On this day the classes from Cook Elementary walked from the school to Garden City Park. The classes were broken into groups to familiarize, identify characteristics a number of local plants that are common local indigenous to the area. Acting like young citizen science observers, they drew their interpretations on paper. Groups , shared what they witnessed with the group. Also joining us was Indigenous Cree Cultural Harvester Mitch Tourangeau, he shared a song and the connection we all have with the land and talked about how he harvests plant medicines for his community.
The young learners were also introduced to willow, a common plant used for baskets, crafts and weaving. The kids learned to separate the bark from the plant and created a simple cordage with the bark.
I am a contemporary outsider artist that believes in the healing properties of the natural environment. I paint landscapes in abstract as an expression of my connection with nature and its ability to provide me peaceful inspiration. As organisms on this earth I believe we are interconnected with nature and highly interdependent.
But as the psycho-social environment we live in today gets ever increasingly complex its effects on us are becoming more pervasive, corroding and sophisticated. However the energy, peace and serenity of our natural surroundings can provide a way of grounding our senses and healing our minds. I try to capture the interrelationship between my mind and nature as I see and feel it; it’s an expression of my soul captured on a physical medium and in a point in time. Going through the process in itself contributes to balance.
Driven by my own lived experience, I am a self proclaimed arts-based advocate for mental health and strive to demystify and eliminate stigma around these issues. My initiatives in this regard include being the Vancouver Caucus leader for the Artist Alliance for Mental Health, a collective member (2010) of the artist-run Gallery Gachet in Vancouver and the Producer and Host of Sound Therapy Radio a peer oriented mental wellness show on CJSF 90.1 FM. I have a true belief in human potential and in the statement; ‘art is a means for survival’.
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