 59 secondes. Je veux partager un tweet du 13 novembre 2021 de l’écrivain britannique et activiste climatique George Monbiot : 

‘Maintenant, nous n’avons pas d’autre choix que d’élever l’échelle de la désobéissance civile jusqu’à ce que nous ayons construit le plus grand mouvement de masse de l’histoire. Nous ne consentons pas à la destruction de nos systèmes de survie.’

Je suis d’accord avec George et je le remercie. Je trouve que sa déclaration est à la fois dévastatrice et réconfortante. Le voici à nouveau : 

‘Maintenant, nous n’avons pas d’autre choix que d’élever l’échelle de la désobéissance civile jusqu’à ce que nous ayons construit le plus grand mouvement de masse de l’histoire. Nous ne consentons pas à la destruction de nos systèmes de survie.’

The post e83 the greatest mass movement in history appeared first on conscient podcast / balado conscient. conscient is a bilingual blog and podcast (French or English) by audio artist Claude Schryer that explores how arts and culture contribute to environmental awareness and action.

———-

About the Concient Podcast from Claude Schryer

The conscient podcast / balado conscient is a series of conversations about art, conscience and the ecological crisis. This podcast is bilingual (in either English or French). The language of the guest determines the language of the podcast. Episode notes are translated but not individual interviews.

I started the conscient project in 2020 as a personal learning journey and knowledge sharing exercise. It has been rewarding, and sometimes surprising.

The term ‘conscient’ is defined as ‘being aware of one’s surroundings, thoughts and motivations’. My touchstone for the podcast is episode 1, e01 terrified, based on an essay I wrote in May 2019, where I share my anxiety about the climate crisis and my belief that arts and culture can play a critical role in raising public awareness about environmental issues. The conscient podcast / balado conscient follows up on my http://simplesoundscapes.ca (2016–2019) project: 175, 3-minute audio and video field recordings that explore mindful listening.

Season 1 (May to October 2020) explored how the arts contribute to environmental awareness and action. I produced 3 episodes in French and 15 in English. The episodes cover a wide range of content, including activism, impact measurement, gaming, arts funding, cross-sectoral collaborations, social justice, artistic practices, etc. Episodes 8 to 17 were recorded while I was at the Creative Climate Leadership USA course in Arizona in March 2020 (led by Julie’s Bicycle). Episode 18 is a compilation of highlights from these conversations.

Season 2 (March 2021 – ) explores the concept of reality and is about accepting reality, working through ecological grief and charting a path forward. The first episode of season 2 (e19 reality) mixes quotations from 28 authors with field recordings from simplesoundscapes and from my 1998 soundscape composition, Au dernier vivant les biens. One of my findings from this episode is that ‘I now see, and more importantly, I now feel in my bones, ‘the state of things as they actually exist’, without social filters or unsustainable stories blocking the way’. e19 reality touches upon 7 topics: our perception of reality, the possibility of human extinction, ecological anxiety and ecological grief, hope, arts, storytelling and the wisdom of indigenous cultures. The rest of season 2 features interviews with thought leaders about their responses and reactions to e19 reality.

my professional services

I’ve been retired from the Canada Council for the Arts since September 15, 2020 where I served as a senior strategic advisor in arts granting (2016-2020) and manager of the Inter-Arts Office (1999-2015). My focus in (quasi) retirement is environmental issues within my area of expertise in arts and culture, in particular in acoustic ecology. I’m open to become involved in projects that align with my values and that move forward environmental concerns. Feel free to email me for a conversation : claude@conscient.ca

acknowledgement of eco-responsibility

I acknowledge that the production of the conscient podcast / balado conscient produces carbon. I try to minimize this carbon footprint by being as efficient as possible, including using GreenGeeks as my web server and acquiring carbon offsets for my equipment and travel activities from BullFrog Power and Less.

a word about privilege and bias

While recording episode 19 ‘reality’, I heard elements of ‘privilege’ in my voice that I had not noticed before. It sounded a bit like ‘ecological mansplaining’. I realize that, in spite of good intentions, I need to work my way through issues of privilege (of all kinds) and unconscious bias the way I did through ecological anxiety and grief during the fall of 2020. My re-education is ongoing.

Go to conscient.ca

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In the Beginning There Was Only Water

Artists and Climate Change

By Joan Sullivan

While some of us taught ourselves to bake sourdough bread or to mend socks during the pandemic, the American painter and arts writer Susan Hoffman Fishman plunged herself into her studio and emerged, a year later, with a revised creation story.

In the Beginning There Was Only Water: Panels 19-22, each panel 30″ x 15″, acrylic, oil pigment stick and mixed media on paper, 2021

The result: a magnificent, nearly 50-foot (15 meters) opus entitled In The Beginning There Was Only Water. 

Currently on exhibit at the Five Points Gallery in Torrington, Connecticut through December 19, 2021, In The Beginning There Was Only Water reframes the biblical creation myth – in which “man” was granted “dominion” over all the Earth’s plants and animals – into a new, non-human-centric story.

Installation photograph of In the Beginning There Was Only Water at Five Points Gallery, Torrington, CT, 2021

Comprised of 39 mixed media paintings on paper, each 30 in. x 15 in., the work is hung without any space between the panels. The extended horizontal format of the piece creates a dramatic running narrative that begins approximately 3.8 billion years ago, when our fiery planet started to cool and the rains began to fall, and fall continuously, for centuries â€“ filling up the basins that eventually became the primeval ocean.

In the beginning, there was only water. Not a human being or apple tree in sight.

According to Fishman, the narrative is “an abstract and liberal interpretation of what scientists have determined really happened at the creation of the planet and for the billions of years that followed.” 

In the Beginning There Was Only Water: Panels 1-6, each panel 30″ x 15″, acrylic and oil pigment stick on paper, 2021

In the Beginning There Was Only Water grew out of Fishman’s providential participation in a group of eight female eco-artists who met virtually on a regular basis during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. They assembled to read and discuss the newly published book All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis, edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine K. Wilkinson. The group’s enthusiastic reaction to this seminal eco-anthology was a collective decision to create individual paintings, sculptures, installations, and new media that responded to specific essays in the book. 

While reading All We Can Save, Fishman was “viscerally struck” by Kendra Pierre-Louis‘ essay, ‘Wakanda Doesn’t Have Suburbs.’ In particular, Pierre-Louis’ cri de cÅ“ur for new stories galvanized her – new stories to replace the biblical creation myth that cast humans as separate from and, worse, superior to nature. Such a colonialist worldview justified – no, condoned – our species’ relentless appetite to use and abuse the Earth’s resources in any way we choose, without regard to the impact of our actions on non-human beings – including the rivers, oceans, forests, land, and atmosphere – upon whom we depend for our own survival. 

According to Pierre-Louis, this creation myth set humans on an inherently destructive path that evolved, over millennia, into our “innate tendency to destroy the environment” ever since “Eve, allegedly, took a bite of that damn apple.”

Fishman spent the majority of 2021 working on In The Beginning There Was Only Water. Prior to developing the framework for the series, she conducted extensive research about the origins of the earth itself, including the geological formation of land, volcanoes, mountains and bodies of water; the emergence of single-cell organisms; the appearance of algae that eventually led to the creation of the first plants and the birth of animal life.

In the Beginning There Was Only Water: Panels 7 and 8, each panel 30″ x 15″, acrylic and oil pigment stick on paper, 2021
In the Beginning There Was Only Water: Panels 15-18, each panel 30″ x 15″, oil pigment stick and mixed media on paper, 2021

Meanwhile, as Fishman worked to complete her narrative, the reading group developed plans to create a traveling exhibition of their work, entitled Climate Conversations: All We Can Save, which was curated by member artists Leslie Sobel and Laura Earle. For her contribution to the group exhibition, Fishman created two large-scale (5 ft. x 5 ft.) mixed-media paintings on paper and the first six panels of what was to become her opus. These paintings served as a warm-up for her 39-panel narrative, a massive project that would soon outgrow her Connecticut studio. 

During the summer of 2021, Climate Conversations was installed at the 22 North Gallery in Ypsilanti, Michigan (July-August 2021). In early 2022, it will travel to the Janice Charach Gallery in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan (January-March 2022) and then to the Nurture / Nature Center in Easton, Pennsylvania (April-May 2022). 

In the Beginning There Was Only Water II, 5 ft. x 5 ft., acrylic and mixed media on paper, 2020
On the 3 Billionth Day Algae Made Plants, 5 ft. x 5 ft., acrylic, oil pigment sticks and mixed media on paper, 2021

The images accompanying this text, as engaging and seductive as they are, do not do full justice to Fishman’s extraordinary creation. In the Beginning There Was Only Water is a work of art that demands to be seen up close, in person. Walking the full length of this nearly 50-foot piece in the Five Points Gallery, visitors sense the primal energy associated with the violent origins of our blue planet and the teeming life forms created in its aftermath.

In this story, the entire world is Eden.

While Fishman chose to execute the first six panels as monochromatic interpretations of the primordial rains, she introduces color gradually as the narrative unfolds, beginning with blue and sepia and concluding with a full color palette. To mark the passage of time, each panel carries over at least one color from the previous one, an artistic sleight of hand that reminds us that all living organisms are related; they are, as Darwin pointed out, “descended from a common ancestor with striking anatomical similarities between species.” 

Fishman admits that she completed the paintings for In The Beginning There Was Only Water in multiples of two, four and six. But in ordering the narrative, she often reversed the sequence of the panels or, in many cases, turned the finished ones upside-down to enforce the abstract nature of the narrative. 

Incorporating collage materials such as gauze and hand-made papers to the surface of the panels, her paintings are highly textured. Her use of line and linear forms are especially effective in emphasizing movement and invites the viewer to travel along physically and intellectually with the story across time from panel to panel.

In the Beginning There Was Only Water: Panels 29-32, each panel 30″ x 15″, acrylic, oil pigment stick and mixed media on paper, 2021

Because water is essential for all living beings on Earth, Fishman made a conscious decision to include visible references to it throughout the series, using brilliant cobalt blue starting in panel 7. In fact, the topic of water is central to Fishman’s artistic practice. Since 2011, her work has focused almost exclusively on water and the climate crisis: rising tides, plastic oceans, the threat of water wars, and rampikes – dead trees along our shores whose roots have been exposed to salt water from rising tides. 

Although all of Fishman’s previous works present a narrative relating to the nature of water in our time, they are in no way didactic. Instead, her paintings are scenes on paper that she creates using bold, vivid colors, abstract shapes contrasting with recognizable images, often with skewed perspective.

In addition to being a painter and public artist, Fishman is a prolific arts writer who pens the popular monthly column, Imaging Water, for this international blog. Her monthly articles highlight artists, projects, and exhibitions that address the increasingly critical issue of water in the context of climate disruption. 

While the planet continues to warm and the seas to rise as a result of misguided decisions and actions that human beings have made since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, it is powerful artwork like Fishman’s In the Beginning There Was Only Waterthat reminds us of the innate beauty of our world and what we stand to lose.

This article is part of Imagining Water, a series on artists of all genres who are making the topic of water and climate disruption a focus of their work and on the growing number of exhibitions, performances, projects and publications that are appearing in museums, galleries and public spaces around the world with water as a theme.

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Joan Sullivan is a Canadian photographer and writer focused on the energy transition. She is a member of Women Photograph. In her monthly column for Artists and Climate Change, Joan explores the intersection of art, artists and the energy transition. For the first time this month, Joan is a guest writer for the monthly series, Imagining Water. You can find Joan on Twitter and Visura.

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Artists and Climate Change is a blog that tracks artistic responses from all disciplines to the problem of climate change. It is both a study about what is being done, and a resource for anyone interested in the subject. Art has the power to reframe the conversation about our environmental crisis so it is inclusive, constructive, and conducive to action. Art can, and should, shape our values and behavior so we are better equipped to face the formidable challenge in front of us.

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Conscient Podcast: e82 washable paint

Conscient Podcast 
e82 is an unedited, 20-minute soundscape recording, without narration, of a climate emergency rally and march on Friday, November 12, 2021, in Vancouver and an incident with police. The recording includes songs, speeches and chants about climate action and social justice.
https://vimeo.com/645594444

My goal was to record the soundscape of a public protest : the singing, chanting, speeches, random chatter and marching as well as the ambiance of the city, however what I witnessed and heard at this event was the response of the protesters to Vancouver Police around the arrest of group of young people who were doing a ceremony with washable red paint onto the windows of the federal Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change building on Burrard street (see photos), at which point the protest leaders requested the release the arrested persons and decided to remain in solidarity with them instead of continuing with the march towards the banking sector of downtown Vancouver and CBC Vancouver. 

The recording starts with a song and an indigenous person explaining what the intention was were with the ceremony. You then hear a ‘let them go’ chant followed by the police taking the arrested persons away in a van and the protesters’ reaction (‘they only used washable paint’). The march was then redirected onto Cordova Street towards the courthouse where detained persons were likely being held. You hear the protesters doing climate emergency chants followed by a song at which point I stopped the recording because my hands were shaking with cold.

In the end, 3 persons were arrested for public mischief as noted in this CTV news video posting and online.

I thought about whether it was ethical for me to publish this recording, given the delicate nature of the event, keeping in mind what Dr. Milena Droumeva told to me in episode 78 (at 31 minutes 50 seconds):

‘I feel very torn about doing field recordings. I think there are ethics that we need to think about. I try to convey that so that it is not extractive’.

I decided this recording was worth sharing given that it was a public event and of public interest to listen to these voices. It captures a dilemma for our society of balancing the urgent need for peaceful climate emergency protests, indigenous rights and the rule of law.

I want to thank those who were inadvertently recorded and hope their messages about the urgency of the climate emergency and the principle of ‘leaving no one behind’ carry wide and far. 

Protesters at November 12, 2021 climate action rally in Vancouver
Speaker at November 12, 2021 climate action rally in Vancouver
Protest sign at November 12, 2021 climate action rally in Vancouver

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e82 est un enregistrement sonore de 20 minutes, sans montage et sans narration, d'un rassemblement et d'une marche sur l'urgence climatique le vendredi 12 novembre 2021 à Vancouver et d'un incident avec la police. L'enregistrement comprend des chansons, des discours et des chants sur l'action climatique et la justice sociale.

Mon objectif était d’enregistrer le paysage sonore d’une manifestation publique : Cependant, ce que j’ai vu et entendu lors de cet événement, c’est la réponse des manifestants à la police de Vancouver concernant l’arrestation d’un groupe de jeunes gens qui faisaient une cérémonie avec de la peinture rouge lavable sur les fenêtres du bâtiment du ministère fédéral de l’Environnement et du Changement climatique sur la rue Burrard (voir photos), Les leaders de la manifestation ont alors demandé la libération des personnes arrêtées et ont décidé de rester en solidarité avec elles au lieu de poursuivre la marche vers le secteur bancaire du centre-ville de Vancouver et CBC Vancouver. 

L’enregistrement commence par une chanson et une personne indigène expliquant l’intention de la cérémonie. On entend ensuite un chant “laissez-les partir”, puis la police emmène les personnes arrêtées dans une camionnette et la réaction des manifestants (“ils n’ont utilisé que de la peinture lavable”). La marche a ensuite été redirigée sur Cordova Street, en direction du palais de justice, où des personnes détenues sont probablement retenues. Vous entendez les manifestants entonner des chants d’urgence climatique, suivis d’une chanson. À ce moment-là, j’ai arrêté l’enregistrement car mes mains tremblaient de froid.

En fin de compte, trois personnes ont été arrêtées pour méfait public, comme l’indique cette vidéo de CTV news et en ligne.

Je me suis demandé s’il était éthique pour moi de publier cet enregistrement, étant donné la nature délicate de l’événement, en gardant à l’esprit ce que le Dr Milena Droumeva m’a dit dans l’épisode 78 (à la 31e minute, 50 secondes) :

Je me sens très déchirée à l’idée de faire des enregistrements sur le terrain. Je pense qu’il y a une éthique à laquelle nous devons réfléchir. J’essaie de transmettre ces informations de manière à ce qu’elles ne soient pas extractives.

J’ai décidé que cet enregistrement valait la peine d’être partagé, étant donné qu’il s’agissait d’un événement public et qu’il était intéressant pour le public d’écouter ces voix. Il capture un dilemme pour notre société, celui de trouver un équilibre entre le besoin urgent de manifestations pacifiques d’urgence climatique, les droits des peuples autochtones et l’État de droit.

Je tiens à remercier les personnes qui ont été enregistrées par inadvertance et j’espère que leurs messages sur l’urgence de la situation climatique et le principe de “ne laisser personne derrière” seront largement diffusés. 

The post e82 washable paint appeared first on conscient podcast / balado conscient. conscient is a bilingual blog and podcast (French or English) by audio artist Claude Schryer that explores how arts and culture contribute to environmental awareness and action.

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About the Concient Podcast from Claude Schryer

The conscient podcast / balado conscient is a series of conversations about art, conscience and the ecological crisis. This podcast is bilingual (in either English or French). The language of the guest determines the language of the podcast. Episode notes are translated but not individual interviews.

I started the conscient project in 2020 as a personal learning journey and knowledge sharing exercise. It has been rewarding, and sometimes surprising.

The term ‘conscient’ is defined as ‘being aware of one’s surroundings, thoughts and motivations’. My touchstone for the podcast is episode 1, e01 terrified, based on an essay I wrote in May 2019, where I share my anxiety about the climate crisis and my belief that arts and culture can play a critical role in raising public awareness about environmental issues. The conscient podcast / balado conscient follows up on my http://simplesoundscapes.ca (2016–2019) project: 175, 3-minute audio and video field recordings that explore mindful listening.

Season 1 (May to October 2020) explored how the arts contribute to environmental awareness and action. I produced 3 episodes in French and 15 in English. The episodes cover a wide range of content, including activism, impact measurement, gaming, arts funding, cross-sectoral collaborations, social justice, artistic practices, etc. Episodes 8 to 17 were recorded while I was at the Creative Climate Leadership USA course in Arizona in March 2020 (led by Julie’s Bicycle). Episode 18 is a compilation of highlights from these conversations.

Season 2 (March 2021 – ) explores the concept of reality and is about accepting reality, working through ecological grief and charting a path forward. The first episode of season 2 (e19 reality) mixes quotations from 28 authors with field recordings from simplesoundscapes and from my 1998 soundscape composition, Au dernier vivant les biens. One of my findings from this episode is that ‘I now see, and more importantly, I now feel in my bones, ‘the state of things as they actually exist’, without social filters or unsustainable stories blocking the way’. e19 reality touches upon 7 topics: our perception of reality, the possibility of human extinction, ecological anxiety and ecological grief, hope, arts, storytelling and the wisdom of indigenous cultures. The rest of season 2 features interviews with thought leaders about their responses and reactions to e19 reality.

my professional services

I’ve been retired from the Canada Council for the Arts since September 15, 2020 where I served as a senior strategic advisor in arts granting (2016-2020) and manager of the Inter-Arts Office (1999-2015). My focus in (quasi) retirement is environmental issues within my area of expertise in arts and culture, in particular in acoustic ecology. I’m open to become involved in projects that align with my values and that move forward environmental concerns. Feel free to email me for a conversation : claude@conscient.ca

acknowledgement of eco-responsibility

I acknowledge that the production of the conscient podcast / balado conscient produces carbon. I try to minimize this carbon footprint by being as efficient as possible, including using GreenGeeks as my web server and acquiring carbon offsets for my equipment and travel activities from BullFrog Power and Less.

a word about privilege and bias

While recording episode 19 ‘reality’, I heard elements of ‘privilege’ in my voice that I had not noticed before. It sounded a bit like ‘ecological mansplaining’. I realize that, in spite of good intentions, I need to work my way through issues of privilege (of all kinds) and unconscious bias the way I did through ecological anxiety and grief during the fall of 2020. My re-education is ongoing.

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