(Un)Usual Spaces: View

explore each artist’s work by selecting their image from the gallery below, or keep scrolling to see each piece in sequence

HELICAL - Tethered the Ghost

“What is an unusual space? That definition changes with who you ask. Helical is Isa’s story, alone for filming an artistic project that leads to an introspective confrontation with herself. She is suddenly faced with questions she’s been avoiding: are you happy with the reflection you see in the mirror? Are you satisfied with what you put out into the world? Are you willing to challenge the darker sides of yourself?
We recommend that you use a pair of headphones. We hope you enjoy our piece.”

Created by: Tethered The Ghost, St. Catharines, ON
"Special thank you to Darian Wielink and Theresa Ochoa for filming."
Instagram: @tetheredtheghost
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tetheredtheghost

We are Tethered the Ghost, a newborn theatre company in St. Catharines, Ontario founded by Kaylyn Valdez-Scott and Meryl Ochoa. Our mission is to address the complexities of the Filipinx-Canadian diaspora by putting on stage the narratives that we and our families live through. Kaylyn Valdez- Scott is a half Filipina, half Scottish artist from Toronto, Ontario, and Meryl Ochoa is an emerging Filipina artist who immigrated to Canada with her family in 2012. We are dedicated to creating original work to challenge the lack of representation of bodies that look like ours and the lack of diversity in Canadian stories on stage.

CAN YOU SEE ME - Nanthini Namasti

“This time lapse painting was originally created for a virtual circus showcase titled "Covisions" in Spring of 2020. It was reimagined for this Virtual Art Showcase with original music as well that may change the viewer's  experience.”

Video and Music by: Nanthini Namasti
Instagram: @chroniclesofnan

My name is Nanthini - I’m a young recreational artist looking to explore as many arts forms and possibly make it my living. I delved into acting (film/T.V.), aerial/ circus arts, theatre, visual arts but have more extensive experience with music.  

I have not been professionally trained in working with visual art forms (only recreationally created drawings or painting). I enjoy creating art that is colourful and seems uplifting or intriguing to look at.  

As with music, I’ve had training in South-Indian classical singing and flute playing when I was younger. I also played the western flute and alto-saxophone in school for a few years. I was drawn more to composing music during my teenage years and recently realized this passion as I completed a certificate program in Music Composition at Humber College.  My current goal is to become a working music composer for media. I would also like to make music that can be of benefit for therapeutic purposes (to help manage, stress, anxiety, anger, etc.) 

DESCENDANT - Angola Murdoch (LookUp Theatre)

“Our DNA is in our hair: using an aerial rope with the outer layer removed (resembling my wavy hair), the rope will be rigged to a tree, my family tree while also attached to my own hair, thus becoming an extension of myself. As I climb, twist and weave myself through this extension, I travel through my heritage, hanging onto the past and discovering my own culture.
Being 6th generation Canadian, my cultural heritage is hidden behind name changes and retold tales. After a recent DNA test to find out more about my ancestry, I discovered that I am European Jewish and less than 30 percent Irish, Scottish and English, with some Spanish and Italian. Until the test, I had always thought I was 100% mix of Irish, Scottish and English.
In this piece I contemplate how my ancestors lived and what they were like. The visual piece starts with audio of my grandfather who was interviewed by CBC radio in early 2000 about his 60 year career delivering the mail by horse and buggy.”

Creator and Performer - Angola Murdoch
Video and Edit - Eamon Mac Mahon
Arborist and Rigger - Hayley Landry

www.lookuptheatre.com

My artistic form is storytelling through contemporary circus arts and theatre. It is creative nonfiction, as I use true stories as an anchor while also using imagination to creatively convey the story using movements, text and metaphors.

I am the founder and Artistic Director of LookUp Theatre, a circus and theatre company formed in 2009. I have been working in the circus industry for over fifteen years. The Globe and Mail wrote about my first production, "The packed house of a mostly younger demographic was wildly
enthusiastic in its response, and with good reason." In 2008 my solo show was named "most heartfelt dance show in Canada" also from the Globe and Mail.

My childhood was spent mostly upside down, dancing and doing gymnastics while growing up on my family farm in Grey County, Ontario. I have trained and performed in many movement disciplines including over fifteen years of capoeira, aerial circus and acrobatics. My strength is creating new aerial equipment and using it in a theatrical setting. Currently I am a company member of Femme Du Feu Creations and A Girl in the Sky productions. For 7 summers I have been commissioned to create a half hour circus show for the Summerfolk Festival where I combined circus and live music. I have performed at many major venues in Ontario
including Buddies in Bad Times, Harbourfront Centre, Art Gallery of Ontario, Canadian National Exhibition, and The Second City. Some highlights of my international career include: Cirque Pacifica (Maui), Granmercy Theatre (NYC), Command Performance (European Tour), and Zip Zap Circus (South Africa).

IMPROVISATION DE ROBOT - Meghan Cheng

“Set in a series of five one minute dances, the story follows The Robot and its desire for greater expression through dance.  The concept is based on the life of Loie Fuller, an American dancer who rejected the traditionalism of ballet and helped developed the modern dance style.  Much like qualities of the improvised music, The Robot creates its own real-time, generative choreography according to the musical gestures it hears. This creates a digital character that can express itself based on predefined rules and continues the legacy of Loie Fuller in a digital space.”

www.pinginteractive.studio
Instagram: @ping_interactive

Meghan Cheng is a Toronto-based digital media artist and founder of Ping Interactive Studio.  She specializes in blending digital and physical installations that immerse audiences in interactive sound, light and movement.  She’s worked with artists across North America and has provided installations for Interacess’ Vector Festival, Women from Space Festival and 918 Bathurst Cultural Centre.  Meghan believes in building meaningful relationships with ourselves, each other and the world around us through shared imaginative experiences. 

(un) body - lwrds duniam

“My studio practice—much like myself—is 100% brujería mixed with ancestral wrath. Conjuring performance, sculptural, illustrative, poetic, and remediated mixed-media outcomes, this brujería praxis emerges from a foundation of transgressive witchy knowledge, traversing the multiple realms of my idiosyncratic spirituality. My work as an artist responds to my personal journey of healing sexual trauma at the intersections of gender variance, Blackness and Indigeneity (complicated by an imposed latinidad I vehemently reject due to its colonial underpinnings), and disability for reasons of neurodivergence and chronic illness. A born storyteller with a deep commitment to healing personal and collective traumas, my material approach is an intuitive process of learning with other non-human beings, valuing energetic exchanges with all that exists.”

instagram: @lwrdsss @lwrds.art

lwrds is a cosmic force
black and brown afroindigenous blood
artist, shapeshifter, and keeper of a slutty heart
they’re a nonbinary genderhealing dream
100% brujería
mixed with ancestral wrath

PAYHOO - Nadine Arpin & Diane McGrath Lokos

“‘Payhoo’ is an experimental short film which blends seemingly opposing perspectives; a view of Northwestern Ontario landscape after a rain and a dynamic aerial performer. Through the juxtaposition of slow-motion reels, we suggest the illusion of colliding worlds moving through space. The colours of the medicine wheel remind us of the cycles of life.  The use of heritage languages (Celtic, Michif) as both a visual and text, anchors the piece with our ancestors. ”

Diane Mcgrath Lokos, Toronto Ontario
www.aerialartstoronto.com
Instagram: @dmcgrathlokos.artist @flywithme_to

&

Nadine Arpin, Sioux Lookout. Northwestern Ontario 
Instagram: @nadine._.arpin
Twitter: Nadine Arpin

Diane McGrath Lokos is a Toronto-based conceptual Aerial Performance Artist & Choreographer, creating performance art in the air. Owner of Fly With Me Aerial Dance Studio, Diane has been performing in various Troupes as an Aerialist for over 17 years. New Media graduate from OCAD focusing on interactive sculptures, animatronics and video installations.This artistic influence can be seen in Diane’s aerial choreography drawing and projection-integrated performances.

Nadine Arpin is a 2Spirit, Red River Michif, filmmaker, media-artist living in Sioux Lookout, Northwestern Ontario. Nadine is interested in telling stores that blur the lines of legend, memory and truth. Her work uses mixed media, found footage and animation to create hybrid cinematic experiences.

MC Cruz

“The pieces connect to the theme of “Unusual Spaces” by entering into the perspective of a "newcomer" in Canada. When one is forced to leave behind the ancestral homeland in search of a safe haven everywhere is an "unusual space". Even the mind is an unusual space since you are still full of memories of what was left behind. You can still see, hear, smell and feel what your ancestral home was like while you try to navigate a completely new and foreign place. Sometimes the safe haven doesn't feel entirely safe. Sometimes there is culture shock, depression, post traumatic stress disorder and other issues to deal with in the new "home". Now that the Corona virus pandemic has affected us all on a global scale, maybe now we can understand a little of what it's like to be a stranger in a strange land. The more recent paintings explore what it is to live in a world with this "new normal".”

Pick and choose what sounds to hear while you view the artwork.

OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL VIEWING:
”Feeling Alone, Invisible in the City” (short animated film)
https://youtu.be/BsX_2SI_Qnk

All artwork by Maria Christina Cruz
https://localeopardlady.wordpress.com/
Twitter: @localeopardlady
Instagram: @aisha_amcic
YouTube channel: Loca Leopard Lady TV

M.C Cruz a.k.a Chris is a child of Chilean immigrants. Who was born, raised and currently based in Toronto but has also lived  two years in Chile and more recently did an Artist Residency in Morocco. They attended Etobicoke School of Arts and majored in Visual Arts before moving to Vancouver to study film and video production at Capilano University. They facilitated filmmaking workshops for marginalized communities as part of Fright Film Academy and  Fright Film School. They have written, directed and produced several live action and animated short films including “Vampyric PSA”, “La Llorona” and “Root Causes”. "Root Causes" screened at Rendezvous with Madness film festival with a special invitation to be part of the filmmakers panel. It has also screened at OCAD for a special preview screening by Artist Health Alliance.

Their painting series "Refuge From Home"  has been showcased at the University of Toronto and Toronto City Hall this past October 2019. It is currently being shown at TMAC and virtually (due to the pandemic) as part of the juried art exhibition "Being Scene" by Workman Arts. 

Their goal is to keep on creating art that challenges the status quo and telling stories with meaning and passion. 

skin to skin 

i remember you 
and the intimacy that comes 
from proximity
fingers on spine 
a firm handshake
cheeks

i close my eyes

i remember you
and the stories 
slipping from our skin
accordion ribs
floating palms
soles

you close your eyes

i remember you
and the booming belly laughter 
belonging to familiarity
mouths wide
knees slapped
teeth

we close our eyes

i remember you 
and the sensuality of disclosure
born by whispered words 
lips near ears
head on shoulder
collarbones

i close my eyes

i remember you
and the knowing that forms 
beneath the surface
iliac to iliac
thigh upon thigh
toes

you close your eyes

i remember you 
and the swell of love 
magnified by touch
hand to hand
eye to eye
hearts

we close our eyes

skin to skin - Nicole Nigro

“The idea for skin to skin emerged from our collective missing. Simply, I miss my friends, my family, my colleagues. I miss their skin. I miss their touch. I think most of us are missing intimacy amidst the pandemic. skin to skin attempts to display intimacy in an unusual space, as does the pandemic, in the digital realm. The skin of the body becomes a canvas to speak of our shared humanity, both porous and protector, the space we occupy and the (dis)connective fabric between us and the world.”

Concept & Direction: Nicole Nigro (CAN)
Sound Score: Cory Neale (USA)
Collaborating Performers:
Cory Neale (USA), Nicole Nigro (CAN), Faith Sullivan (USA), Sloane Teagle (USA), Johannes Zits (CAN)

 https://www.nicolebnigro.com 
https://coryneale.com

Nicole Nigro is a dance-theatre artist. She is a graduate of The School of Toronto Dance Theatre (CA), holds an Honours BFA from York University (CA), a Diploma in Dance Teaching Studies with The Royal Academy of Dance (UK), and is an MFA candidate at Accademia dell’Arte (IT). She has had the privilege of interpreting as a guest artist with Anandam Dancetheatre, Broken Jump Theatre, The Danny Grossman Dance Company, Divadlo Continuo, Dance Theatre David Earle, Peggy Baker Dance Projects for Nuit Blanche, Die Wolke Art Group, Diyar Dance Theatre and several independent choreographers. Her work has been presented in Canada, the United States, Europe, Mexico and the Middle East. She was a longtime faculty member at The School of Toronto Dance Theatre’s General School and Canadian Contemporary Dance Theatre (CCDT), as well as the Artistic Director of CCDT’s Core Apprentice Company. In June of 2016, Nigro traveled to Europe to pursue an MFA in Physical Theatre at Accademia dell'Arte. The 2.5-year graduate program took place in Italy, Germany, and the Czech Republic. Her thesis explores liminal space in performance. Her performative work interlaces her interests in behaviour, sensory perception, language, and connection. Nigro creates movement investigations, which are a synthesis of her studies in dance, voice, improvisation, and physical theatre.

Cory Neale is an architect, visual artist, and sound designer from Philadelphia, PA. He is a native Philadelphian and graduate of Temple University School of Architecture. He is resident composer for Philadelphia contemporary dance companies Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers and Birds on a Wire Dance Theater, and San Francisco-based Echo Theater Suitcase as well as ongoing collaborations with solo artists Nicole Nigro, Keila Cordova, and Maré Heironimus. Cory is a co-producer and curator for Earthdance’s E|MERGE Interdisciplinary Collaborative Arts Residency in Plainfield, MA. Cory was the recipient of the American Association of Community Theater Sound Design Award in 2011 for Bootless Stagework’s production of Martin McDonagh’s The Pillowman, and a 2015 Rocky Award recipient for collaborative contributions in the Philadelphia dance community, and is a 2020 Peer Artist for the Jacob's Pillow Curriculum in Motion Institute®. He is a member of the bass section for the Abington Festival Strings.

CITY space - Patrick Lemieux

“With a series of photographs captured in and around Toronto, I take the viewer on a journey through the city, delving into places both big and small, where the spaces all around us shout out to be seen or quietly whisper their secrets in our ear. Toronto is a trove of unusual spaces nestled amongst (and hidden within) the apparent, usual spaces.”

Music by Uniq (Creative Commons License, used with permission)
Instagram @PatrickLemieuxArtist

Patrick Lemieux is an artist, writer and photographer based in Toronto. His art work has been exhibited at venues throughout North America. He is a published author of both fiction and non-fiction. A storyteller at heart, his works aims to show the lesser seen moments of ourselves and the world around us.

BIPP - Dana Baitz

“In this piece, I explore the social space of gender transition. While transitioning is unusual in that few people experience it, it’s also persistent or usual for those of us who are trans. The drive to improve oneself may be widespread. But in the context of transitioning, “successful outcomes” and “being better” can feel particularly ruthless. The demands of unrealistic gender expressions and beauty standards form the theme of this presentation. “BIPP” is the product of two trans women’s artistic voices: my aerial work combined with music by electronic producer Sophie. The unlikely combination of experieces I’ve brought to this project (namely aerial dance, gender transition, artistic production and critical theory) makes “BIPP” feel like quite a special and personal artistic statement.

I’ve designed this piece for online consumption, since live audiences are impossible at this stage in the COVID-19 pandemic. The digital nature of this platform corresponds perfectly to the aesthetic of the song and to the theme of “heightened” ways of being. Therefore, almost none of the clips presented in this piece could exist in real life. The digital manipulations that I’ve introduced reinforce the idea that the ways we see ourselves habitually, and especially the ways we imagine our ideal selves, are unrealistic. Yet this digital space does more than enhance the meaning of the project. It also reflects the kinds of “displaced” space that many trans people inhabit. Social stigma sometimes creates for me the need for a safe space, a breathing space. Yet this can at times seem like a confined space and a marginal space. The digital context of this project reflects all these experiences of space.

As a junior performer, I am grateful for the opportunity to develop my skills through this showcase, and thank Hercinia for their support. I also thank Sophie for granting me permission to use her music in this project.”

Creator and Performer - Dana Baitz
Music - Sophie
Instagram: @the.element.to

Dana Baitz is a pre-professional static trapeze artist. Her aerial work is enriched by her experience as an established musician, trans woman, mother and doctoral musicologist.

Dana’s doctoral research into the interplay between art and social change influences much of her artistic practice. Her writing on trans representation in art has been published by Oxford University Press, and her work on music theory has been presented internationally (in Canada, Wales, England, the US and Mexico). She holds an ARCT in Piano Performance from the Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto, and has taught music privately and in post-secondary institutions since 2010. She has composed music for film, theatre, contemporary dance and aerial arts, and has appeared on over a dozen commercially available albums. Dana’s transition (male-to-female, roughly 20 years ago) has involved countless social, legal and medical barriers, and this likewise informs her academic and artistic output.

Dana’s aerial training spans roughly five years, and reflects both dedicated practice as well as the physical challenges of medical gender transition and her status as a mature student. Although most of her live performances have been limited to student shows, she contributes more widely to the field of trans circus arts through online, print and now video media. Her writing on the relationship between circus training and the gendered body was published in the December 2019 issue of This Magazine.

Dana’s piece in (Un)usual Spaces features the music of Sophie. Sophie is a prolific electronic musician and trans woman, originally from Scotland and currently based in Los Angeles. She recently worked with Charli XCX and Madonna, and worked as a producer on Lady Gaga's latest album, Chromatica.