The Climate Artist-In-Residence Program

 

With the belief that art has a critical role to play in increasing climate change adaptation awareness and well-being, CreativePEI in partnership with the Canadian Centre for Climate Change and Adaptation is proud to launch the Climate Artist-in-Residence Program (CAIR).

The Climate Artist-in-Residence Program aims to strengthen community resilience through the creation and dissemination of artwork, including artistic activities presented by each artist, such as workshops, screenings, presentations, art exhibitions and more.

CAIR consists of four Artists-in-Residence: Lisa Theriault, Chanel Briggs, Carrie Allison and Elder Francis Jadis. Each artist was selected through a curated process in collaboration with four partnering island organizations: CreativePEI, BIPOC USHR, this town is small, and Indigenous PEI.

From September 2023 – September 2024 each Climate Artist-in-Residence will delve into a research-driven art process and emerge from it with works to be presented at a solo exhibition and community events. They will revel in drawn depictions of joyous escapism and imagined spaces as disaster looms, they’ll write prose for mycelium to celebrate the strength of community connectedness and found families, they’ll weave Black Ash baskets to ensure a legacy lives on after the species of tree has died off, and they’ll string bead upon bead to demonstrate the intricacies of monocultures and settler colonial land use.

The artists will create artworks informed and inspired by climate change issues and adaptation resources made available to them through The Canadian Centre for Climate Change and Adaptation. Visit the artist profiles below to learn more.

Groundwork & CAIR are curated by Alexis Bulman with financial support from the Government of PEI’s Climate Challenge Fund (CC Fund). The CC Fund aims to support the development of innovative solutions to the threat of climate change by empowering people of different backgrounds, experiences, and expertise, who work across sectors and in different communities throughout the Island, to contribute to climate action in PEI.

The Groundwork Exhibition

Groundwork was a group exhibition of existing artworks by the artists who are participating in CAIR. This group exhibition was intended to “lay the groundwork” for their residencies, and was displayed in The Gallery within the Canadian Centre for Climate Change and Adaptation from September 4th, 2023 until December 4th, 2023.

To learn more about upcoming CAIR solo exhibitions and events as they approach, follow CreativePEI and their community partners, BIPOC USHR, this town is small, and Indigenous PEI on Instagram and Facebook!

The Climate Artists-In-Residence

Biography

Lisa Theriault is a visual artist and cultural worker based in Brookfield, PEI. She primarily creates drawings, but she also makes videos, animations, installations, and miniatures. In her art practice, she meticulously creates detailed landscapes that are imaginative, playful, and architectural, acting as theoretical playgrounds for her reflections on place. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Mount Allison University and has most notably presented artworks at the Confederation Centre Art Gallery, Galerie Sans Nom, Galerie d’art Louise-et-Reuben-Cohen, and Artch Montréal. Her work has been supported by the Quebec Arts Council and PEI Artist Grants and has been collected by the Confederation Centre Art Gallery and the PEI Art Bank. She has nearly a decade of experience working at galleries, artist-run centres, and other arts organizations. She is deeply invested in her local arts community and increased support for the arts.

Artist Statement

During this residency, Theriault will continue to build on an in-progress series of coloured pencil drawings that explore how we imagine spaces amidst an ever-deteriorating environment. The drawings are otherworldly and desolate, as disaster looms and nature collides and collapses. A figure that is prominently featured in this series is a lone, glass building that has an iridescent shimmer, filled with spaces that show the remnants of human experience as it is overcome by a growth of vines. Each drawing in the series builds upon this ongoing narrative to reveal a cycle of collapse and rejuvenation. Theriault will also create a new drawing installation that is informed by the research and resources she has access to during the residency and she looks forward to learning more about current climate conversations as they directly relate to Prince Edward Island.

Partner organization – CreativePEI

CreativePEI is the sector council working on behalf of Prince Edward Island’s arts, culture and creative professionals in collaboration with PEI’s creative industry associations. CreativePEI organizes information, networking, training, advocacy, collective action and shared services. CreativePEI was founded in 2006 as PEI Cultural Human Resources Sector Council Inc. which remains our legal name.

Exhibition: January 4th, 2024 – March 4th, 2024

Learn more about Lisa’s works on her website: lisatheriault.art or on Instagram: @laatheriault

Biography

Elder Francis Jadis is Mi’kmaw from Abegweit First Nation and is from a family of basket makers. Francis began learning basket weaving at six years old, and as his skills developed, he was able to join his parents, family, and community in the production of baskets. Over the sixty years he has been a basket weaver, Francis has designed and created baskets for personal and commercial uses: from potato baskets for the agricultural community, to smaller and more intricate designs for tourism. Francis has developed techniques to repair antique baskets, often working on those woven by his parents. Francis continues to harvests in the territory where he was taught, and processes all his material. He is committed to ensuring the skills he developed over a lifetime are passed onto future generations; he has been teaching and demonstrating Mi’kmaw basketry for almost fifteen years and recently took on an apprentice.

Artist Statement

Through this Climate Artist-in-Residency, Elder Francis Jadis will explore the rapidly developing threats to black ash basketry. Francis has been harvesting black ash in Northern Maine his whole life, but his ability to do so has been compromised. Climate change has led to forests being susceptible to infestations from invasive species like the Emerald Ash Borer beetle. In 2019, Francis had a load of ash logs confiscated at the US/Canada border due to infestation concerns, despite his expertise in identifying infected trees. Francis feels pressure to ensure that basketry knowledge is passed on, and seeds collected, before all the black ash trees are killed. He is committed to educating the public on this very real threat to Mi’kmaw basketry, and is exploring alternative materials to ensure the skills continue.

Partner organization – Indigenous PEI

Indigenous PEI is a dedicated nonprofit organization committed to preserving and celebrating the profound history of the Mi’kmaq people in Epekwitk. Our mission is to showcase and amplify the rich knowledge and stories that encompass the ways of life, traditions, connection to nature, ceremonial practices, arts, culinary heritage, and the overall culture of the Mi’kmaq. We take pride in our resilient Indigenous island community, which has called this land home for over twelve thousand years, maintaining a deep-rooted connection to its culture and ancestral lands. At Indigenous PEI, we invite you to explore and engage with our history through various avenues. For a more immersive experience, we welcome you to explore our Indigenous Artisan storefront located at 111B Grafton Street in Charlottetown, PEI

Exhibition: March 7th, 2024 – May 7th, 2024

Learn more about Francis’ works at indigenouspei.ca.

Biography

Chanel (they/them) is a Black Queer, Poet, and Womanist. Their creative practice is anchored in the exploration of Black Queer sacredness. They blend their poetic advocacy into visual works that navigate identity, spirituality, and community— utilizing the exploration of mix-media to showcase layers of their storytelling. Their notable experiences include the Black Cultural Society of PEI Scott Parsons Literary Award, Antiracism Micro Grant, Outspoken Poetry slam Recipient, Soul Soliloquies a poetry show supported by this town is small, and the formation of the artist collective, The Good Company supported by Creative PEI. When they are not crafting, playing with pals, or community organizing they are snuggled up with their three cats reading Star Trek The Original Series fan fiction.

Artist Statement

During this residency, I am interested in the complex networks that people make to thrive and how this is an integral part of being, belonging, and sustaining life. As systemic structures continuously push people away from each other, we have become more fragmented, forgetting and overlooking imperative relations. Within marginalized spaces where the creation of ‘found family’ and other networks are celebrated, there is an understanding of how abundance is found within the web of life. Similarly, to mycelium, which is continuously reaching out and forming connections for overall well-being, in what ways can we flourish when we prioritize connecting?

Partner Organization – BIPOC USHR

With the recognition that we reside on traditional, unceded Mi’kmaq territory and that we are people of the Peace and Friendship Treaty of 1776, we work in ways that are anti-colonial, anti-racist, and anti-oppressive. BIPOC USHR, which stands for Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour United for Strength, Home, Relationship, is a PEI-based not-for-profit organization, providing support and advocacy to Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) folks living on Prince Edward Island. Our aim is to serve BIPOC communities on PEI in ways that will enable them to thrive, not just survive.

Exhibition: May 10th, 2024 – July 10th, 2024

Learn more about Chanel’s works on Instagram: @softest.spot

Biography

Carrie Allison is a nêhiýaw, Métis, and mixed European descent multidisciplinary visual artist based in K’jipuktuk, Mi’kma’ki (Halifax, Nova Scotia). She grew up on the unceded and unsurrendered lands of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations. Her maternal roots and relations are based in maskotewisipiy (High Prairie, Alberta), Treaty 8. Situated in K’jipuktuk since 2010, her practice responds to her maternal nêhiýaw and Métis ancestry, thinking through intergenerational cultural loss and acts of reclaiming, resilience, resistance, and activism, while also thinking through notions of allyship, kinship and visiting. Her practice is rooted in research and pedagogical discourses. Old and new technologies are combined to tell stories of the land, continuance, growth, and of healing.

Artist Statement

For the past few years I have begun a new body of work focusing on grass, and other crops such as wheat, barley, and oats, that have been used as colonial space taking tools. These crops are strategically placed to guide movement, elevate status, signal respectable use of land, and point to morality, purity and cleanliness. The experience of making extremely laborious sculptures has inspired me to think deeply about how land is used in North America and how it’s tied to moral responsibilities and settler colonial laws and by-laws. During the Climate Artist-in-Residence I plan on continuing and deepening my research on monocultures through explorations in materiality, intense labour and research. I want to further my research in colonial histories of monocultures such as common grass (lawns) and agricultural plants and their impacts on the ecosystems around us.

Partner organization – this town is small

this town is small (TTIS) is Prince Edward Island’s artist-run centre, established in 2010. TTIS is a spaceless organization that is committed to supporting contemporary art through diverse and supportive community partnerships, providing opportunities for artists and making connections with the public. It operates from an office space in The Vessel in Charlottetown, PEI and it presents exhibitions, residencies, workshops, artist talks, and other programming with partnering venues across Prince Edward Island.

Exhibition: July 13th, 2024 – September 13th, 2024

Learn more about Carrie’s works on her website: carrie-allison.com or on Instagram @carrieallisonart

Access Statement

The Gallery within The Canadian Centre for Climate Change and Adaptation

The Gallery within the Canadian Centre for Climate Change and Adaptation will be a primary location for the Climate Artists-in-Residence exhibitions and events and is committed to ensuring as accessible an environment as possible. The following accessibility services are offered at this venue:

  • The gallery is wheelchair accessible, meaning: there are no raised steps between rooms, there are 4 accessible bathroom stalls, extra wide corridors and doorways, 2 designated parking spaces, ramp access from the parking lot to the curb, automatic door buttons and generous open spaces for maneuvering within the gallery.
  • Service animals are welcome.
  • One attendant will always be in the venue.
  • Exhibition text is written in plain language.
  • The exhibition is free.
  • The gallery has dimmable lighting and window coverings for adjustable brightness.
  • A public transportation station is located in the parking lot.
  • The gallery has chairs for resting.
  • The Gallery within the Canadian Centre for Climate Change Adaptation makes every effort to ensure visitors with disabilities have an engaging visit.

Please download the galleries’ floor plan here.

Please e-mail Alexis Bulman with any questions and inquiries surrounding accessibility!
leckybulman@gmail.com