My #conscientpodcast conversation with indigenous artist Chantal Chagnon multidisciplinary, artist Kevin Jesuino and performance maker & educator Dr. Melanie Kloetzel of the climate art web project about decolonization, networking, mapping and growing the climate arts movement.Â
This is my first episode with three guests! I was impressed when I first heard about the work of this dynamic trio through SCALE and am honoured that they took the time to speak with me on solstice day, December 21, 2021. Our conversation covered a range of issues, including decolonization and the need for artists concerned about the climate emergency to network and develop solidarity. The trio also explained their collaboration on the climate art web project, which, btw, has a deadline to hire regional curators on January 15, 2022.
Chantal Chagnon is a Cree Métis Singer, Drummer, Artist, Storyteller, Actor, Educator, Workshop Facilitator, Social Justice Advocate and Activist with roots in Muskeg Lake Cree Nation, Saskatchewan. She shares Traditional Indigenous Songs, Stories, Culture, History, Arts, Crafts and Teachings. Chantal has presented at Conferences, Conventions, Galas, Fundraisers, Community, Social Justice Events and in Classrooms from Preschool through University. Chantal aims to entertain, engage, enlighten, educate, and inspire everyone she meets. A single mother of two boys and twin girls, she understands societal struggle firsthand. Chantal has been an activist, advocate for her community, professional performer and a staunch crusader for causes close to her heart. She is active within many social justice causes, including Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women (MMIW), Women’s Rights, and Environmental Initiatives. She regularly organizes events and shares, singing, drumming, speaking, presenting, and teaching within the community, with a focus on building allies and alliances.Â
Dr. Melanie Kloetzel (MFA, PhD) is a performance maker, scholar and educator who is committed to research that spans stage, site, and screen. Kloetzel employs practice-as-research methodologies to develop events, workshops and encounters in theatre spaces, alternative venues, spaces of public assembly, and online environments. In addition to her work with TRAction, a collective of interdisciplinary artists who engage communities in art-making to address issues of climate justice, Kloetzel is also director of the dance theatre company kloetzel&co. and co-director of the performance collective ReLoCate. Kloetzel’s research focuses on performance, place, text, and characterization. Her three books, the co-edited anthology Site Dance: Choreographers and the Lure of Alternative Spaces (2009), the co-authored (Re)Positioning Site Dance: Local Acts, Global Perspectives (2019), and the co-authored Covert: A Handbook – 30 Movement Meditations for Resisting Invasion (2021), are currently available from University Press of Florida, Intellect, and Triarchy, respectively.
Kevin Jesuino is a Portuguese Canadian queer multidisciplinary artist, facilitator, teacher, arts producer and community organizer working in performance and socially engaged art. He is based in Mohkinsis of Treaty 7 territory, also known as Calgary, Canada. His work is oftentimes collaborative, site-specific, participatory, and process oriented. His practice explores the intersection of the body, society and place. His recent research explores the queer body, ecology, fragility and modes of being together. His community-embedded projects engage participants in performative actions, discussions, creative interventions, activations and other forms of organizing — positioning art & culture as a vehicle for meaningful social change. Â
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Ma conversation #baladoconscient avec l'artiste autochtone Chantal Chagnon, l'artiste multidisciplinaire Kevin Jesuino et la créatrice de spectacles et l’éducatrice Dr. Melanie Kloetzel, du projet web d'art climatique, sur la décolonisation, le réseautage, la cartographie et la croissance du mouvement des arts climatiques.
C’est mon premier épisode avec trois invités ! J’ai été impressionné lorsque j’ai entendu parler du travail de ce trio pour la première fois à LeSAUT et je suis honoré qu’ils aient pris le temps de me parler le jour du solstice, 21 décembre 2021. Notre conversation a porté sur un éventail de questions, notamment sur la décolonisation et la nécessité pour les artistes concernés par l’urgence climatique de se mettre en réseau et de développer la solidarité. Le trio a également expliqué leur collaboration sur le projet web d’art climatique, dont la date limite pour soumettre sa candidature comme conservateur régional est le 15 janvier 2022.Â
Chantal Chagnon est une chanteuse, batteuse, artiste, conteuse, comédienne, éducatrice, animatrice d’ateliers, militante et défenseur de la justice sociale d’origine crie et métisse, originaire de la nation crie de Muskeg Lake, en Saskatchewan. Elle partage des chansons, des histoires, une culture, une histoire, des arts, de l’artisanat et des enseignements traditionnels autochtones. Chantal a fait des présentations lors de conférences, de congrès, de galas, de collectes de fonds, d’événements communautaires et de justice sociale, ainsi que dans des salles de classe, du préscolaire à l’université. Chantal vise à divertir, à engager, à éclairer, à éduquer et à inspirer tous ceux qu’elle rencontre. Mère célibataire de deux garçons et de deux jumelles, elle comprend de première main la lutte sociétale. Chantal a été une activiste, une défenseuse de sa communauté, une artiste professionnelle et une ardente militante des causes qui lui tiennent à cÅ“ur. Elle est active dans de nombreuses causes de justice sociale, notamment les femmes autochtones assassinées et disparues (MMIW), les droits des femmes et les initiatives environnementales. Elle organise régulièrement des événements et partage, chante, joue du tambour, parle, présente et enseigne au sein de la communauté, en mettant l’accent sur la création d’alliés et d’alliances.Â
Dr. Melanie Kloetzel  (MFA, PhD) est une créatrice de performances, une universitaire et une éducatrice qui se consacre à la recherche sur la scène, le site et l’écran. Melanie Kloetzel utilise des méthodologies de pratique et de recherche pour développer des événements, des ateliers et des rencontres dans des espaces de théâtre, des lieux alternatifs, des espaces de rassemblement public et des environnements en ligne. En plus de son travail avec TRAction, un collectif d’artistes interdisciplinaires qui engage les communautés dans la création artistique pour aborder les questions de justice climatique, Kloetzel est également directrice de la compagnie de danse-théâtre kloetzel&co. et codirectrice du collectif de performance ReLoCate. Les recherches de Kloetzel portent sur la performance, le lieu, le texte et la caractérisation. Ses trois livres, l’anthologie Site Dance : Choreographers and the Lure of Alternative Spaces (2009), le coauteur (Re)Positioning Site Dance : Local Acts, Global Perspectives (2019), et le coauteur de Covert : A Handbook – 30 Movement Meditations for Resisting Invasion (2021), sont actuellement disponibles auprès de University Press of Florida, Intellect et Triarchy, respectivement.Â
Kevin Jesuino est un artiste multidisciplinaire, un facilitateur, un enseignant, un producteur d’art et un organisateur communautaire luso-canadien qui travaille dans le domaine de la performance et de l’art socialement engagé. Il est basé dans le territoire Mohkinsis du Traité 7, également connu sous le nom de Calgary, au Canada. Son travail est souvent collaboratif, spécifique au site, participatif et orienté vers le processus. Sa pratique explore l’intersection du corps, de la société et du lieu. Ses recherches récentes explorent le corps queer, l’écologie, la fragilité et les modes d’être ensemble. Ses projets, ancrés dans la communauté, engagent les participants dans des actions performatives, des discussions, des interventions créatives, des activations et d’autres formes d’organisation – positionnant l’art et la culture comme un véhicule pour un changement social significatif.Â
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The post e97 chantal chagnon, kevin jesuino, melanie kloetzel – climate art web 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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