A letter to A Participant
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The making of a new body of community-engaged art work involves far more than the act of making art. It is likely to include stages of preparation and research before any artwork is made and a process of harvesting and editing afterwards; but these are much deeper and more complex tasks than one might at first imagine.
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A sense of rootedness or the concept of place attachment has been in my mind for long periods of time and especially surfaced in this troubling time. In my essay, I explore the question of how place comes into being. In my discussion, I draw from my own intuitions and experiences as a public health researcher and as a social artist. The essay situates these personal accounts within a framework of ecological thinking. Initially, I did not know how to approach the subject (i.e., place) beyond the fact that my usual mediums are reflection and writing. This period of research and experimentation is often seen as a fundamental process within the creative process, but it is difficult to define. It is a process that can contribute to the emergence of insight or knowledge in new or unexpected ways; that's how the idea of creating a collaborative artist notebook came about. Artist notebook is a great way to process raw information and experiment with ideas. In journaling any journey visually, we not only relate to elements of the outside world (the subject of the place we live, the materials, the prints and so on), but we also embark on a personal journey, which in turn will reflect some aspect of our inner world.
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What can we do to develop a sense of rootedness going forward? What would our role – as a global citizen and a neighbour – mean, require, demand of us right now? What stories and memories will we pass on to our future generations?
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All participants are invited to submit their work of art created during this project to be part of a collaborative artist notebook supported by the CoV 2020 Cultural Arts Grants Program. But most importantly, individuals and communities come together to discuss and explore a shared interest and desire to understand a community concern, while forming relationships.
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Thank you for your participation.
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Fondly,
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Keiko Honda, Ph.D., MPH
Executive Director
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September 19, 2020
Bringing Inner Worlds and Outer Worlds Together.
Vancouver Arts Colloquium Society
A Collaborative Artist Journal
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Publication expected in Spring 2021
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Artist Notebook ON VIEW
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- ON VIEW -
Artwork Submitted by Artists