Faculty & Instructors

• Bernhard Cella shortlisted for LA MENTION SPÉCIALE DU JURY for Queer Publishing: A Family Tree

  Sunday, October 20, 2019 | By dvivian

  

  The Centre for Studies in Arts and Culture (STAC) is pleased to announce that Queer Publishing: A Family Tree designed and published by Bernhard Cella, has been shortlisted for LA MENTION SPÉCIALE DU JURY of the Paris Photo Aperture Foundation and to be awarded in November. This is a significant recognition of Cella’s important contribution to scholarship in this field. Founder of The Salon für Kunstbuch in Vienna, Austria, Cella is the book designer of the Small Walker Press (SWP), a project of the Centre and generously funded by the legacy of Marilyn I. Walker. Cella was the Centre’s Walker Cultural Leader for 2017-18.

  “In the twenty years since Horacio Fernández first wrote Fotografía Pública (MNCARS, 1999), the first landmark book to position the scholarship of books and magazines as a topic of critical importance to the photographic medium, “book about books” has become a genre of publishing unto itself. Each year, the PhotoBook Awards jury sees at least one well-researched, richly illustrated publication that presents some new facet of photobibliophilia—often using the filter of a particular region or city or even a particular thematic niche. This year, however, the jury noted a rise in the number of books about books that exceeded expectation in terms of design, like Printed Photography in Venezuela; or ventured into new territory, telling the story of a single notable magazine, like Camera Austria International: Laboratory for Photography and Theory. Each of these volumes, in its own way, adds additional detail and texture to the evolving connoisseurship and scholarship dedicated to the photobook.” (from https://programme.parisphoto.com/programme-2019/le-prix-du-livre-photographique-paris-photo-aperture-foundation/la-mention-speciale-du-jury.htm, 19/10/18)

  With the co-editors of the Small Walker Press, Professors Parayre and Derek Knight of Brock University, and accompanied by David Vivian, Director of the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, Cella presented the first two volumes of the SWP at Belvedere 21, Vienna on June 19, 2019. The books were published under the theme of environmental degradation and include Inland, by Associate Professor of Visual Arts Shawn Serfas (Brock University) with creative writing by Atlanta-based New York Times journalist Richard Fausset and an essay by Associate Professor of Visual Arts Derek Knight, and The Quarry, by Associate Professor Adam Dickinson (Brock University) and artist Lorène Bourgeois (Toronto).  The books are available for purchase from the Centre.

  Categories: Announcements, Department/Centre News, Faculty & Instructors, In the Media, News, Uncategorised, Walker Cultural Leader Series

• Brock project aims to improve long-term care for veterans and brain injury patients

  Wednesday, October 09, 2019 | By shashmi2

  

  Brock University alumni now with Mirror Theatre perform a scene in Understanding person-centred care: Finding dignity within the shadows, a video series as part of a research project between Brock and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.

  (From: The Brock News, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2019 | by Dan Dakin)

  Two Brock University faculty members from seemingly unrelated disciplines have collaborated on a project aimed at improving the relations of those involved in long-term care.

  Associate Professor of Recreation and Leisure Studies Colleen Whyte, and Professor of Dramatic Arts Joe Norris, were at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto Wednesday, Oct. 2 for the premiere of Understanding person-centred care: Finding dignity within the shadows.

  Two years ago, Sunnybrook Professional Practice and Education Leader Leanne Hughes came to Whyte with a research idea about how to help staff and family deal with the challenges associated with two specific groups in long-term care: veterans living with dementia and patients recovering from traumatic brain injuries.

  “I’ve known Leanne for 15 years and we’ve done research together in the past,” Whyte said. “She came to me and said: This is an issue we have. How do you think we could look at researching it?’”

  “What we’re looking at are person-centred approaches,” said Hughes, referring to a growing emphasis in health care that invites patients and family members to be involved in decision-making and strategizing ways to care for individual patients from a wide-range of services. It’s a more collaborative care model than a traditional top-down medical approach to care.

  In the fall of 2018, Whyte led research that included focus groups of those working in long-term care at the Toronto hospital such as doctors and hospital staff, as well as families of those in care.

  

  Brock University professors Joe Norris and Colleen Whyte hand a USB drive to Leanne Hughes from Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. Brock and Sunnybook partnered on a research project that included a 20-part video around patient-centred care. Pictured from left are Brock alumni Nadia Ganesh, Candice De Freitas Braz and Mike Metz, Hughes, Norris, Brock master’s student Kevin Hobbs, Whyte and Brock alumni Bernadette Kahnert.

  “We interviewed people who are doing this every day,” Whyte said. “This research is about taking the principles of person-centred care and trying to see how they are translated on a daily basis, when all partners experience unexpected challenges.”

  With the focus group data in hand, Whyte then turned to Norris, Chair of Brock’s Department of Dramatic Arts, who worked with the student-run Mirror Theatre to translate the conversations into dramatic action, known as ethnodrama and applied theatre.

  “We took the focus group transcripts, read them, analyzed them and created dramatic scenes,” said Norris. “The purpose is to evoke conversations.”

  The result is a 20-part video series, each dealing with a different component of the long-term care experience. They range from something as simple the challenge of what to pack when a family member is moved into a new living situation to what to do when a patient whose mind no longer has much of a filter says something that crosses a line.

  “It’s all about answering the question of ‘How do we treat each other with respect in stressful situations?’” Norris said.

  He said the Dramatic Arts students who were acting the parts in the videos — including the patients who are represented as shadowed silhouettes rather than specific people — learned about more than just acting.

  “Many cast members say they don’t only get extra-curricular experience with theatre, they get the experience of dealing with a range of topics. It’s like an extra class for them,” he said.

  With the video series now complete, the next stage of the project is to create workshops for staff and families.

  “It gives staff some insight and helps them think, ‘If I’m in this situation, let me strategize and be thoughtful about what options I have,’” she said. “It will equip new staff with possibilities and allow existing staff to be reflective about their approaches.”

  

  Brock University alumni Nadia Ganesh, Bernadette Kahnert, Lindsay Detta and Candice De Freitas Braz interpret a scene from Finding dignity within the shadows at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto Wednesday, Oct. 2.

  Hughes said when the final videos were shown to those working with veterans suffering from dementia and patients dealing with brain injuries, the staff were impressed with how accurate they were in reflecting the situations they deal with.

  “It has been an absolute pleasure to see students take this data and enact it,” Hughes said. “We were in awe of their ability. They did a fantastic job.”

  The project, which was funded by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Insight Development Grant and a Practice-Based Research and Innovation Seed Grant from Sunnybrook, will continue with the development of facilitator tools and training sessions. Those will be developed and led by Norris and Kevin Hobbs, a master’s student in Social Justice and Equity Studies, who directed the Finding dignity within the shadows series and incorporated the research into his master’s thesis.

  “They’re training videos, but not in the sense of, ‘Here’s how you give a needle,” said Norris. “It’s more of a dialogic conversation where our audiences are invited to comment on the scenes and add their own insights and stories.”

  Watch the full Understanding Person-Centred Care video below and individual scene videos can be found at this link. 

  Tags: Department of Dramatic Arts, dramatic arts, humanities, joe norris, miwsfpa, Recreation and leisure studies, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
  Categories: Alumni, Department/Centre News, Faculty & Instructors, In the Media, News, Uncategorised

• Meaningful Movements Reshape: Come to the Edge at Brock University and the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre

  Friday, September 06, 2019 | By dvivian

  

  (From: The Sound, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2019 | by Kerry Duncan)

  Being invited into a space not built by you, or for you, offers the inherent need for trust and vulnerability. When audiences entered into the Come to the Edge Cafe on August 24/25 at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre, audience members were transported to a land of imagination built by, and for, wheelchair users with Cerebral Palsy (CP). This evolving storyscape replaced the traditional confines of theatre with an unlimited creation of shape and space, prioritizing the communication options for performers and participants with CP. The team working on this production aimed to foster an empathetic and reflective space for participants to sit in a potential level of unknown, discomfort, and to ultimately trust that they could not necessarily know the answers to questions like ‘Where are we? What’s it like to not know exactly what’s happening around you? What’s it like when you have to re-evaluate the things that don’t exactly apply?’.

  Come to the Edge is a collaborative development of immersive theatre, creating a new understanding of performance through dance, play, and improvisation. The central performance elements built by and for the Imagining Possibilities Leadership Team, made up of automatic and manual wheelchair users with CP. The group has been working with St. Catharines based creative collaborators from the March of Dimes Canada and the Brain Injury Community PET (Personal Effectiveness Training) Re-Entry Program to welcome audiences to trust in the idea that ‘not knowing’ is an opportunity for learning and empathy. The performances are supported by facilitators Jenny Jimenez and Stephen Sillett from Toronto-based organization, Aiding Dramatic Change in Development (ADCID), as well as a much broader team of musicians, artists, and support workers.

  With a long-standing history in St. Catharines, the ADCID has been working with the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine & Performing Arts (MIWSFPA) since 2016 with the first iteration of Imagining Possibilities, the precursor to Come to the Edge. As a facility that was built under the universal standards of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) for inclusive physically spaces, this began a longstanding partnership for reshaping how St. Catharines builds and understands performance theatre. Professor David Vivian, Director of the MIWSFPA and an ongoing collaborator with ADCID explained that “Inviting the lead artistic team to join us and local artists in our first spring season at the MIWSFPA theatre was one of the highlights of our inaugural year in 2015-16. Come to the Edge is a long term project that has continued to develop over the years and bring together artists in a number of Ontario communities”.

  The development of the show over the past several years has taken this community and discussions about it global with performances and workshops in Toronto, Belgium, Prague, Hamilton and St. Catharines. Connecting with the Imaging Possibilities Movement through the Engaging Possibilities project at Brock University in 2015, Kris Daunoravicius has been involved with the growth and evolution of this project ever since. A local to St. Catharines and core member of the Leadership Team, Daunoravicus travelled with the ADCID team to Belgium in 2017 for a week of Envisioned Scenography workshops for the disability-focused Huize Eyckerheyde Residence. In speaking with Daunoravicus and Elaine Drover, another member of the Leadership Team, both utilized a range of augmented technology, body movement, facial expressions, and sound to showcase the range of experiences and stories that were being brought into the creative process during the years of work it took to create the latest version of this production.

  In speaking with Come to the Edge performer and ADCID collaborator, Frank Hull and long-time Leadership Team member Laura Leskur, they shared how the creation of this show was rooted in growing one another’s understandings of the other performers, and building a movement vocabulary unique to each performer and each moment of interaction. With a long-term career as a professional wheelchair dancer, Hull spoke to the multiple layers of relationality and equity between those involved in the show, “there has to be those moments where we are becoming equal together, regardless of how my ability may be different from Laura’s. But if we are moving together, we need to find a way to move together and not overpower one another”.

  As a verbal CP performer, he explained that “my world is very instant when I communicate. What I’m learning with this group is I’m facing my own ableism. It got me thinking about how from my role I have not been patient enough, not just with this group”. He elaborated on his reflections of needing to be more cognizant of not finishing other people’s sentences, but instead, learned to give people time to communicate within their abilities in order to share and explain their perspectives on the situation. Utilizing her bespoke communication board system*, Leskur also elaborated on these points, highlighting the necessity for patience as to “not miss the magical moments” and the necessity of utilizing body movements and the range of abilities in each performers arms and legs to construct meaningful exchanges.

  

  In discussing the necessity of moving towards an inclusive way of facilitating theatre for the performers, Sillett explained that “we created the processes with the community of those who are non-verbal in mind. There’s a lot of routes we could take which would be much easier to get an impact in the short-term, but it wasn’t our aim to go there. Our aim was to try and work honouring the deep engagement. The idea of re-establishing the relationship between the audience, and what their journey is going to be, the community making it”. Hull asserted that his role in adding the movement and dance elements to the show has been “a dream come true to work with manual and power wheelchairs to create movement together,” emphasizing the liberation of spaces focused on the lived experiences of the team rather than a more traditional methodology of prioritizing the audience.

  In reflecting on his work with the Imagining Possibilities Movement, Vivian explained how “my specific interests in working with the company lie in aspects of accessibility, universal design and the development process of improvisational, immersive performance spaces under very specific conditions. It has been a very humbling learning experience that we will adapt for my university course development and professional practice”. Breaking from the expected traditions of theatre development, the broad range of creative in communities in St. Catharines can take the fundamental ideas of change to expand who is in the audience, who is on stage, and how can we expand the experiences and interactions between these world.

  *Laura Leskur’s communication board is a bespoke system created at Bloorview and extended over the years. Laura has now memorized 1000 words with corresponding numbers. Elaine Drover and and Christine Jimenez have experience using Blissymbols to communicate. Blissymbolics is a semantic graphical language that is currently composed of more than 5000 authorized symbols – Bliss-characters and Bliss-words. It is a generative language that allows its users to create new Bliss-words as needed. It is used by individuals with severe speech and physical impairments around the world, but also by others for language learning and support, or just for the fascination and joy of this unique language representation. Elaine and Christine are both on the Board for Bliss Communication Institute Canada. See blissymbolics.org for more information.

  [The creators and producers of Come to the Edge wish to thank the Department of Dramatic Arts of the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, Brock University, for the generosity of their support by providing rehearsal space and technical support in the studios and the MIW Theatre through July and August 2019.

  The article was edited and amended for accuracy and reprinted with permission.]

  Tags: ADCID, brain injury, Brock, Brock University Dramatic Arts, cerebral palsy, Come to the Edge, david vivian, Department of Dramatic Arts, disabilities, FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre, Jenny Jimenez, Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, miwsfpa, Performing Arts, Stephen Sillett
  Categories: Department/Centre News, Events, Faculty & Instructors, In the Media, News, Uncategorised

• Tier 2 Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Indigenous Art Practice

  Friday, August 23, 2019 | By dvivian

  Brock University’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts (MIWSFPA) invites applications for a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Indigenous Art Practice at the rank of Assistant or Associate Professor.

  The CRC in Indigenous Art Practice will be appointed to one or more of the School’s academic units, depending on the successful applicant’s area(s) of knowledge and expertise. We recognize that in Indigenous art there may be no formal divisions between visual, theatrical, and musical art forms. Brock embraces diverse perspectives and pedagogical practices; it is hoped that the CRC in Indigenous Art Practice will help foster new collaborations across academic units and assist the School and university to move towards Indigenization. The CRC will be welcomed into a tight-knit, friendly, and dynamic community of artists, scholars, staff, and students that respects, promotes, and actively engages with Indigenous arts and culture within the University and Indigenous communities.

  Review of applications will begin on October 31, 2019, and will continue until the position is filled.

  For more information see the complete posting at brocku.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/brocku_careers/job/St-Catharines-Downtown-Campus/Canada-Research-Chair—Tier-2—Indigenous-Art-Practice—Assistant-Associate-Professor-Tenure-Track_JR-1002413

  Tags: CRC, Indigenous, jobs, position, professor, tier II
  Categories: Announcements, Faculty & Instructors, News, Uncategorised

• Dramatic Arts grad gets rave reviews in Soulpepper’s The Brothers Size

  Friday, May 31, 2019 | By sackles

  

  Brock Dramatic Arts alumnus Marcel Stewart (BA ’07), centre, plays the role of Elegba in the Soulpepper production of The Brothers Size alongside Daren A. Herbert, left, and Mazin Elsadig. Photo by: Cylla von Tiedemann, courtesy of Soulpepper.
  

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  The reviews are in, and Brock Dramatic Arts alumnus Marcel Stewart (BA ’07) is earning praise for his performance in what the Toronto Star calls a “stunning Canadian premiere.”

  Stewart stars as Elegba in The Brothers Size, the newest offering from Toronto-based production house Soulpepper.

  He describes the experience as a “whirlwind,” especially after Toronto-based rapper Drake made a surprise appearance at the May 10 opening night performance.

  

  Brock Dramatic Arts alumnus Marcel Stewart (BA ’07), second from right, and his castmates from The Brothers Size got a surprise visit from rapper Drake, third from right, at the opening night performance of the Toronto show.

  “It has been amazing; it’s such a gift to do something like this,” Stewart said. “Through my whole journey as an actor, I have wanted to work on a play that speaks to my experience, one that I can easily dive into, and this text was so comfortable it was like putting on a jacket that was made for me.”

  The Brothers Size is the second play in the Brothers/Sisters series, written by Oscar-winning screenwriter and Tony Award-nominated playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney.

  Set in a fictional town in Louisiana, it tells the story of two brothers, Ogun and Oshoosi, who find themselves living together after Oshoosi’s release from prison.

  Stewart plays Oshoosi’s best friend, who formed a bond with him during their incarceration together.

  “I think on a micro level, Brothers Size is about the experience of black men today in the world,” Stewart said. “But on the macro level, what the characters go through are things that all people experience: grief, trauma and searching for a sense of belonging.”

  Stewart’s performance marks his return to the Soulpepper stage, where he has previously performed three times and was a member of the Soulpepper Academy.

  Some of his other credits include the role of Miles in The Drawer Boy at Prince Edward County’s Festival Players, Coutts in the Mirvish Theatre Production of King Charles III in Toronto, and roles on popular Canadian television series’ Kim’s Convenience and Murdoch Mysteries.

  While he focused primarily on acting for several years after graduation, Stewart also developed a passion for doing outreach work and giving back to young, aspiring actors.

  

  Brock Dramatic Arts alumnus Marcel Stewart (BA ’07).

  When he’s not on stage, he gives private acting lessons and hosts workshops in communities across Canada. He’s worked with school groups at the Toronto International Film Festival, for example, and was the creator of What Noise is This, a workshop that explores William Shakespeare’s canon through the lens of hip-hop music.

  Stewart is also involved in the local theatre industry, both as the outreach co-ordinator with St. Catharines theatre company Suitcase in Point and the volunteer co-ordinator for the upcoming In The Soil Arts Festival, taking place this June in downtown St. Catharines.

  Brock Assistant Theatre Professor Danielle Wilson offered her congratulations on Stewart’s success.

  “Marcel was bright and hungry to learn and is an example of the breadth of career opportunities that become available after studying in DART,” she said. “We congratulate him on his success as a working artist and are very proud of the contributions he has made in the theatre community over the years.”

  Stewart attributes his ability to “wear many hats” in his career to the skills he gained from studying at Brock.

  “The ‘motor’ that I developed at Brock was probably my biggest takeaway that I still rely on 12 years later,” the 33-year-old said. “To keep going, to keep pursuing, and if a door is closed in my face, then there’s 10 more doors that I can open.”

  After the wrap of Brothers Size in Toronto, Stewart is headed back to work in St. Catharines.

  He wants to continue his outreach work and bring more eclectic and diverse artists to St. Catharines.

  He said instructors at Brock encouraged him to explore his sense of self and find cultural connections through the performing arts — and he wants to do the same for others.

  “My experience at Brock helped open me up to recognizing who I am as a black man and encouraged me use that voice and speak from my perspective whenever I can,” he said. “Now I’m on this representation kick, running workshops, doing outreach and looking at how to bring some more colour — in more ways than one — to the artistic landscape.”

  Brothers Size runs until Saturday, June 1 at the Young Centre for the Performing Arts at 50 Tank House Lane in Toronto. More information and tickets are available at Soulpepper.ca.

  Tags: Danielle Wilson, dart, Department of Dramatic Arts, drama in education, dramatic arts, marcel stewart, Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, miwsfpa, soulpepper, the brothers size
  Categories: Alumni, Faculty & Instructors, News

• Brock Chamber Choir and Women’s Choir holding auditions for upcoming season

  Friday, May 31, 2019 | By sackles

  

  Brock’s Women’s Choir (pictured above) is holding auditions for its second season this summer. Photo courtesy of Julie Hoff.
  

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  Brock’s Chamber Choir and Women’s choir are looking for new voices for the upcoming 2019/2020 season!

  Both the Chamber Choir and Women’s Choir are open by audition to all Brock students, and the Women’s Choir is also open to community members.

  Singers can opt to take choir for credit, but are not required.

  HOW TO AUDITION

  Auditions will begin in August.

  Click here to access the audition sign-up sheet and schedule an audition time.
  *Please arrive at your audition early to complete an audition form.

  Previous singing experience and the ability to read music is required.

  All singers accepted into the choir are expected to attend all rehearsals and performances throughout the year. Dates for the entire year will be posted before the end of August, prior to your audition.

  Auditions will be 10 minutes in length and will include the following:

  1. Vocal range check
  2. Listen and sing-back
  3. Sight-singing
  4. Rhythm-reading and clap-back
  5. Singing of Shenandoah (click on the link for a pdf of the music)

  If you are accepted into one of the choirs, you are invited to register for the course (if you wish to receive credit). Permission to register will be granted after the auditions are completed.

  Rehearsals begin the week of September 10, 2019

  Rehearsal times:

  CHAMBER CHOIR: Rehearsals Tuesdays and Thursdays, 3 to 4:20 p.m.

  WOMEN’S CHOIR: Rehearsals Thursday evenings, 6 to 8:45 p.m.

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  For more information about opportunities and the audition process please contact Rachel Rensink-Hoff, Conductor, at rrensinkhoff@brocku.ca  or the Department at music@brocku.ca.

  Learn more about the Brock choirs.

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

  Tags: brock choirs, Brock University, Chamber Choir, department of music, Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, music, Rachel Rensink-Hoff, sing at brock, Women's Choir
  Categories: Announcements, Current Students, Department/Centre News, Faculty & Instructors, Future Students, News

• Book publishing division launched by Brock’s Centre for Studies in Arts and Culture

  Monday, May 06, 2019 | By sackles

  

  Brock’s Centre for Studies in Arts and Culture is launching two new books, Inland and The Quarry, through the new Small Walker Press.
  

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  Brock’s Centre for Studies in Arts and Culture (STAC) has partnered with The Salon für Kunstbuch in Austria to launch an international book publishing division.

  The new Small Walker Press will celebrate the publication of its first two books at an official launch event on Thursday, May 9 from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. The event will take place in the main lobby of the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts (MIWSFPA) at 15 Artists’ Common in downtown St. Catharines.

  This year’s books were published under the theme of environmental degradation and include Inland, by Associate Professor of Visual Arts Shawn Serfas with creative writing by Atlanta-based New York Times journalist Richard Fausset and an essay by Associate Professor of Visual Arts Derek Knight, and The Quarry, by Associate Professor Adam Dickinson and artist Lorène Bourgeois.

  Noelle Allen, Publisher for Hamilton-based literary press Wolsak and Wynn, will be the guest speaker for the event.

  The launch is free and all are encouraged to attend.

  “The University is the ideal place to promote book culture,” said STAC Director Catherine Parayre. “Working with different authors and artists to bring about the completion of a book project is a fully interdisciplinary challenge that is rewarding intellectually, but also a wonderful opportunity to work with expert graphic designers.”

  Headed by STAC, the Small Walker Press addresses the research and creative interests of faculty members at Brock’s MIWSFPA and engages with authors, artists and academics alike to produce small, innovative publications.

  Funded by the generous support of the Walker Cultural Leader Series and the late Marilyn I. Walker, the press publishes collaborative work that brings together authors and artists from the Niagara region, as well as those across Canada and internationally.

  Parayre and Knight serve as its editors; Bernhard Cella, from The Salon für Kunstbuch in Vienna, Austria, is the press’s book designer.

  Inland provides two distinct reflections on pollution and the consequences of human intervention on natural resources. It features work created by Serfas for his 2016 exhibition Inland, curated by Stuart Reid at Rodman Hall Art Centre, and creative writing by Fausset, whose work includes extensive coverage of the devastating environmental and socio-economic impacts of Hurricane Katrina.

  The Quarry offers a reflection on a walk that Dickinson and Bourgeois embarked upon through the Glenridge Quarry Naturalization Site on the Niagara Escarpment in 2018. Dickinson contributes a poem for the book, which is accompanied by drawings by Bourgeois.

  “We are very much looking forward to sharing these books with the public at the launch on May 9,” Parayre said.

  The Small Walker Press is predicated on, and values, interdisciplinary co-operation, the exploration of image and text, and seeks to contribute to and participate in the promotion of book culture.

  Publications will include exhibition catalogues, artist’s books, chapbooks, short essay format and creative writing as well as online art folios or editions, and recorded sound work or interviews.

  Publications may be in English, French or other languages and books will be available for purchase at the launch.

  They will also be available at Rodman Hall Art Centre, the Brock Campus Store, and The Salon für Kunstbuch in Vienna, Austria.

  Learn more about the Small Walker Press by visiting the STAC website.

  Tags: 15 artists' common, Brock University, Catherine Parayre, centre for studies in arts and culture, Derek Knight, Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, miwsfpa, Walker Cultural Leader Series
  Categories: Announcements, Department/Centre News, Events, Faculty & Instructors, In the Media, News

• Visual Arts students get creative career advice from international artists

  Thursday, April 25, 2019 | By Brock University

  

  Visual Arts students in Assistant Professor Amy Friend’s Introduction to Digital Photography class were given the chance to interview six successful, creative professionals from around the world thanks to an Experiential Education Teaching and Learning Innovation Grant. The class is pictured engaged in discussion with Dornith Doherty, a Texas professor who documents and collages seeds and tissue samples.

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  (From The Brock News, April 25, 2019 | By: Sarah Ackles)

  What’s it like to create a photographic archive of plant seeds and tissue samples that could one day ensure humanity’s very survival?

  What about travelling the world to capture award-winning images of the rapidly melting polar ice caps or soldiers in conflict zones?

  Students in Brock’s Introduction to Digital Photography class learned all of this and more, directly from creative professionals this past semester.

  Thanks to an Experiential Education Teaching and Learning Innovation Grant, Assistant Professor Amy Friend was able to invite six professionals in the field of photography from around the world to visit her class via video chat.

  

  British-American artist Phillip Toledano, pictured on screen, was one of six artists who participated in student-conducted interviews as part of Assistant Professor Amy Friend’s Introduction to Digital Photography class. The Visual Arts students were given the opportunity to interact with these creative professionals thanks to an Experiential Education Teaching and Learning Innovation Grant.

  Visual Arts students researched and subsequently interviewed guest speakers one-on-one, before ending each session with a group discussion.

  The exercise provided valuable insight into the artistic process and the challenges involved with working in different areas of photography, Friend said.

  “The students responded quite well; you could see a sense of excitement,” she said. “They heard interesting stories about how artists work through their processes and different insights about how and why specific choices are made, and the methods used to get this work out into the world.”

  Participating artists included Dornith Doherty, a professor and Guggenheim Foundation Fellow from North Texas who documents and collages plant seeds and tissue samples in her Archiving Eden project; Cig Harvey, an artist whose work has been exhibited at major museums and collections in the United States and Europe;  Spanish artist Alfonso Almedros; award-winning photojournalist Louie Palu, whose work has been featured in National Geographic and numerous international collections; Jacqueline Bates, Photography Director of The California Sunday Magazine; and British-American mixed-media artist and author Phillip Toledano.

  Fourth-year Visual Arts student Rachel McCartney was tasked with interviewing Toledano, whose work is similar to what she aspires to create herself one day.

  “Interacting with visiting artists in a classroom setting was an extremely useful and gratifying experience,” she said. “It allowed for direct one-on-one communication and to dissect the brain of someone who is a successful future version of what I aspire to be.”

  The grant was one of 18 that were awarded in 2018-19 to support the development of new experiential learning courses and experiential opportunities within existing courses.

  The Teaching and Learning Innovation Grants were supported financially by Experiential Education at Brock and external funding through the province’s Career Ready Fund.

  Sandy Howe, Associate Director, Experiential Education, said the new interview series went “above and beyond” expectations and offered a “highly impactful” experiential learning opportunity for participating students.

  “It’s always amazing to me to see faculty members trying something new in their courses and how this impacts their own learning and engagement with their teaching,” she added. “This is an excellent example of how different types of experiences can be used to improve both teaching and learning.”

  Friend said the calibre and range of artists who participated also exposed students to the range of career opportunities that exist for someone with a Fine Arts and Photography background.

  “It was one of the best things I’ve ever experienced in my teaching strategies,” she said. “I was stunned by how much information the students were able to learn in a short period of time.”

  For McCartney, the experience armed her with more confidence as an artist and a wealth of advice for ensuring success in her future career.

  “I find it really important that we constantly look for new ways to teach and learn because it promotes better student engagement,” she said. “Actively changing the curriculum to integrate new ways of learning creates a more personalized education that is beneficial to students. I’m very thankful to the artists who participated and immensely thankful for Professor Friend for organizing this experience.”

  Tags: Amy Friend, Department of Visual Arts, experiential education, Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, miwsfpa, Rachel McCartney, Sandy Howe, Teaching & Learning Innovation Grant, VISA
  Categories: Current Students, Department/Centre News, Faculty & Instructors, News

• Avanti Chamber Singers preparing to end Brock Music season on a high note

  Wednesday, April 17, 2019 | By Brock University

  

  The Avanti Chamber Singers will perform for the final time this season on Saturday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m. in St. Thomas Anglican Church. (Photo courtesy of Julie Hoff)

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  (From The Brock News, April 16, 2019 | By: Jaquelyn Bezaire)

  The Avanti Chamber Singers will close an eclectic Brock Music season with their final performance, The Road Home.

  Led by Assistant Professor Rachel Rensink-Hoff, Brock’s Ensemble-in-Residence will perform at St. Thomas Anglican Church on Saturday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m. as part of the Viva Voce! Choral Series.

  Rensink-Hoff explained this concert is quite different from Avanti’s first two performances this season.

  “We’ve had a very diverse year,” she said. “We did the big classical piece at the beginning of the year and have explored probably every style chorally that we could throughout the season.”

  The concert repertoire was inspired by This House of Peace, a choral number by contemporary composer Ralph Johnson, commissioned for the opening of the Sacred Heart Medical Center at Riverbend in Springfield, Ore. The song reflects on conversations Johnson had with people staying in a medical centre guesthouse while their loved ones were in hospital.

  As well as Johnson’s number, the choir will also perform songs that reflect on the idea of “home” as a space where individuals feel at peace.

  The opening piece, titled Ambe by Indigenous composer Andrew Balfour, is rhythmic in style and based in an Ojibway dialect.

  The program also includes All of Us by Craig Hella Johnson, and Stephen Paulus’ The Road Home, for which the concert is named.

  The Avanti Chamber Singers will also be joined by oboist Marta Agnieszka for a few pieces during the performance, including Gabriel’s Oboe arranged by Jon Washburn.

  This is the third and final performance of the season for the choir, who have spent the last eight months rehearsing and growing together as singers.

  “Concert themes can be quite personal and so, as I work with Avanti and get to know them more, it’s easier to create programs that I believe will resonate with the members of the choir,” said Rensink-Hoff.

  The Avanti Chamber Singers will perform for the final time this season on Saturday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m. at St. Thomas Anglican Church, 99 Ontario St. in St. Catharines.

  Tickets purchased in advance for the show are $20 for adults and seniors. Tickets at the door are $25 for adults and $20 for seniors. There is also a discounted price of $5 for students and eyeGo program members. Tickets are available through theAvanti Chamber Singers website, at Thorold Music, Booksmart Books or from choir members.

  Tags: Avanti Chamber Singers, department of music, Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, miwsfpa, Rachel Rensink-Hoff, the road home, Viva Voce Choral Series
  Categories: Events, Faculty & Instructors, News

• Brock recruiting three more Canada Research Chairs

  Wednesday, April 17, 2019 | By Brock University

  

  Brock is recruiting three Canada Research Chairs between now and the beginning of June in the Faculties of Humanities, Applied Health Sciences and Mathematics and Science. Pictured are some of the faculty involved in the recruitment process. From left: Elizabeth Vlossak (Director, Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts), Robson De Grande (Computer Science), Beatrice Ombuki-Berman (Computer Science), Doug Bruce (Biological Sciences) and Miya Narushima (Health Sciences).

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  (From The Brock News, April 16, 2019 | By: Cathy Majtenyi)

  Brock University is expanding its research net with three Canada Research Chair (CRC) positions in the areas of Indigenous art practice, health and the interlinkage of biology and computer science.

  Recruitment for these positions, which began in mid-March, will wrap up between late April and June.

  Researchers and scholars within and outside Brock are encouraged to apply, especially Indigenous peoples, members of visible minorities and those with disabilities, says Interim Associate Vice-President, Research Michelle McGinn.

  “These scholars often bring new perspectives that lead to critical research advances, and they are important role models for the next generation of scholars,” she says.

  The Canada Research Chair Tier 1 in Mechanisms of Health and Disease is centred on investigating ways of preventing, managing or treating a variety of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, metabolic syndrome, immune diseases and brain disorders.

  “This chair will position Brock and the wider Niagara community with the opportunity to study mechanisms of health and disease, solidifying and expanding the current research capacity at Brock,” says Deborah O’Leary, Professor of Health Sciences and Director of the Brock-Niagara Centre for Health and Well-Being.

  O’Leary says those applying to the position need to propose “an original, innovative research program of the highest quality” in one of the following areas: inflammation and immunity; genetic and epigenetic programming; host response to infection; nutritional biology and metabolism; and physical or mental stress-induced tissue remodelling.

  The competition for that position closes Friday, April 26.

  The Canada Research Chair Tier 2 in Indigenous Art Practice position will be cross-appointed to two or more of the academic units at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, including the Departments of Dramatic Arts, Music, Visual Arts and Studies in Arts and Culture.

  The successful candidate will be an “innovative artist/scholar with the demonstrated potential to achieve a significant international reputation within five to 10 years,” says Karen Fricker, Associate Professor of Dramatic Arts.

  “The CRC will have an innovative creative practice across one or multiple art forms, working with Indigenous communities and establishing new Indigenous arts-based research and methodologies.”

  McGinn says the position demonstrates the University’s response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action.

  “Brock University has renewed its commitment to reconciliation and decolonization in its most recent strategic plan, and the CRC in Indigenous Art Practice responds directly to this priority,” says McGinn.

  The competition for that position closes Friday, May 10.

  The Canada Research Chair Tier 2 in Bioinformatics/Computational Biology will strengthen collaboration between the Departments of Biological Sciences and Computer Science with the aim of expanding research capacity, says Brian Ross, Professor of Computer Science and Chair of the Department of Computer Science.

  He says that, traditionally, researchers in the field of bioinformatics and computational biology are either “primarily biologists who use existing computer software tools, or computer scientists who develop tools that are then applied to biology problems.”

  The successful candidate will be proficient in both areas so as to develop software tools and applications in population genomics, proteomics and structural biology.

  “The areas of bioinformatics and computational biology have matured significantly, and having expertise in both biology and computer science is a distinct advantage these days,” Ross says.

  The competition for that position closes Tuesday, June 4.

  McGinn says the three CRC positions are a “key part” of Brock’s latest Strategic Plan, which “identifies a strengthened focus on building research capacity across the University.

  “Outstanding scholars who have or will build international reputations engage in high-impact research, and they provide exceptional opportunities for students and postdoctoral scholars who work and learn with them,” she says.

  These latest CRCs join Brock’s existing cadre of CRCs and three others in the areas of Psychology, Kinesiology and Child and Youth Studies, announced late last year.

  Tags: biological sciences, Brian Ross, Brock-Niagara Centre for Health and Well-Being, Canada Research Chair, computer science, CRC, Deborah O'Leary, dramatic arts, health sciences, Indigenous, Karen Fricker, Michelle McGinn
  Categories: Faculty & Instructors, News