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Regina, Treaty 4

Michelle Brownridge

(Photo by Aidan Morgan, Intro by Caitlin Mullan)

Michelle was the first real friend I made in University. The first time we hung out outside of art class her camera came within inches of falling into a river. After recovering from this near miss we took a bunch of ridiculous light painting photos. I feel this first collaboration is a good analogy for what I admire most about Michelle – no matter what unexpected challenge pops up, she always finds a way to make a project happen.

Not so long ago I heard a term describing a new generation of makers that immediately brought Michelle to mind: multipotentialite. Someone who has no one true calling, but instead pursues multiple creative directions with great success. Though I would describe her as an artist first, she is also an entrepreneur, a photographer, a festival coordinator, a fierce supporter of the local music scene, a mentor, a writer, and she can compile a CADAC statistic sheet that will take your breath away.

Our province needs people like Michelle. One of the things that first drew me to her was her rejection of a concept we’d both heard growing up - the idea that you have to move away from Saskatchewan to have a meaningful career in the arts. Michelle believes strongly in being the change that's needed, rather than complaining about what's wrong. She will print in the studio until 5:30 AM to make sure an order of bags gets to a client on time. She will always have a new podcast to tell you about that will blow your mind, and if you think that your inkjet printer is beyond fixable – trust me – she will find a way.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I am involved in a few different projects right now… Since August 2015 I have been the Festival Coordinator for a city-wide, multidisciplinary arts festival called The Caligari Project: Festival of German Expressionism. The Caligari Project has been holding events since last February, but the bulk of the activities happened in October. We had over 25 different film, music, theatre, visual arts, dance events and it’s not quite over yet, there is still going to be a filmmaking workshop for youth held by mispon and then on December 17 we are partnering with FadaDance on their annual Christmas party which will also serve as the wrap up party for the festival. I am super pumped that the Fada party is a part of Caligari, it is always my favourite party of the year, bar none, and this year will be no exception I am sure! The theme is “Drunk on German Expressionism”. The Caligari Project has been an amazing thing to be a part of and the board and I are already starting to talk about what we could do next!

I am also one of the co-founders of Articulate Ink, Regina’s only non-profit, publicly accessible printmaking studio, so in addition to my work with the Caligari Project this year I have also been working quite steadily there printing, making t-shirts for bands and other non-profits mostly. Articulate Ink recently received a sizeable capital donation from Wawanesa Insurance and we are using that money to do a full revamp of the studio space, just kicking it up a notch, installing ventilation, some new pieces of equipment and storage space for our members, so it has been a busy fall making that all happen little by little.

Also, Karli Jessup, another Articulate Ink co-founder and I, have recently both started working part-time in a commercial print shop that we had been interning at for a couple months over the summer, Eagle Printing. Articulate Ink developed a relationship with Eagle Printing through the ArtsVest program last year… Blair Baron (who owns and runs the shop) has some amazing letterpress equipment over there, including two Heidelberg Windmill presses, but he mostly does die cutting and numbering jobs with it, not a lot of printing, and Articulate Ink was looking for a way to access some press time and equipment to do some printing for ourselves and other clients and viola! The partnership is a great match and we are now learning all the aspects not only of letterpress printing, but of all the other techniques that are offered at Eagle including digital printing, offset lithography, the business of running a commercial print shop and so much more, there is tons to learn!

KC: What's your day job? What do you like about it? What's challenging?

My day job these days mostly consists of working at Eagle Printing and doing commercial print jobs at Articulate Ink, which I love. I love making things and when you are printing, whether it be for commercial or fine art purposes you are definitely making something and it is rewarding to physically see what you’ve accomplished at the end of a day.

Occasionally, I am hired to do event production or communications consulting work on contract, so for example, right now I am working with Heritage Saskatchewan to develop a social media strategy and with the Museums Association of Saskatchewan to help them create a new communications strategy. I worked for almost four years as the Communications Coordinator at SaskCulture from 2012 to 2015, that is where I got my background in communications and it is nice to be able to work with other non-profit cultural organizations to assist them with their communications needs. I really like all of the work I do as a communications consultant, I like connecting with organizations and people and helping them be more efficient and strategic in their communications efforts.

After a year of being almost totally self-employed, going back into a nine-to-five type of situation at Eagle Printing (even though it is only a few days a week) has been a little challenging, but I also really like the structure that it gives to my schedule. It has really required me to get and stay organized and prioritize all the things I need to get done over the course of the week. The super challenging thing about working at Articulate Ink is that we get paid solely on commission for the jobs that we print, we don’t have enough operational funding yet to be paid a salary or for any of the administrative work that we do so that inconsistency can definitely be frustrating at times.

KC: What's important to you?

I think that community is really important to me, whether that be family, friends, colleagues… One of the things about being a printmaker is that we often work communally because of the high cost of the equipment and studio facilities we require, so I feel that there is a sense of community that is often built into the medium and that is what we’ve tried to build with Articulate Ink, not only a physical studio space, but also a community of print-minded people.

Art is also really important to me, it is a huge part of my life and even though I haven’t produced a huge amount of work in the last five years I feel that being an artist informs how I navigate the world and I am always experiencing things through the lens of being an artist and that is often what keeps me going and motivated to do what I do.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

What I like most about Regina is the arts community. When I moved here in 2005 from Weyburn to go to University, it was never really my intention to stay for an extended period of time, but as I became more and more a part of the arts community, and Articulate Ink flourished, it became difficult to think about moving somewhere new and starting over just for the sake of not being in Regina. I think I’d like to move somewhere new, even temporarily, in the future to go to grad school, but that is way down the line, I’m still paying off my undergraduate degree.

The thing that I like least about Regina is that it is essentially just a bigger small town in some ways, racism is still a rampant problem here, as well as LGBTQ discrimination and even though I’ve never personally had any problems in the past, I know of people who have, and being a visibly queer person sometimes makes me nervous because I know there are folks around who might take issue with me just being me, so I have my guard up sometimes and I don’t like that.

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

I really like Saskatoon! During my time at SaskCulture I got to spend a decent chunk of time working in Saskatoon for Culture Days and other initiatives and I met some great people, ate at fantastic restaurants, visited awesome art galleries etc… Saskatoon seems like a really vibrant, growing city. I am always impressed by the landscape, the rivers, the bridges - it is a particularly beautiful city in my opinion. I generally jump at any chance I get to go to Saskatoon, I like spending time there.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

I really used to hate winter bitterly and then I bought a full-fledged winter parka a few years ago and my opinion of winter shifted a bit, so I suppose I survive the winters by investing in really good, warm winter gear. It really takes the bite out of the cold. I still like to walk a lot in the winter and be outside and we have an ice skating rink about half a block from our house and one downtown in Victoria park so I go ice skating when I get the chance and I always feel that is something special that I only get to do in the winter. I find that skating invigorates me in the depths of winter somewhat.

From the Proust Questionnaire: Which talent would you most like to have?

The talent that I would most like to have is to be able to play a musical instrument, which I cannot! I took guitar lessons for about three years in high school and let's just say that I didn’t really have an aptitude for it. I love music, it is a huge part of my daily life and I would really like to be able to play guitar or piano or something but I haven’t really been able to figure out yet. I haven’t given up yet though - there may be an ukulele in my future!

Links:

www.articulateink.ca www.eagleprinting.ca - (website in progress!) www.caligari.ca

Social media: Instagram: @pensiveprinter, @articulaterinker, @eagleprintingyqr

Twitter: @pensiveprinter, @articulaterinker

Articulate Ink - HomeWant some studio time to work on your print for the upcoming Caligari Print Exchange? Come hang out with us this Wednesday!articulateink.ca

Saskatoon, Treaty 6

Blair Colwell

(Photo by Jennifer Sparrowhawk, Intro by Aaron Shoals)

Let me be clear: Blair Colwell is a weirdo. Make no mistake; this man is a monster. His art is a distinct marker of a cornered beast ready on his haunches to hurl animosity and rage onto the closest victim. And it comes from the most gentle man.

I've become friends with Blair through Saskatoon's thriving music scene. He's played drums for the danceable GO JEFF!!!, freaker punks The Faps, and the melodic boppers Sad Buckets. Always supportive of other artists and ever a willing collaborator, Blair has been a strong supporter of the arts and his musical peers.

While Blair is known to many as a musician, he is also a gifted visual artist. Deranged and dystopian creatures crawl from Blair's fingers to his pen. In his art, you'll witness horrific beings, holy incarnations, and honest caricatures of his friends.

Nothing brings me greater delight to know that Blair's contributions to the Saskatchewan arts community are being honoured and celebrated. If anything, he needs that deep humility stirred around a bit. Congratulations, Blair! I love you.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I play drums and howl like a goddamn banshee in The Faps. We just got home from tour. We went out to the west coast to test out our new material on unsuspecting strangers, that went well so we hope to be getting into a studio soon. We've also been doing an ongoing remix project and have had way more contributions than expected so we're having an official release at Amigo's January 27th, we'll be donating all the proceeds from the release to Iskwewuk E-wichiwitochik (Women Walking Together)

I play drums in a catchy little rock band called Sad Buckets, which is great fun. I draw pictures and have had quite a few local musicians and establishments use my work which is a great feeling, I've fallen way out of that though. Hopefully I can get something together and do an art show sometime in the new year.

KC: What's your day job? What do you like about it? What's challenging?

I work at the Underground Cafe on 20th and I really like it, I consider my co-workers good friends and really love working in Riversdale and meeting the people who live in that community. There have been a few challenging times with customers complaining about the folks on the street, so sometimes it can be hard to stay neutral to the odd slightly racist or classist comments.

KC: What's important to you?

I think honesty above all else. I can be brutally honest and highly critical, which isn't always a good thing, but it's important to me to continue learning and to receive feedback whether it's constructive or not. I try to surround myself with close friends who will tell it how it is, it's a great way to keep working at the best of my ability while staying aware of all the privilege I have that I may otherwise overlook.

KC: What do you like most/least about Saskatoon?

I've been in Saskatoon for about 4 years now and I've met some of the most incredible friends I could ask for. I've had constant outlets to do what I love. I like the little restaurants and pubs, and the river. I like that cool things come here sometimes. It's okay. I guess what I dislike is that the scene is a bit incestuous. There are a lot of great artists doing mediocre work because there's a high demand for art, (which is great) but I just know there are talented people out there who should be seen even if that means others, including myself, need to step aside for a moment. That, and it's way too fucking expensive to live here, my sister pays less in downtown Montreal.

KC: What is your impression of Regina?

I'm from Moose Jaw so Regina was always the "big city" to me. I lived there for awhile after high-school and quite liked it. Regina has a weird music scene, you're either playing a packed bar where no one gives a damn about you and they're just there to drink, or you do a show at some hall while praying you at least make some gas money. That being said Regina seems to take more pride in it's successful artists than Saskatoon.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

I hate the cold. Luckily for me I also kind of hate most people.. so if nothing else, at least I get to use winter as my icy, hellish scapegoat to avoid social situations and recharge for spring.

From the Proust Questionnaire: What/who is the greatest love of your life?

I've had the same best friend since I was 5. I have another best friend I talk to almost every day. They're the loves of my life. They know me better than I know myself, and I know they'll always be there. That's a pretty great kind of love.

links:

www.thefaps.bandcamp.com www.soundcloud.com/sad-buckets www.facebook.com/swamplifeart

FRIENDS THAT FUCK (A remix & cover journey), by The FAPS9 track albumthefaps.bandcamp.com

Regina, Treaty 4

Amber Goodwyn

(Intro by Wanda Schmöckel, Photo by Mike Rollo)

I was recently taken aback while reading a post on Amber Goodwyn’s Facebook page that marked her four-year “Regina-versary”. How, I thought to myself, can it be only four years since Amber moved to Regina? Because, in the short period of time this born-and-bred Montréaler has been in the Queen City, Amber has ascended what, for many, could have been a tough social slope in this tight-knit town, making friends with and strong connections to every facet of the arts community here – and getting a lot done in the process.

You may already be acquainted with Amber through any number of ways. You might recall her excellent music coverage in Prairie Dog and Planet S magazines, or subscribed to the Queen City Walking Distance Distro that she handily organized (a DIY art exchange that sees local artists make and trade art care-packages that are delivered – on foot – in and around the city). You may well know Amber as her music-making and DJ-ing alter-ego Natural Sympathies, the moniker under which she first announced herself on CJTR (Regina’s community radio station) shortly after moving here. More recently, Amber took on the position of Operations and Program Manager for that station, and launched Plain A.I.R., a new artists-on-the-radio residency. The fact that she’s managed to get all this done while raising a full-of-beans toddler (Amber also became a mother in the time she’s been in Regina), is nothing short of remarkable.

I personally first got to know Amber through our shared connections in film, but over time learned just how multifaceted this woman is; with a past life in Montréal as part of the music trio Cobra & Vulture, a founding member of the Double Negative film collective, and the publisher of the feminist smut-zine Lickety Split. Whether through music, writing, film, or encouraging anyone in possession of one to get acquainted with their own cervixes, Amber is someone who rolls up her sleeves, jumps right in, and gets to work in a way that inspires you to want to get to work too.

In short, Amber is cool in the best possible way a person can be cool – not in a way that lords said coolness over everyone around her, but rather, by sharing her interests and enthusiasms in her characteristically friendly and easy-going way, she in turn encourages us to consider what whatever it is we regard as worthy of our attention and enthusiasm – and then commit to it wholly and completely. She’s smart, generous, thoughtful, funny, kind, and comfortable in her own skin, and the more I get to know her, the more impressed I am.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

At the moment I’m recording a Natural Sympathies EP called Strange Heavens and working on my live show. The EP is a collection of space-themed songs about traveling to an alien planet - I’m all about subtle metaphors, ha ha! The songs are both silly and earnest and I’m having so much fun recording and playing them. I just don’t give a fuck anymore, perhaps because I’m old and wise now?

This is the first time I’ve really worked on music since I left Montreal and the first time since I became a mother. Because I also work part-time, my available time for creative work is limited. So Natural Sympathies has become something of a feminist experiment: I can work as quietly or as loudly as I like to, whenever I can. I don’t have to coordinate with band members, which would be nearly impossible, and I don’t have to worry about carrying heavy gear around. It’s a mobile, flexible project that challenges me to be confident enough to go on stage solo and to own all my song writing choices. I also want to see more women on stages in Regina and it’s important for me to be the change I want to see in the world and all that.

I’ve also just finished writing a short story about a fictional cult de-programming attempt. My partner (Mike Rollo) and I would like to adapt it for the screen and try to co-direct a short film sometime in the next couple of years. It would be the first time either of us will have made a narrative fiction film.

Finally, I’m working on doing the best I can. I don’t like to be a slouch. I’m trying to do my best with my home life, to turn off my screens by 9:30pm and to satisfy my femme sartorial identity while embracing an ever-changing female body and a tight budget. I also lend a hand with underground music shows at Drone Factory whenever I can, which is Ernie Dulanowsky’s occasional event space. He’s the coolest dude in Regina, by the way.

KC: What's your day job? What do you like about it? What's challenging?

I work at 91.3FM CJTR, Regina Community Radio as the Operations and Production Manager; basically a Programming Director position. I looooove my job because it involves working with passionate and unique volunteer radio hosts every day: I learn so much, laugh so much and get challenged to help make great radio happen. It’s always been important for me to really believe in the work I do because I commit 100%. I used to work at CKUT 90.3FM in Montreal and so working at CJTR feels like coming home to community radio in my new town. Also, the live aspect of radio is thrilling and I’m inspired by the new technological and distribution possibilities that keep broadening the medium.

Challenges include conflict resolution, which is inevitable when working with a large group of people with diverse perspectives. It’s also tricky trying to get everything I want to get done on a part-time basis. Because I’m the mother of a young child, my time outside of the office is quite truly unavailable for much overtime…and so I hustle!

The station has been doing such a kick-ass job in all aspects this year. The programs are strong. We’ve just released a CD/digital compilation called Got It Covered: Saskatchewan Musicians Cover Each Other’s Music plus we’re celebrating fifteen years on air with a party on November 5th at The Exchange with the bands Library Voices, DGS Samurai Champs, Nick Faye, Megan Nash, Blake Berglund & Belle Plaine. Huzzah!

KC: What's important to you?

Personal balance or else it all crashes down, so: naps and eating well. Also, an active inner life, meaning free time to be on my own: I get four hours one morning a week for my creative work and I guard it fiercely. I have some evenings also, if I’m not too creature exhausted…that’s part of it, being able to also just hang out. These are feminist issues to me, ways for women to be valued for all the different kinds of work we do as well as the right to be whole, healthy and happy human beings. Related to this, I really enjoyed the An Artist Residency in Motherhood movement that Lenka Clayton started. I must also give a shout-out to Mike for encouraging and supporting me in my pursuits and for being an equal partner in our home life.

Social justice is close to my heart. I’ve made lots of noise in the past about sexual health, reproductive rights, and sex worker’s rights. I’m also concerned about race and class issues in Canada and support the Black Lives Matter and Justice For Missing And Murdered Indigenous Women actions. Transgender rights are also something I try to maintain awareness of. I’m trying to listen and engage in an intersectional, respectful and helpful way as a cis-gender white woman. Environmental justice is also important to me. It seems like we’re on the precipice of some major social/economic upheaval.

I think it’s important to be honest about my life experiences and opinions because it breaks isolation and builds understanding. In particular, I like to be honest about the challenges I’ve had in my parenthood. For example, I was ambivalent about becoming a mother, which I believe is one of many natural reactions to a life-changing event. And the first year of my motherhood was incredibly lonely. I don’t want other people to feel like they aren’t good parents just because some outmoded societal pressures tell them they have to be, feel or parent in specific ways. Parenthood is already undervalued and overly commodified as it is.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

I love the people I have met here; they are warm and funny and enthusiastic about the work they do. The arts community has been a haven and the music scene is super cool; I’m just getting to know the latter properly now that my kid is no longer a baby. Everyone has made us feel welcome, especially the communities surrounding CJTR, New Dance Horizons, FadaDance, the Film Department and the Faculty of Media, Arts and Performance at the University of Regina, Queer City Cinema, the Dunlop Art Gallery, Holophon Audio Arts, Prairie Dog Magazine and the Saskatchewan Filmpool.

Regina is indelibly tied to a major change in my personal identity and so I find it difficult to translate my feelings about it into words. Leaving Montreal was very hard. After arriving in Regina I kind of layed low, listened, met people and worked on putting down roots. This past year of extroversion has felt a bit like a coming out party in contrast.

My favourite places to dine in Regina are as follows: Hunter Gatherer for their breakfast (try The Ringer!), The Mercury for burgers and for masking the sounds of my wonderfully spirited kiddo, Malty National for their beer, Bushwakker for their beer and ambiance (I like beer), Caraway Grill for the best food in Canada, Afghan Cuisine for the best food on North Albert Street, Magpies’ Kitchen for the best food on south Albert street, The Diplomat for fancy 70s-style fancy-ness, 33 1/3 for their coffee and Dessarts for mainlining ice cream to me throughout my pregnancy, even in the middle of winter.

I’m not a huge fan of the white suburban culture that permeates Regina. It makes me miss the cultural diversity, anarchy and queerness of cities like Toronto and Montreal. I wish that more touring bands stopped here too. Also, I’ve heard Reginans joke about Regina having “one of everything” but I think that that’s changing, as it should, because more of everything deepens our culture and keeps us rigorous and striving.

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

I visit Saskatoon often because my in-laws and some old friends live there. I love Saskatoon; it feels like a vacation each time we go because my mother-in-law is such an excellent host! I enjoy the thriving downtown and super rad music scene.

I’ve loved Saskatchewan, the province, for a long time because I’ve been visiting it for years with Mike, who’s originally from Regina. The landscape feels spiritual to me, especially in the southwest. I think I’ve seen more of Saskatchewan than most easterners, having travelled from Val Marie and the Grasslands National Park to small towns and ghost towns and up to Stanley Mission, thanks to Mike’s documentary film practice and travel bug. My former band Cobra & Vulture even made a psychedelic prairie rock record called Grasslands based on our travels.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

Getting active outside whenever possible is critical and it’s something I want to get my daughter accustomed to. I’ve always appreciated the aesthetic qualities of winter; the light, colour tones, beauty of it. Winter is also a time when I hunker down and focus on my creative work. I feel grateful for four distinct seasons because they give a shape to my days and thus to my memories.

I love cooking and especially love the excuse winter gives me to roast and braise with my oven. I’ve been working through The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser for the past year and plan to continue this winter.

Overall, I try to embody koselig, that Norwegian word with a meaning that ‘cozy’ doesn’t quite encompass.

From the Proust Questionnaire: What or who is the greatest love of your life?

My daughter, Fiona, is the greatest love of my life. Here’s a poem I wrote for her:

I pull strands of baby hair

from a hot pink hair elastic,

roll them between my fingers

and toss them into the trash

like some casual sinner

who jettisons feathers

fallen from an angel’s wing.

Links:

Natural Sympathies

· BandCamp: www.naturalsympathies.bandcamp.com

· Music video for All Wrong on YouTube: https://youtu.be/rIFKFNkkiE8

· Facebook: www.facebook.com/NaturalSympathies/

· Instagram: @naturalsympathies

91.3FM CJTR, Regina Community Radio: www.cjtr.ca

Got it Covered: Saskatchewan Musicians Cover Each Other’s Music on BandCamp: http://cjtr.bandcamp.com

Amber Goodwyn art stuff: https://ambergoodwyn.wordpress.com

Mike Rollo, my partner: https://mrollo.com

Cobra & Vulture’s Grasslands album: https://cobraandvulture.bandcamp.com/album/grasslands

Drone Factory: https://www.facebook.com/dronefactorysk/

Lenka Clayton’s An Artist Residency In Motherhood: http://www.artistresidencyinmotherhood.com

Saskatoon, Treaty 6

Melody Wood

(Intro by Priscila Ferreira Da Silva, Photo by Jennifer Sparrowhawk)

Love is her circumference.

Melody is one of the most wonderful and genuine human beings I have ever had the honor to share my life with. You do not need to interact with her for very long to get that heartwarming feeling of being home. You know the safe and comforting spaces we talk about making and fostering in our communities? That is how her presence feels. Melody embodies all the values and qualities we need to make this world a bearable place again.

The best way I can describe Melody’s character is through the concept of fluidity. She goes from setting up camp sites and chopping wood, to making delicious vegan sriracha mayo, to designing shirts, to putting together videos and books - in the smoothest way possible -. This does not just require talent, but also passion and dedication to always strive for the best. As she often says: “I can’t do anything half-ass.”

Among her many virtues, Melody has the ability to ground people. She unknowingly teaches me about patience, forgiveness, and persistence every day. In the midst of this colonial bullshit, we’ve discovered that we can heal through holding space for love to flourish and circulate within our circles.

Between being a kickass mauntie (mom+aunty) to the little ones in her life, this nehiyawak is a badass community organizer who puts her heart and soul into finding creative ways to put her politics into practice. Melody is also a cook, an artist, a language lover and revitaliser, a knowledge seeker, and the author of the coolest and dorkiest social media captions.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I have many work projects on the go including a Pow Wow Initiation Project that we plan and coordinate. People come to these classes to learn about the traditional knowledge associated with Pow Wows. As well, we have our language conference coming up which is aimed at sharing the latest and greatest work and strategies on what we all can do in terms of First Nations language revitalization to inspire further work. I am involved in every aspect of the planning. It’s intense, but also rewarding.

In the community, I am involved with an Indigenous professionals organization and we work to advance Indigenous leadership in Saskatoon. I am also part of an Indigenous child welfare project working to change policy which is emotional and important work. I just finished a book project with Priscila Silva and OUTSaskatoon. It is a set of four children’s books talking about rainbow families. This project has helped fill a huge gap in children’s books. I hope it’s just the start of something even more beautiful.

KC: What's your day job? What do you like about it? What's challenging?

I am in charge of overseeing the culture and language departments and ensuring that we move forward in what we are tasked with. What I love about it is that I am in my dream job. I am working while still learning about not only my language group of Plains Cree but all eight language groups in Saskatchewan and how we can revitalize First Nations culture and language. I have found my work life purpose. Our mandate is massive and we have approximately 15 staff to do that. On top of that, we have new leadership and a new vision. Therefore, our workloads have increased, but rightfully so. Navigating the new pace, our schedules and people is challenging as well as a delicate balancing act. But I am up for the challenge, I am excited for this.

KC: What's important to you?

The little people in my life are the most important. Children do not ask to be here and it is a big job to help mold their little minds. But, I want them to grow up to be honest, curious, loyal, courageous and free thinking individuals. I talk to them about many different things, no topic is taboo and they can ask anything they want. I absolutely love that they feel like they can come talk to me about anything. But, we also spend a lot of time being goofy. I really dig hanging out with them because we get to just be. It helps that I am basically a full grown child. Tickle fights man, I love ‘em.

But beyond that, it is important to me that I continue to learn more about my language, my culture and the land. It is central to my nēhiyaw identity and flows into every other aspect of my life. My family is important even though I don’t see them often, because I am so involved in the community. My inner circle is hugely important because we work to change the world together. I also need an outlet to create and I dabble in anything that piques my interest. Group art nights are delightful. Oh and Scrabble, I amaze even myself at just how much I think about and play Scrabble.

KC: What do you like most/least about Saskatoon?

I love Saskatoon because my little niece and little nephew are here, we all need each other. I have found more of my chosen family, people who accept and love me as I am. We learn from each other, we have fun with each other and we work with each other. I am thankful every day for all of them. There is so much to do in Saskatoon; I could be busy every day of my life if I wanted. I love eating cruelty free meals, so I spend lots of time dining on delicious meals. I also love the theatre and art world here.

Saskatoon is not without its flaws. Racism is rampant here which I mainly combat by aspiring to be and working towards being the most kick ass human I can be. But also with raising awareness, building bridges, speaking out, and taking action. It is important to me that people understand that racism and anti-racism education is the responsibility of every human alive. The key lies in understanding the history of these lands.

KC: What is your impression of Regina?

Well, I lived there for 20 years, it is my home city and I still drive by my old house every time I go there. I left much of my family and friends I have had for years to follow my little niece. But, we all still have immense love for each other. In some ways, I miss Regina so much, but I know that I need to be in Saskatoon. At this time in my life, this is where I belong. I have many fond memories when I think about Regina. It is where I discovered myself. Sometimes, I think back and realize just how much I have evolved. I used to be quite shy and naïve. When I come back to my home city, it seems so small to me now, I think that just happens as time goes on.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

Every time winter approaches, I always think, how am I gonna survive another winter? But, we just do. This is home and we must appreciate it for what it is. But I survive with the heat cranked, winter tires and warming up the car. I also rely on thick winter socks, taking a weekend to watch franchise movies, binge watching TV shows, long baths, music, art, new recipes, board games and my baby niece for cuddling. But sometimes, I love to put on layers and get out there for sledding parties, skating dates and snow forts. The crunch of snow and hoarfrost are draws. I really want to winter camp.

From the Proust Questionnaire: What do you most value in your friends?

In my groups of friends both at home and here, it is the gift of laughter. We can neither control our laughter nor do we want to. Our collective decibel levels are unmatched. No matter where we are, we are #alwaystheloudesttable. If we are with just ourselves, we have all noticed that the longer we laugh, the closer we move together until we are basically on top of each other, heads are flung back, tongues are out, we are clutching and slapping each other, holding hands, crying and generally gasping and wheezing for air cause it never ends. Our laughs are even starting to sound more similar. We are just completely ridiculous and I love each and every second.

Links:

Saskatchewan Indigenous Cultural Centre: http://www.sicc.sk.ca/

Saskatoon Aboriginal Professionals Association: http://www.sapayxe.com/

Pē-Kīwēwin Project: https://www.facebook.com/pe.kiwewin?fref=ts

OUTSaskatoon Rainbow Families Series: http://www.outsaskatoon.ca/outsaskatoon_swag

Saskatoon, Treaty 6

Amanda Guthrie

(Photo by Jennifer Sparrowhawk, Intro by Elly-Jean Nielsen)

When I first met Amanda Guthrie I was still new to queer activism in Saskatoon. I was an attendee at her workshop on how to become a better activist – on connecting your heart to your community work. The personal is indeed political, I soon found out, for someone who beat cancer as a young child and came out/in as non-heterosexual in a world where it still holds much relevancy to do so. Who was this young woman who managed to speak calmly yet with total conviction? I wanted to be like that: I wanted to speak openly, eloquently, and effectively. Despite being more than a few years my junior, and not being as far along in her formal education, I have always looked up to this force of nature.

And I’m not simply swayed by Amanda’s cool attributes as a young, tattooed and pierced queer, to use her own words. To name just a few of her recent accomplishments, she: is the Education Coordinator at OUTSaskatoon; was the lead planner for Saskatchewan’s first GSA Summit; has served as campaign manager for a candidate for city council; and, was named one of CBC’s 2016 Future 40 winners.

Despite working alongside Amanda for various events, we bonded as friends over our joint love for spoken word poetry, tacos, bourbon, coffee, dogs with human names, and androgynous fashion. It is rare that the person you fight with is also someone to kick back and relax with; after all, it is crucially important for us activists to prioritize self-care. Regardless of the tone set by local initiatives, which are frequently serious by virtue of ongoing injustice in our town, Amanda – who I might mention always makes it to the rally, march, or event – knows when to smile, and send along a funny meme or emoticon.

Reflecting back on my first encounter with Amanda leads me to realize I was instantly struck by her cool demeanor and fantastic message of love and perseverance. It was like being in high school again: I wanted to look, talk, and be like her. But, perhaps, this is unsurprising. Jack/Judith Halberstam once spoke of queer adolescence as extending far beyond one’s twenties, as we resist the heteronormative imperative of adulthood. So here’s to all us queer kids rocking adulthood, and to Amanda for showing us how it’s done.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I’ve been spending much of my free time over the past five months working as the campaign manager for Hilary Gough who is running for City Council in Ward 2 (Caswell Hill, Westmount, Pleasant Hill, Riversdale, King George, Holiday Park, Meadow Green, and Montgomery). Municipal politics have increasingly become a passion of mine as I’ve grown stronger roots here in Saskatoon. We live in a beautiful city, full of so many inspiring citizens. Municipal politics and cities can be incredibly malleable; ideas that don’t seem politically or socially possible at the provincial or federal level are much more realistic and possible at the city level and there are so many cities throughout the world that are great examples of that. I truly believe that we can do great things here in Saskatoon, because we already are. With the right people on city council, who lead by listening and by bringing diverse perspectives to the forefront, I know that we can begin to overcome many of the barriers that we, or our neighbours, face on a daily basis. That’s why I’m so excited to support Hilary, because her style of leadership is centered around listening, learning those with different lived-experiences, and then taking the knowledge and partnerships and turning them into action. She’s passionate, she’s intelligent, and most of all she’s ready to lead in a way that we haven’t seen in Ward 2 – by bringing our neighbourhoods together, digging deep into the systemic issues, working with everyone, and advocating for all.

I’m also deeply invested in conversations and actions around creating safe space for women in organizing spaces here in Saskatoon. I’ve experienced a lot of toxic leadership and organizing spaces since moving to Saskatoon and it’s time that we have safe spaces so that we can organize effectively.

I’m also trying to turn my dream of creating a fierce feminist girl gang of queer women who have disabilities into a reality. I lost my right eye to cancer as a child and wear a full prosthesis eye and lately I’ve come to a point where I am completely done with ableist questions and comments. I want safe space where my body isn’t questioned or made to feel inferior.

KC: What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What’s challenging?

I’ve been working full-time at OUTSaskatoon for the past two years, first as the Youth & Education Coordinator, and now solely as the Education Coordinator. This opportunity has given me the gift of meeting and working with hundreds of queer and trans youth here in Saskatoon and across our province. These youth have taught me so much about the power of community, resiliency, and fierce love. As the Education Coordinator my work is primarily around working in partnership with school divisions, health regions, non-profits and businesses throughout the province, educating teachers, health professionals and employers on how to integrate queer and trans inclusive practices into everyday work. I’ve also spent the last two years developing new resources, including OUTSaskatoon’s Safe Space Kit, and a month-by-month meeting guide for gay-straight alliances/gueer-straight alliances.

This year a lot of my work will actually be focused on providing training and consultation to SIGA (Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority) and the Saskatoon Police. OUTSaskatoon has recently partnered with SIGA to provide diversity training and consultation to all SIGA staff, so I’ll be spending a lot of time in casinos! I’m also going to be providing training and educational resources to all employees at Saskatoon Police. Queer and trans communities have always had complex histories and experiences with police and OUTSaskatoon has been doing a lot of work to listen to our communities and then work with the police so they can better understand the communities’ experiences of police and policing. I’m feeling nervous and intimidated about providing the training and taking on the role of trying to bridge the clear gap, but I strongly believe that it’s OUTSaskatoon’s job to navigate this complex role. So hopefully I do the community justice and am able to convey our histories, experiences, and concerns in an effective way.

KC: What’s important to you?

People and community. I feel best and work best when I feel connected to others and when working towards the goal of making our spaces better for everyone. I’ve organized and worked in many spaces that were or still are toxic. These spaces and these ways of organizing were never productive and while they may have produced some successes, any hope of long-term success and solidarity building was never successful. I strongly believe in an intersectional approach to everything. Identities matter. We are different people. Let’s recognize our differences, our strengths, so that we can build communities that honour people first and tackle issues second. I think we’ll be more successful if we do.

KC: What do you like most/least about Saskatoon?

I love the people who live here and who are committed to making their communities, neighbourhoods, and workplaces better for everyone. There are so many incredibly inspiring, feisty, hilarious, and brilliant people who are deeply committed to carving out positive spaces and lifting up the voices of others. I love people and I’m crazy about the people here in Saskatoon.

I dislike the dichotomies that exist and only serve to exacerbate the issues within our city. Whether it be west-side versus east-side or the stark political differences in our city, I wish we could break down the us versus them mentality.

KC: What is your impression of Regina?

Regina is home to some of the absolute best people I know, so I love visiting our prairie capital.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

Layers, thick socks, coffee, hot chocolate, blankets, cuddling, and holiday music. As a person who is naturally quite physically cold, I used to hate the winter. However I’ve come to respect Mother Nature and her need to change through the seasons; to grow, to change, and to rest. It’s a lesson that I’d love to internalize in my own life.

(From the Proust Questionnaire): What do you value most in your friends?

Humour, vulnerability, solidarity, and a love of food. My heart is happiest when I’m laughing with friends or having deep conversations, while eating delicious food and having a glass of red wine.

Links:

www.OUTSaskatoon.ca

www.hilaryyxe.com

www.eyegetaneye.tumblr.com

Regina, Treaty 4

Jaye Kovach

(Photo by Aidan Morgan, Intro by Shayna Stock)

Jaye Kovach is a spell-casting, tell-it-like-it-is, badass artist. She uses noise and tattoo ink to bewitch her enemies and bless her friends. She can tame even the most wild canine-beast with a single kiss. On stage she is a sultry sound diva, making magic with guitar strings, drum machines and voice. Off stage, she is usually eating pizza or whole jars of pickles while checking her phone and muttering about her latest crush.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

Lately I’ve been mostly focused on making music. I play guitar, sing, and make the backing tracks for my band, Homo Monstrous, as well as record weird noise pop under the name firestarter. I’ve also started tattooing and have gotten a pretty great response so far. Oh and I host a monthly radio show on CJTR. I really enjoy that everything I’m most into doing/gotten the best response to art-wise is something that some dude told me I’d never be able to do like 10 years ago. It feels like a pretty nice fuck you.

KC: What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What’s challenging?

I work at the Dunlop Art Gallery as a facilitator. My last job was pretty solitary so I’ve been enjoying having co-workers and actually interacting with people, especially some of the weirder folks that frequent the library. Working a part-time gig with a bit of a weird schedule is something I haven’t really done since university but it has given me a lot more time to work on creative projects and tattooing folks has kind of closed the gap, income-wise. I think my biggest challenge so far has been managing my time. I feel like I’m chronically late (thankfully rarely for work) but somehow I’ve been able to hold it together.

KC: What’s important to you?

Figuring out how to live an ethical and compassionate existence. I really want to fight through my bitter cynicism and tendency to isolate myself and actually give people a chance.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

It took a really long time but I feel like I’ve kind of cultivated a pretty nice community in this city. I genuinely feel like people have my back. This has become more and more of a tangible thing over the last couple of years. When I get back from a tour I often fall into a bit of a depression but it has been a softer landing each time. Pals will actually check up on me. When I was laid off from my job last April I had a bunch of people sending me job postings. Knowing and being able to feel that people actually care about what happens to me is a relatively new thing for me and I’m super grateful.

That being said Regina is sometimes hell of isolating. It’s hard to live in a city where a lot of people think you’re kind of weird and gross unless you sort of keep to your bubble of cool people. But that isn’t exactly conducive to growth or new relationships. Regina is also super booze-y and I’m (mostly) sober so that further complicates things. It turns out a lot of social bonding rituals or like even flirting are pretty dependent on being kind of trashed.

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

One of my oldest friends lives in Saskatoon. We’ve known each other since I was 16 and I’ve been making a point to come visit at least once a year since then. So in some ways Saskatoon feels kind of like a bit of a second home. I don’t really think Saskatoon is that different from Regina, although since playing more shows in the city I’ve also come to make a few pals in the music scene and I feel like Saskatoon maybe has a bit more going on on the more DIY, weirdo side of things; like stuff that isn’t just dude-centric hardcore. I seem to get a better response to my work there. There are also more women in bands/making music, which is cool. I always feel weird about being the only woman on stage.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

I have pretty rank Seasonal Affective Disorder so like by holding on for dear life? Actually the last couple of winters haven’t been too bad. Late-fall/winter is usually when I work on recording and this year I really want to put out a full-length for both of my projects. I also resolve to actually leave the city between now and next summer’s tour. I’ve made a lot of cool pals in other cities in the last couple of years and I don’t get to see them often enough.

KC: (From the Proust Questionnaire) What is your greatest fear?

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. I think my greatest fear is becoming super bitter and ending up alone. There’s this thing I see with a lot of trans folks where we, to varying degrees, deal with, or in my case have dealt with, a lot of awful bullshit. Understandably, it makes you pull away from people but you end up missing out in a pretty big way. Being bitter and isolation sort of feed each other. It’s a vicious cycle and something that I’m trying my hardest to avoid.

LINKS:

Homo Monstrous: https://homomonstrous.bandcamp.com

firestarter: https://firestartermusic.bandcamp.com

Tattoo bookings: bit.ly/ihaveasicknesstattoos

The Sour Hour on CJTR: bit.ly/thesourhour

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ihaveasickness

@ihaveasickness on twitter and instagram

Regina, Treaty 4

Wanda Schmöckel

(Photo by Aidan Morgan, Intro by Amber Goodwyn)

Wanda Schmöckel is, perhaps, the most curious person I know. I’ve witnessed her inquisitiveness on sticky bar stools and behind a microphone, around dinner tables, at drive-ins, fowl suppers and in pumpkin patches - the lady is always engaged fully with whomever or whatever is before her. Her questions are incisive and she doesn’t back down from bullshit.

These qualities are clearly present in her professional activities: writer, editor, filmmaker, salon curator and journalist. It makes sense that such a smarty-pants would be led to vocations that require deep reflection and logic.

All that said, when I asked my partner to describe Wanda’s most marked characteristic, he offered “super wicked dry sense of humour.” That’s true too. Wanda’s hilarious. I won’t ruin any of her jokes by trying to write them down.

So, Wanda is a hilarious brain, but she’s also elegant and gracious. One of my early encounters with Wanda was at a dinner party. Wanda and her partner Mark invited us newbies to their table soon after we’d arrived, perhaps empathizing with our newcomer status (Wanda moved to Regina from Toronto ten years ago). Wanda and Mark’s home and stories revealed their love of beauty and adventure, as both are natural aesthetes, travellers and good listeners interested in the exchange of excellent stories.

Getting to know Wanda helped Regina to become a home for me. Friends help define one’s sense of belonging to a place, I think. A person like Wanda would be a boon to any (or either) city I’m sure, but I’m sure glad she ended up in ours.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I’m working on outlines for a couple of long form writing projects that should be up and running by the time the snow flies. I’m the editor of Splice Magazine (the Saskatchewan Film Pool’s bi-annual journal on filmmaking in Saskatchewan) and we have a new issue coming out this fall – it’s a big one. My husband and I recently re-launched the amateur lecture series Chicken & Wine after a one-year hiatus, and we’d like to mount another event before the end of 2016. I just joined the board of Curtain Razors, and I’m really excited about what they have planned over the next season. Other than that, I’m cooking up ideas for freelance stories that I never seem to find time to pitch (it’s been hard to schedule time to write lately).

KC: What's your day job? What do you like about it? What's challenging?

I’ve been working at the MacKenzie Art Gallery as their Communications Coordinator for just over a year. The MacKenzie really is a marvel and it’s one of the first things that ingratiated Regina to me after I moved here from Toronto. That this gallery programs the caliber of exhibitions that it does and remains free to the public is really wonderful. It’s an exemplary institution, and I consider it a privilege to be able to contribute. I also really like the people I work with, many of whom are artists and otherwise smart, creative folk who bring a lot of heart and dedication to their jobs.

KC: What's important to you?

Ultimately, my family, husband, and friends are most important to me. I really miss my people back home. Luckily, I’m able to get back regularly, which helps, so keeping in touch is very important. Having a purpose and a project on the go is also crucial. I’m no good unless I have something other than worry to occupy my head. Sleep is also important to me. And I value good audio-visual equipment (especially good speakers). I wish exercise were more important to me.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

Regina has much to recommend it. I love the constant cross-pollination in the arts communities – Regina really knows how to get people with different arts practices to work together and create great things. This fall is going to be a doozy with the Caligari Project, Curtain Razors’ Moveable Feast events, the Meet in the Middle symposium, mispon, Queer City Cinema, the Saskatchewan Independent Film Awards, Pile of Bones Film Festival... I’m never bored here, and I appreciate that. I also like that a lot of people pass through Regina and bring new energy with them. I am regularly thankful for the RPL Film Theatre (and programmer Belinda New) as well as the Dunlop Art Gallery. I like that there’s a dedicated group of people working towards improving the downtown – it feels better than it did when I first moved here, and the momentum is definitely building. I also love the tree-lined streets in my neighbourhood, my bike commute to work, the city’s parks, and the friends that I’ve made here.

On the downside, I could do without the crummy public infrastructure, bad infill housing, social isolation, rampant racism, hearing people complain about a lack of parking when what they really mean is they can’t be bothered walking more than a block between their car and their destination, and the general apathy around clearing snowy sidewalks. It’s a cultural blind spot that results in a pretty hostile environment for everyone –but especially for those with mobility issues of any kind. I also really dislike Regina’s general aversion to criticism. Regina has a bad habit of deflecting even constructive criticism with a weird brand of a boosterism, which is often manifested through a simulacrum of an angry mob carrying torches and pitchforks (online anyway). The thing is, nothing gets better without criticism. If no one complains, nothing can change for the better.

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

Very favourable. A trip to Saskatoon is a great tonic and I like the change of scenery. I like its downtown and what they appear to be doing with it. Saskatoon has also managed to retain a lot of its older buildings. Regina did such a thorough job decimating the centre of the city that the recent wave of restaurateurs, business people, and other brave souls who have started to rebuild it face an uphill battle – not least because of the broader citizenry’s misinformed opinion that there is no parking downtown (again with the parking…). I enjoy eating in Saskatoon and its general entrepreneurial spirit. I like the Roxy and Broadway cinemas. I like the cocktails at the James Hotel. I miss the Mendel, but I like that Saskatoon has put public money into a new art gallery downtown. Meanwhile Regina is setting its money on fire through the construction of a football stadium for the Riders to play 10 to 12 home games a year. That alone probably says all you really need to know about the general sensibility of both cities.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

I try not to let winter stop me from getting out and walking around. The nice thing about Saskatchewan winters is the sunshine and dry cold. You can actually dress for the cold here, which you really cannot do in more humid places. Whenever I hear people get snotty about Torontonians complaining about minus 20-degree weather, I know they’ve probably never left this place. My husband and I also bought cross-country skis at an end-of-season sale this past spring, so I’m looking forward to heading out on the trails with him at the next opportunity – because Regina is a pretty great place to ski. We also have an excellent cable package and very good house shoes.

KC: (From the Proust Questionnaire) What do you consider your greatest achievement?

I used to work as an editor in television, and for a while, when the Toronto production industry was in the tank (in the early 2000s), I took work cutting news at the CBC. One weekend, I was working alone with the only Associate Producer in the newsroom when word arrived that Rick James had died and we’d have to cut his obituary. The weekends were generally pretty snoozy and this AP and I liked to horse around, so he was game when I suggested we try something with the cut. I ran off to the archive to find a copy of the video for Super Freak while he wrote the script. We started the cut on the line: “she’s a very kinky girrrlll…” and then dropped the audio so the news anchor could read over the rest of the cut. But when it got to the end, we got tricky, and I back timed the final shot so that when the audience heard the anchor say “Rick James died of natural causes”, you saw Rick wink at the camera in slow motion. I don’t know if this was my greatest achievement, but it remains my favourite edit.

Links:

Splice Magazine: http://www.filmpool.ca/splice/

Saskatchewan Filmpool: http://www.filmpool.ca

Chicken & Wine: https://www.facebook.com/chickenandwine

Curtain Razors: http://curtainrazors.com MacKenzie Art Gallery: http://mackenzieartgallery.ca

Rick James’ Super Freak: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYHxGBH6o4M

Saskatoon, Treaty 6

Priscila Ferreira Da Silva

(Photo by Jennifer Sparrowhawk, Intro by Melody Wood)

Priscila Ferreira Da Silva is unknowingly a force already. Just look at her, she is striking visually. But beyond that, you only need a few minutes to realize that she is an extremely empathetic human being, who cares for all sentient beings and their health and wellness. From animals and the various ways they are harmed and taken advantage of - to humans and speaking out and working to overcome patriarchy and racism. A force - and she doesn't know it, which is what makes her all the more attractive.

Currently, Priscila makes her home in Saskatoon and cares for her community, as flawed as it is, which is evident in all the community work that she engages in. She is brilliant, working on a double degree. And her constant writing is consistently thoughtful and beautiful.

Priscila is a chef who makes nutritious and delicious cruelty free meals that are worthy of awards. She is an artist. Some time ago she picked up a camera and has already built an impressive collection of photos. She is a world wanderer who relishes in experiencing other cultures, music, animals and people.

For now, she is on an incredible learning journey, which mind you, won't ever end. She craves knowledge. But one day, she will share her life with a cat and pig. Just wait and see.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I have been the co-president of a campus group called the International Women’s Movement (IWM) for the last two years. We essentially began this group because we collectively felt like there was a lack of space for women of color in Saskatoon. It is difficult to be representative of women from diverse backgrounds but I think we provoked important dialogues around racism, immigration, women’s rights, sexual assault, self-identification, and so on. This year, the other co-president and I decided to pass the IWM along to other young women on campus who are eager to give continuation to this work.

It is with much pride that Melody Wood and I, along with the OUTSaskatoon team are launching a children’s book series called “Rainbow Families” that commemorates two-spirited and LGBTQ+ families living on Treaty 6 territory. I took photographs of community members who have small children and who were willing to participate and share their personal stories. We hope to combat lesbophobia/homophobia instilled in children that may persist into adulthood.

Within the last year, I’ve also been involved with a local group speaking out against police violence, which is a predominant issue in Saskatoon, especially affecting the lives of Indigenous people and people of color.

At the moment, I, along with other lovely women, are looking for ways to create a wider feminist alliance in the city. I know women are much more than the status quo that forcefully determines every aspect of our lives. I think we need a solid space for redefinition, spiritual growth, and healing.

KC: What's your day job? What do you like about it? What's challenging?

I am a research assistant on a research project looking at transracial adoption and Indigenous child removal. I have the opportunity to work and learn from Indigenous scholars and community organizers from all over the country. This is such important work considering the continuous attempts to break down functioning Indigenous families throughout history, and the over-representation of Indigenous children in the foster system today.

I am also a teaching assistant for an introductory Indigenous Studies course at the University of Saskatchewan. I have the chance to conduct my own seminars with real students!! Considering the prevalence of racist attitudes in Saskatchewan, I hope to engage in meaningful anti-racist conversations with students and hopefully get them to interrogate the current power structures.

Both of these jobs challenge me to wake up early and be on time.

KC: What do you like most/least about Saskatoon?

I like the warm sense of community I feel here. There are tons of amazing individuals committed to making our communities safer for everyone. Although my family lives far away, I have a solid support network filled with the most wonderful humans.

I absolutely despise the racism entrenched in people’s minds. I cannot stand the conservative mentality that prevails in the province and how that continues to pose major barriers on the livelihoods of women, immigrants, indigenous communities, and LGBTQ+ folks.

I also dislike the obsession people have with knowing where people who-do-not-look-white-and-have-an-accent are from after exchanging 5 words. I started answering ‘I am from this continent, how about your ancestors?’ * blank face *

KC: What's important to you?

The earth, the animals, the protection of oceans and rivers, the Amazônia rainforest that is currently being destroyed by agribusiness interests, food sovereignty, Indigenous rights, cultural preservation, vegan foods, feminism, ending rape culture, advancing my education, genuine relationships, my family and friends, LGBTQ+ existence, community organizing… and anything else that disrupts the colonial and patriarchal narrative. Oh, and cats!

KC: What is your impression of Regina?

I have only been in Regina a few times for very short periods of time. I still remember the dreamy vegan brownie I had at the 13th Avenue Coffee House.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

I grew up in an equatorial region and I’ve always dreamed of seeing snow and wearing winter coats, boots, and toques. I guess my dream came true.

(From the Proust Questionnaire) What is your idea of perfect happiness?

Hiking up a waterfall and being mesmerized by how immense the world really is.

Regina, Treaty 4

Gerald Saul

(Photo by Gerald Saul, Intro by Chrystene Ells)

Gerald Saul is a distinguished and extremely prolific experimental filmmaker, whose substantial output over several decades might best be thematically collected as taking place in a slightly surreal universe just adjacent to everyday life. As viewers of Gerald’s films, we are invited to step to the side of the narrative and enter the parallel story in the playful universe next door. Carl Jung said, “the creative mind plays with the things it loves,” and the creative mind of Gerald Saul plays eagerly with all of the possibilities of the postmodern cinematic medium. In addition to his considerable legacy as an independent filmmaker, Gerald has served on boards of local arts organizations, including the Saskatchewan Filmpool Cooperative, and, most recently, the Cabinet Collective, where he is co-artistic director of Regina’s upcoming Caligari Project, a giant 4-month long celebration of German Expressionism in all its forms. Gerald is a generous teacher, a warm-hearted and hilarious person, a natural silent film actor, a friend to animals and everyone else, a storyteller, a prolific artist, a renowned baker, a devour-er of art and cinema, an explorer, a scholar, and a vital force in the creative community of Regina. He also has excellent taste in boots.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I am neck deep in German Expressionism, helping to organize a multi-disciplinary, multi-month art festival as well as make two or maybe even three films to show during it. On top of that, my first solo gallery exhibition closes this weekend and I will then have to find places to put all that stuff.

KC: What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What’s challenging?

I am a film professor at the University of Regina. There are so many things to like about it, but mainly the interaction with the students. On some days I could talk to one student after another about their ideas, giving them suggestions about story, themes, technique, or whatever. Like anyone, I have had my fair share of regular jobs, from serving drinks or sitting in an office to digging holes and mopping floors. These sorts of jobs take only a limited time to master and then boredom sets in. I like being bored, it helps stir my imagination. For at least eight months of the year, the university does not let me get bored. It is not a job that I will ever master because there are always more new ideas and approaches to tackle. Therefore, it is the very nature of the challenge of the job which makes it difficult but satisfying.

KC: What’s important to you?

When I am making yet another of my oddball videos, I sometimes feel like I wouldn’t even want to finish it if I didn’t have my son around to watch it. He has become my primary audience (as well as frequent collaborator and performer). He also bores easily, so I need to be prolific.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

The Riders. I’ve not been to a Rider game in decade and generally don’t care about them at all. The crowds and the noise and press all annoy me on a daily basis for a few months of the year, but I am also very impressed and amused by the manic obsession that this team evokes in the city. They make people happy and not ashamed of living here. Many years ago on my first trip to Toronto, I was at a comedy club and the standup asked where people in the audience were from. Some poor schmuck across the room said he was from Regina and the audience almost orgasmed over the ten minutes of razzing the comic made over this city. While I have to admit that I laughed with everyone else, I also began to realize how cruel all forms of prejudice is. All cities are crappy in their own ways. All people are crappy in their own ways. Sports are particularly crappy. However, if we can’t let people be happy with where they are and what they are doing, then who is the villain?

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

I like the restaurants and the Roxy Theatre. We come to town every time the SSO (Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra) plays live music with a film there (Silence is Golden silent film events). I lived in Saskatoon for a couple of months when I was working on “Christmas at Wapos Bay” but between the long days and my need to return to Regina every weekend (this was during the two months before my son was born), I didn’t do much other than walk around. I tended not to go out at night because driving was such a pain.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

What is the option? I suppose that I don’t go out as much. Once I’m at work, I stay there until it is time to go home. Generally, now that my son has outgrown the toboggan, I don’t do any “winter activities”.

From the Proust Questionaire: Who is your hero of fiction?

“Kilgore Trout” from numerous early novels by Kurt Vonnegut. I’m not sure if he is a hero or not, but he is a hero to me. Kilgore Trout was a fictitious science fiction writer who wrote hundreds of stories, sent them to publishers, but never kept track of them himself. I would love to live with this level of creative output and with such little ego. On my website, I obsessively list every pathetic little video or comic strip or hairball I regurgitate into the world. I would adore thinking that I could have an obsessed fan tracking my career, but I am already that person. To live with the sole ambition of expression without need for recognition is magical to me.

Links: www.geraldsaul.com www.caligari.ca

Regina, Treaty 4

Robyn Pitawanakwat

(Photo by Eagleclaw Thom, Intro by Andrew Lowen)

Activist, organizer, shit disturber, thinker, mother, friend, diaper bank impresario: Robyn embodies these roles and more. Raised by an activist mother and stepfather, Robyn had three children of her own before returning to the activist life that she grew up with, and this is the context in which I’ve had the privilege to get to know her and to organize with her.

Robyn wants a future for her children – and all Indigenous children – that isn’t compromised by the systemic injustices of Canada’s ongoing colonialism. I know Robyn to be generous and committed, but she doesn’t suffer fools gladly. Her love for her kids animates her politics, while her impatience with the BS of false authorities – be they police chiefs, politicians, or bureaucrats – fuels her irreverent humour.

In the time that I’ve gotten to know her, Robyn has emerged as a leading grassroots organizer and a spokesperson (however reluctant) for anti-colonial struggles in Regina, Treaty 4 territory. And she’s done nearly all of it – whether out in the streets or in meetings – with her young children at her side.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

My current projects include: Colonialism No More Solidarity Camp, Environment Team for the Regina Folk Festival, Regina Diaper Bank operation, Come Clean Laundromat operation, Immigration Detention solidarity work, Voices for Justice and Police Accountability, and Anti-colonial homeschooling of three children

KC: What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What's challenging?

I run the Regina Diaper Bank and Come Clean Laundromat in Regina’s Heritage Community. The Regina Diaper Bank is a not-for-profit organization which provides free diapers to qualifying low income families. Come Clean Laundromat allows for the cloth diapers used by the diaper bank clientele to be washed free. The laundromat is also open to the general public. There has been tremendous support for this project and I have been overwhelmed by the cloth diaper donations that have come in from individuals and organizations such as Groovy Mama, and by the volunteers referred by Regina Open Doors Society.

My job allows me to do anti-poverty work, interact directly with the community, and work in a space where my children can be with me anytime. The most challenging thing about the diaper bank is the hours that are required to keep the laundromat open daily. There are already a great core group of volunteers, but there is always room for more volunteers so people can have more free time.

My other day job is homeschooling my three Indigenous children. Their father and I have made a conscious decision to provide an anti-colonial, child-led learning environment. For us this means letting them teach us as much as we teach them by not prescribing their gender identity, encouraging them to always question authority, and valuing people above things.

KC: What's important to you?

Community is important to me; I want my children to have a physically and emotionally safe space to grow and learn. Equity is important to me; I want the wealth disparity in Saskatchewan to end. Currently the child poverty rate for children living on reserve in Saskatchewan is 69% (the second highest in Canada) while the child poverty rate for non-racialized children living in urban areas is 13% (the lowest in Canada.)

Language is important to me; I want my children to have free access to Anishnaabe language classes. Justice is important to me; I want to see the deaths of women like Nadine Machiskinic properly investigated and all responsible parties be held accountable for their actions or inaction.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

I enjoy the arts and sports communities that my children have brought me into: FadaDance and Flux School of Human Movement have both embraced my gender fluid, Indigenous children.

I also love the community that has been built around Voices for Justice and Police Accountability and Colonialism No More Solidarity Camp. Both of these spaces are consensus-based and inclusive.

My least favourite things are the complacency of the average citizen to the injustices that surround them, the wealth disparity by ethnicity, the over-representation of Indigenous people in the justice and foster systems, and the lack of accountability of our police force.

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

I lived in Saskatoon and attended university there for three semesters before moving back to Regina. At that time it seemed Indigenous people had more job opportunities there in Indigenous-run organizations where some amazing projects were being taken on. I also loved that Indigenous voices were represented in the media more than anywhere I’d lived before. I still enjoy reading anything by Doug Cuthand.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

The winters can be survived by holding caroling protests in the malls around Regina when your city wages a battle against the poor. Voices for Justice and Police Accountability staged a wonderful protest during the busy holiday shopping season to bring attention to the unconscionable Unwanted Guest Initiative that pushes poor people out of public and private spaces around Regina.

When not dealing with unjust bylaws I also love having the blustery cold as an excuse to cuddle with my little people.

From the Proust Questionnaire: What do you most value in your friends?

I value those who put people above property and profit. I value humility, integrity and humour. I value kindness and compassion. I value those who show up. I can safely say that my closest friends embody all of the above.

Regina, Treaty 4

Sahar Khelifa

(Photo by Edith Skeard, Intro by Iman Awad)

She was born in Algeria but Canada has very much been home since the tender age of four. I first met Sahar when she moved from Regina to Saskatoon three years ago to study regional and urban planning at the University of Saskatchewan. When I met Sahar I knew that she had the precious and rare qualities that are the making of a lifelong friend. She is passionate about her field of study and has been involved in activities related to it at university.

Outside of her studies, I have personally worked with Sahar in planning youth events aimed to bringing together young Muslim girls from diverse cultural backgrounds. Regardless of the nature of the project she is pursuing, Sahar always brings a genuine interest to the cause, a passionate seriousness and a curiosity that inspires admiration of those around her. Her quiet nature is instilled with rare confidence and maturity that will add to whatever project she pursues in the future.

Having recently finished her degree and moved back to Regina she is now starting a new chapter in her life which is always a good cause for reflection and a good reason for this interview- so it gives me immense pleasure to introduce my dear friend Sahar Khelifa.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I’m in an interesting place in my life right now; I am sort planning the rest of my life so I guess that makes me involved in a lot of things! Grad school research and applications, job hunting, reading, writing, and art making. I am especially excited about an art project I am working on right now making collages out of pressed flowers and plants I collected over the years.

KC: What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What’s challenging?

Being an unemployed recent graduate, like all jobs, has its ups and downs ;) Having a lot of time to think about what you want for your future and literally having all the time in the world to do whatever you want is great. Not succumbing to laziness and boredom is the biggest challenge.

KC: What’s important to you?

There are several things: my religion, spirituality, family, knowledge, nature, volunteering, activism, peace.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

Regina is where I grew up so the community and memories I have here are important to me, as well as the beautiful prairie landscapes. I very much dislike Regina’s suburbanity.

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

On my first visits to Saskatoon, I got a big city feel from the place, probably because of the river and downtown, which are some of my favourite places in the city. My impression has always been that Saskatoon is a beautiful city.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

One of my favourite quotes of all time goes something like this, “There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing.” Warm clothing and positive thinking get me through the tougher, longer, crueler Saskatchewan winters.

From the Proust Questionnaire: Who is your hero of fiction?

Katniss Everdeen from the Hunger Games, for her fearlessness and resolve to always do what’s right.

Saskatoon, Treaty 6

Frankie

(Photo by Jennifer Sparrowhawk, Intro by Kyle Bender)

Four years ago, I was fortunate enough to meet Frankie when I started working at a local hotel. I remember thinking before saying a single word to each other that she seemed like a cool and confident person, and luckily I was right. Our first conversation was very memorable for me; I remember sitting in the break room eating my lunch, too scared to talk to anyone. Frankie came in and sat down across from me and initiated a conversation. Here marks a distinct difference between her and I. I was too scared to talk to anyone because I was worried people would think I was a weirdo, and Frankie comes in with absolutely no timidness, and started throwing questions at me like Larry King. I’ve admired her confidence ever since and try to follow her example.

Ever since that day we’ve become increasingly stronger friends. I have always found it easier to talk and get along with women, and this was my first “bromance”, in a sense. Not only did we have similar interests in cooking, film and music; but also more importantly we have a friendship built on doing stuff together and helping each other out. It’s not just about getting together for drinks and talking nonsense with Frankie, it’s more about doing things for your friends. She was the one who started offering me help when I needed it, and more importantly would actually follow through. Since then, we have helped each other out, no matter if it’s as small as helping pick up groceries, or moving to a new city. It’s been one of the most fulfilling friendships I’ve ever had.

Lastly, I want speak of Frankie’s ambitious spirit. This more than anything else speaks of who Frankie truly is. I think she is overly ambitious really, but only because I could never keep up. I know that Frankie has had some difficult times in her life, but not once has she ever played the victim. I’ve always instead seen her channel her frustrations into other aspects of her life; cooking, working, volunteer work, and even entrepreneurship with her perogies. Both for herself and for the memory of her mother, which I respect immensely and am so proud of her for everything she’s about and all the choices she has made in her life; especially the choice of being my friend.

What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

Currently I am gearing up for Girls Rock Camp Saskatoon in July. I was asked to be the Kitchen Supervisor this year, so I have quite a lot going on for the two weeks.

Besides that, my roommates and I are working on our yard to get it ready for an exciting summer filled with activities. I want to build a stage in our back yard so that local musicians and anyone who comes through and wants to play a small house show can use our house to do so, and typically the cover will be free for the show, with an option to leave a donation.

I also make perogies as a hobby. I started out wanting to make perogies like my mom used to, but ended up making perogies like I wanted. It began when I moved back from Edmonton, constantly testing flavors and handing out freebies. I have recently taken my website down, as well as the social media. From now on, orders will be by email or word of mouth.

What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What’s challenging?

I am currently working as the Catering Coordinator at Station 20 West. I just started there about two months ago. I needed a change from a typical kitchen set up where you go to work, prep for evening service, do the service, clean up, go home and do it all over again the next day; Station 20 offers that change. The people there are diverse and amazing.

I have been cooking for about seven years now, and I have learned many skills in that time, but one thing I have really taken away from any job in the cooking world is patience. I don’t mean patience with people, I am very short on that, I mean patience with food. Food takes time; you have to know how the process works. Like if you are building a soup, there are many steps needed to achieve the final product. That is one of the most challenging things to teach new cooks. A lot of people want to rush the task because there is a lot to get done in a day, but with practice, cooking becomes second nature. I have worked under a lot of great Chef’s, who have taught me a lot. It hasn’t been an easy journey, but every step I have taken has been worth it.

With this new job, it is like turning over a new leaf. I am in charge of making sure the caterings go well and everything runs smooth. I also do the food ordering, I am always searching for local providers to work with; that is proving to be one of the most challenging tasks of this new job. That and people talk directly to me now, it doesn’t filter through the Chef. So if there is a problem, I am in charge of fixing it most times. The other day, our cooler that holds drinks in the front of the café broke so I had to figure out how to fix it. It was exhilarating and terrifying, but I managed to get the cooler running again.

What’s important to you?

Having alone time. Without it, I get socially exhausted and sassy. I am more of an introvert, but I enjoy going out with pals to shows and meeting new people. I’ve met some of the best people in the past two years.

What do you like most/least about Saskatoon?

I like the people most. It all started with Girls Rock Camp Saskatoon that has lead me to meet a lot of talented, amazing people from all backgrounds. Without a doubt what I like least about Saskatoon is no 24-hour pizza joints. Going to New York and being able to grab pizza so late at night was a dream.

What is your impression of Regina?

Interesting that this question is being asked. I am quick to dislike Regina, but only because of my past experiences there. I have heard a lot of good about Regina lately, so I think I need to give the city another chance and go explore it a little more.

How do you survive the winters?

Typically I have always worked so much during the winter season that I tend not to notice the world is still revolving outside the restaurant. I like to think if I had more time in winter, I would be doing more outside activities. I love snowboarding, however I am quite laughable at it. My main mode of transportation is my feet, so I get to have a lot of long, interesting walks during the cold season.

From the Proust Questionnaire: When and where were you happiest?

I have moved around quite a bit in my life, so I tend not to get too attached to a house, or any furniture or inanimate objects. That being said, I had a moment a little while back where I was laying in my bed, with the window open, listening to the outside world. I could hear the cars passing and people scurrying, birds chirping, and I just felt at peace. I was comfortable, happy and calm.

Saskatoon, Treaty 6

Alasdair

(Photos/Gif by Inger Bonli, Intro by Olive Bestvater)

Alasdair is a francophone femme queer poet activist from Peterborough, Ontario. After moving to Saskatoon and collecting a bachelor’s degree in French Literature and Queer Theory, Alasdair pursued and promptly dropped out of graduate studies to devote himself fully to freelance poetry, magick, and the development of radical self-love strategies. Alasdair’s praxis is informed by a revolutionary softness. Leaving aside ideological Puritanism and the tendency to pass judgment, Alasdair moves tenderly through the lives of people around him, planting seeds and leaving pathways to informed, plant-based resistance. He will quietly untangle your messiest inconsistencies at the same time as he mixes you a potion for your headache and then send you on your way with a recipe for vegan shortbread, a piece of dark chocolate, and an answer to the string of questions that’s been tying you in knots for weeks. He loves chartreuse, dancing, glitter, and he always tips his servers very well. He is the best.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I feel like I’m always juggling a couple of projects. I’m recently back from representing Saskatoon at the Canadian Individual Poetry Slam, and I’ve just secured a spot on the Saskatoon slam team headed to Winnipeg for the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word in October. So I’ve been throwing myself pretty fully into collaborative writing with the team.

My most recent zine, Guided Meditations (available at Hazlewood Vintage) has been well received, so I’m doing some more work in that vein; bridging spirituality, poetry, and practical pragmatism. I’m working on a zine called Beauty Tips based on a series of facebook statuses aimed at re-imagining the paths we take to self-love. I’ve also got a rotating roster of full-length manuscripts and am really working at making at least one of them crystallize by the end of this summer.

In terms of community, I sit on the board of Les Éditions de la Nouvelle Plume, the province’s only French-language publishing house, and co-host CFCR’s French music program (Couleurs Café, Saturdays 7:00-8:30 p.m.). Building a community based on a shared language can be pretty tough; it’s easy to suffer erasure as an “invisible minority,” so I try to put as much time into supporting and promoting the cultural group that birthed my creative expression.

KC: What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What’s challenging?

This is a bit of a sticky one for me. I’m trying something this summer where I fully embrace my communities and see if there’s a wide enough web of appreciation for the art I make to support myself – at least partially. I practice aromatherapy and am a self-taught perfumer, I read tarot (a skill I owe to my mother) and rent my words out to anyone interested. While this freedom is very special, it’s pretty terrifying to rely so heavily on the support of a network of people, many of whom start out as total strangers. That said, I really appreciate how this work has allowed me to be embraced by people across Saskatoon’s various communities who are as passionate about my work as I am. Trust is a beautiful thing in my opinion, and my recent practice has been a real lesson in that.

KC: What’s important to you?

Softness is a word I feel encompasses everything I believe in on an ideological level, but it’s something I think people often mistake for passivity. Mary Oliver wrote a beautiful line in her poem “Evidence” that sums it up perfectly for me: “I believe in kindness. Also in mischief. Also in singing, especially when singing is not necessarily prescribed.” Softness is gentle, quiet, delicate, accepting, and loving, but in a disruptive way. To be a part of a system that insists we harden ourselves against, well, our selves is a fucking lot to deal with, but by saying “look, I’m going to make my self out of love” directly contradicts the paradigm in which we are only tools for an oppressive, racist, patriarchal, capitalist institution.

KC: What do you like most/least about Saskatoon?

The river will always be my number one, but other than that, I’ve found the incredibly tight knit communities to be quite incredible. That said, the closeness that’s bred by those sorts of connections can sometimes become pretty toxic and exclusionary which is not very nice to deal with. I feel as though I’m only starting to dip my toes into Saskatoon’s arts’ community because it’s seemed closed to the other communities I operate within. Francophones are often dismissed because our work is “inaccessible” and spoken word artists/poets are the butts of a lot of jokes, even within artist circles.

KC: What is your impression of Regina?

The few times I’ve been to Regina have been for events related to the fransaskois community (Radio-Canada has its provincial hub in Regina) – I love any place that allows for a ton of francophones to lump together. Aside from that, the arts scene seems to be thriving; I was there for the Cathedral Arts Festival this year and was blown away.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

I’m actually a big fan of the winters in Saskatchewan. Where I grew up, it doesn’t get quite as cold, but it stays very humid, which makes it feel like the winter is creeping into your bones. While the dryness in SK does a number on my skin, it’s nothing a thick coat of shea butter can’t handle. Really, I would never speak ill of a season with so much operable napping time.

From the Proust Questionnaire: What is your motto?

Something my beautiful friend Emily once said in passing that I’ve picked up as a personal edict is “not my fault, just my problem.” I have the habit of placing a lot of blame on myself, so when bad things happen it’s nice to be able to say that, no, this didn’t “happen for a reason,” but it’s still my job to take care of it.

Links:

Twitter + Instagram: @JustAlasdair Patreon.com/JustAlasdair

Facebook.com/JustAlasdair

[email protected] to book a tarot reading, bespoke perfume consultation, or to send a love letter.

Regina, Treaty 4

Jennifer Eisler

(Photo by Aidan Morgan, Intro by Jennifer Sparrowhawk)

She is fun and funny and kind. She is smart and shrewd and resourceful. She is incredibly dedicated to her clients. She likes witchy things and talks with her hands.

I met Jen on the set of a movie in the summer of 2007. We were both trainees. She was the Continuity trainee, I was the Director’s Observer. One of our first conversations was late one night on location at a farm. We were the only ones in the producers’ tent and she was describing her dream job to me “I want to be a motif specialist [a motif is a re-occurring visual element in a film that supports the theme, and is always invented by the director] — a motif-ist. I just want to come in and be like ‘BAM, BAM, BAM - there’s your motif! See ya. Jen OUT!’". Jen has a way of laughing at herself that makes you laugh too. And if you’ve been working 12-14 hour days for quite a few days, both of you might laugh into hysterics, and you might fall in love.

Aside from film, Jen’s other love is music. She worked in a music store throughout school and even fronted a rock band before moving to Toronto to learn the ins and outs of music publicity, skills she has since brought back to SK.

It has been an honour to know Jenny and to see her work hard to grow stronger in every way possible over the years. And to see her achieve her dreams…and then realize she doesn’t like the reality of those dreams so much, and then watch as she achieves new, more fulfilling ones.

It is my pleasure to introduce to you, my friend, Jen…

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I’ve been fortunate this year to be involved in publicity campaigns with national clients in various music genres. I’m currently wrapping up a campaign with Manitoba roots/country artist, Quinton Blair, and in the middle of working albums for Calgary-based label, Chronograph Records and Montreal-based label, Justin Time. I’m also involved with a new label out of Toronto, Really Records, as their in-house publicist.

Offering consulting services, especially to Saskatchewan artists, is ongoing and always rewarding. My mandate is to provide valuable DIY advice and guidance.

I’m also turning my focus to marketing and creative development for my business. I’ll be taking the summer months and into the fall to work on creating valuable “how to” content and offerings, spruce up my blog series and website, and develop a more sustainable long term business plan. The wheels are turning, uncertainty is looming, and the 2AM (lying in bed awake when suddenly a brilliant idea strikes) emails to myself are many.

KC: What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What’s challenging?

My day job is owning and operating my publicity business. I love it. It’s by far the best role I’ve ever had, and I’ve had a lot of jobs in the creative industries both here, and in Toronto. The ability to create and build on my terms, focus on my goals, and work with artists who I want to work with is beyond rewarding. The challenges that come up are also welcomed. I’ve learned a lot about myself, how I like to work, what I want to create, and where I’d like to focus my skills. Of course making my own hours, and the ability to do national work from home (or any location I choose) is part of the greatness too. I enjoy maintaining relationships with national media and colleagues, as well as working with new artists in being a part of releasing their creative endeavours to the media/the world.

Running a business alone has its challenges; you’re the only one to do the work and meet the deadlines. Another challenge is balancing my own ongoing business marketing and development, administration, and training vs. working on client’s projects. The time is divided 30% / 70% and it can be a struggle.

KC: What’s important to you?

My body. More than ever. Moving it, being still with it, honouring it, accepting it as it is.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

Living in Regina the majority of my life I often desperately crave anonymity. That’s one of the major things I miss about living in Toronto. At the same time the sense of community is comforting, and the city is home to many of my favourite people. The encouragement I receive from family and friends, and the constant support from artists and colleagues in the creative industries has been paramount. Honestly, I’m not sure I could have created or made the necessary personal “space” for my business if it wasn’t for being back in Regina.

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

I like the city. I like the people. I like the venues, the bands. I like the change of scenery.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

Working from home, that does help.

From the Proust questionnaire: What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

For me, misery is denying and struggling against what IS. I’ve had many opportunities to practice and lean into this over the last few years, since choosing to move back to Regina from Toronto. As a result, I am more open and tuned in with myself, what is important to me, and how I want to live and work in the world.

Links:

Here’s my website: www.jeneisler.com - check out the blog, sign up for my monthly newsletter. Thanks!

Saskatoon, Treaty 6

Danielle Altrogge

(Photo by Stephen Rutherford, tail by Deej Siminoff, Intro by Shanda Stefanson)

Danielle is a spoken word queen. She is an extraordinary poet. She is a two-time member of the Saskatoon Slam Team, and a Canadian Festival of Spoken Word champion. She is the Executive Director of Saskatoon’s weekly poetry show, Tonight it’s Poetry. She is a member of the SAT Award nominated collaboration that wrote Our Four Walls, a hybrid theatre/poetry show. She is working toward her MFA in Creative Writing. The list of her accomplishments and credentials could go on and on, because she’s just that bad-ass.

But more importantly, she is a wonderful human and an amazing friend. Her compassion and empathy are inspiring, matched only by her passion and willingness to fight for what’s right. She uses her roll as an artist and an arts organizer to break down boundaries, and give voice to those who often go unheard. Her optimism is unbreakable, her heart is un-containable, and her loveliness is indisputable.

Danielle’s influence on my growth as an artist and her willingness to stand by me as a friend has been such an amazing gift over the last few years that I’ve been getting to know her. And even though she’s 10 years younger than me, I want to be just like her when I grow up.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

My most pressing project is preparation for my upcoming poetry tour. I’ll be performing at nine different spoken word poetry shows across Ontario and in Montreal. I’m finishing up a self-released chapbook and a line of lipsticks to take on tour with me.

I’m also currently working on a full-length one-woman performance piece that looks at tarot cards and the questions we ask these decks and the people that read them. I want to use the project to read the audience as well as myself. It’ll be my biggest project to date and I’m excited to see how it takes shape over the next year.

KC: What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What’s challenging?

I’m the kind of person who works a lot of smaller jobs instead of one full-time gig. I’m a pharmacy technician, do social media and website work for the Interdisciplinary Centre for Culture and Creativity at the U of S, am the Executive Director of Tonight it’s Poetry, and am currently working on my MFA in Writing at the U of S. I like how different all of these jobs are- I’m never bored! But, it’s hard for me to leave work at work since I’m working from home for a number of these projects. I’m trying to get better at setting specific work hours where I’ll answer emails and have other times where I take myself off of the clock. Also, Netflix can be very tempting when you have the ability to do your work from your bed.

KC: What’s important to you?

Community is important to me. When I first discovered Tonight it’s Poetry, I felt this sense of relief that there were other people out there that I could relate to. I have been so fortunate to find a home within that group of artists.

Feminism is also important to me. It’s the continuous thread that ties together all of my work, creatively and academically.

KC: What do you like most/least about Saskatoon?

The river is one of the things I like the most about Saskatoon. Some of my favourite ways to spend time are reading books in rotary park, or sitting on the rocks near the Broadway bridge, or making first dates go for a walk along the Meewasin Valley trail. I like the size -being able to get almost anywhere in less that 15 minutes is amazing. It’s a beautiful place to call home.

My biggest complaint about Saskatoon is that I wish it were less car-centric. It’s pretty hard to get around, especially in the winter without access to a vehicle. I hope that my city can adapt and provide more services geared towards public transit, pedestrians, and cyclists.

KC: What is your impression of Regina?

A positive one. I have family that lives there so most of my experience in the city has involved bbq’s and weddings and going to Rider games with my dad. The folks who run Regina Word Up, Regina’s spoken word organization know how to put on a really good show. There are some really great people in Regina.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

By trying not to hermit through them. I find the more time I spend outside, the less negatively the weather affects me. I’m a big fan of building snow-people and making snow angels and of snow-ball fights, but I also just drink a lot of tea and write a lot of words about how crisp the air gets. I don’t hate winter here. There’s this sense of collective camaraderie and survival that helps build that sense of community I mentioned earlier.

(From the Proust Questionnaire: What words or phrases do you most overuse?

I’m so bad for overusing words and phrases. Especially, “touché”, “you reach that shining star!,” “go for gold!” I’m also in a habit right now of referring to my friends as “dear one.” I’m sure there are some major ones that I’ve missed and they’ve definitely changed and evolved over the years. I just find words that fit and I can’t help but reuse them! It’s economical I guess?

Links:

http://thenightisneverblackinthecity.blogspot.ca

https://twitter.com/TroggleD

Regina, Treaty 4

Rolli

(Photo by Aidan Morgan, Intro by Darryl Schmidt)

I met Rolli through a mutual friend, though I’d seen him at a local coffeehouse quite a few times—a moody-looking guy downing coffee like water and pounding away on a laptop. Since then, I’ve hardly ever seen him without a coffee cup, or when he isn’t working on something. He lives and breathes creativity.Whether it’s a story, poem or drawing, his style is instantly recognizable and memorable, which can be said for all too few people, these days. He’s so prolific, too, that I’m still not sure when he finds the time to sleep (though with all that coffee, it’s possible he doesn’t). He’s strange and funny and kind and a one-of-a-kind original. He’s Rolli.

KC: Do you like cats? If so, why? If not, why not?

Yes! I'm a crazed, cat-natured person, and prefer my own kind.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

Well, there’s The Walrus Project—or there was. The Walrus hired me to write a short story and draw a cartoon every week for their website, for one year. I started last October. But they told me to scram last week, without explanation. Not sure what’s going on over there. But I’m proud of the work I did.

There’s also Take Rolli to Work Day. I go to work with people and see what their day-to-day life is like, what makes them tick. It’s great. I usually get free coffee. Busy, too, spreading the word about my new middle grade novel, Kabungo, about a cavegirl who lives on Main Street. Groundwood published that in April. They’re great.

KC: What’s your day job? What do you like about it? What’s challenging?

My day job is being creative. Lots of freelancing. Writing, illustrations, tons of cartoons. It’s fun. It’s terrifying.

KC: What’s important to you?

Good, strong, hot coffee.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

Most: the Cathedral district, where I live. You can’t walk ten steps without meeting someone interesting. There’s a lot of barefoot people. Artisans. Drunks.

Least: if there’s a writing community of any kind in Regina, it’s doing a super job of hiding. There’s a handful of writers but no community. They’re not too friendly here. A writer attacked me in the park, once.

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

I’ve met tons of friendly writers from Saskatoon! There’s a sense of community there. It’s great to see, even from a distance. They have a great indie bookstore there, McNally Robinson. There’s nothing like that in Regina.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

I just stay in my coffee cup until the snow melts.

KC: (From the Proust Questionnaire) What is it that you most dislike?

Decaf.

Links: Website; Twitter

Regina, Treaty 4

Risa Payant

(Photo by Eagleclaw Thom, Intro by Terri Fidelak)

The instant I first set eyes and ears on Risa, I was wildly enamoured. She’s a brainy, articulate babe who rocks lipstick like an intergalactic sex bomb. Even before we became co-conspirators and kindred pals, I recognized the essence of her: Risa Payant is a smouldering ember. Her work in arts administration is a support to our entire community; it is the quiet heat that nurtures an ecosystem.

As I’ve come to know her, I’ve learned that Risa possesses a limitless desire to contribute, and this trait is an accurate gauge of her ardent heart. She’s a woman of vision and spark, determined to shake down our arts scene and help us to build new creative mountains from pocket lint and change. Real change. She helps to reimagine this place and everyone’s place in it. She stretches boundaries with her unwavering support, respectful honesty, and bountiful kindness. She sets a high standard for community engagement. She takes no shit. These are a few of the many things that are Risa: arts advocate, dedicated patron, heart kindler, grant writer, proud mama, rich conversationalist, social activist, inspiring friend, adventurer, confidante, hard worker, community builder, rabble rouser, Fada dancer, belly laugher, and the list goes on. Risa is fierceness in heels with a smile that springs delight. Confident, collected, and eternally stylish, she’s an independent broad who keeps the home fires burning.

There’s a witchiness to Risa and her astonishing capability, and after all, witches are one of the ancient keepers of fire. Anyone in her radius knows that she is everywhere at once, wielding her super powers. These do not stem from the usual sources of money and status, but rather from her belief in the incendiary potential of art and ideas. And so she holds space for all of our potential as she goes about transforming our community, often unseen. Like no other, she offers that welcome kind of glow that will toast your marshmallow to perfection.

KC: What kinds of projects are you involved in right now?

I’m on the board of Lumsden Beach Camp. It occupied my summers from 1986 to 2001 so it was a huge part of my childhood. Right now, most of my attention is going towards helping develop the second year of our Artist-in-Residence program. There’s huge potential for a communion between creative practice, the natural world, and building community. Last summer visual artists Laura Hale and Terri Fidelak lived and worked on site for two months. This summer we’ve opened the format to allow for others to come onboard for short-term workshops. We’re interested in exploring how camp can support opportunities for collaboration between artists. We’re also hoping to pilot engagement with performing artists. This project has been exciting because it’s given me an opportunity to strengthen a mash up between two worlds that are extremely important to me. It’s pretty dreamy to see campers, staff, and volunteers have experiences with professional artists as part of regular programming, while artists are being influenced by the camp community and landscape.

I sit on the board of the Queen City Hub. The organization started as a co-working space, but last summer we zeroed in our mandate to be a point of connection for Regina change-makers. This meant leaving a fixed location in favour of creating programming that could be agile in responding to the desires of citizens and supporters. Right now we’re focussing on involvement in the upcoming municipal election. This is something I’m new to, but I’m looking forward to being a part of a team dedicated to facilitating dialogue and helping people get the access they need to make informed decisions. We’re also engaged in an ongoing discussion about, broadly, how to create welcoming spaces. These has led us through an exploration of urban planning, gentrification, the impacts of colonialism and poverty, Truth and Reconciliation, and more. It’s inspiring to feel as if we’re getting somewhere in terms of helping to nudge Regina in a more progressive direction.

I’m currently gearing up for the Regina Folk Festival. This summer will be my sixth as a Team Leader, running the beer gardens and beverage services with a team of fifty-ish volunteers. I was on staff for the festival in 2010 and fell in love with the team. When I moved on from my paid gig, I knew I wanted to do whatever I could to support the organization. The weekend is about so much more than the music. The event ends up being a confluence of so many varied and amazing aspects of Regina. I also volunteer as an Educator with Planned Parenthood Regina. Educators work with a broad sector of the community through everything from schools to programs like the Street Worker’s Advocacy Project (SWAP). Sexual agency is so important and I love talking to folks about topics ranging from the nuts and bolts of bodies, birth control, and STIs to things like sexuality, healthy relationships, and consent.

Last fall I dipped my toe into the freelance world. I’ve been labeling what I do “professional services for artists,” meaning I’m open to supporting whatever administrative work becomes cumbersome to creation. Practically this has meant assisting with grant applications, residency, exhibition, and project proposals, and refining Artist CVs. I feel really grateful when artists trust me to express their vision. It’s fulfilling to engage someone in a conversation about their work and then turn that into a professional piece of writing. Beyond that, I’ve been doing a lot of dreaming with friends and colleagues. I’m wrestling with drawing lines around what projects may be a fit in my day job and which are better done independently. I’m particularly excited about the potential in an idea I dreamed up with photographer and pal, Michael Bell. It’ll be my first foray into creating something of my own in almost ten years, so it’s both thrilling and terrifying to consider.

In my amateur creative life, I’ve been preparing to perform in my first year end show with FadaDance. I joined the beginner adult class in the fall after years of resisting. I’d sit every spring with the registration page open and then chicken out at the last minute. The thought of performing is incredibly terrifying for me, but the class has become a highlight of my week. I also spent much of the winter teaching myself embroidery. I’ve become obsessive about creating patterns and experimenting with stitches. Content wise, I seem to have found my niche in tacos and profanity. I’m obviously very mature.

KC: What's your day job? What do you like about it? What's challenging?

I’m the Executive Director at Common Weal Community Arts. We’re a provincial arts organization that links professional artists with communities to promote social change and cultural identity through creative expression. I’d been looking to make the leap to a leadership role when the job was posted last summer. It’s really rewarding to be at the helm of an organization that values similar things to myself: socially-engaged practice, ardent advocacy, social justice, supporting the agency of diverse voices, commitment to collaboration, multidisciplinary approaches, and a high degree of artistic merit. I’m lucky to work alongside our Artistic Directors, Gerry Ruecker and Judy McNaughton (in our southern and northern locations, respectively). They bring determination, thoughtfulness, and vision to developing relationships with partners and participants across the province. Last year alone, Common Weal collaborated with 27 artists, artisans, and elders and 46 partner organizations to bring participatory arts experiences to Saskatchewan people in nearly 40 communities. This year we have major projects underway in the Prince Albert Correctional Centre, English River First Nation (located in Patuanak and Beauval), newcomer welcome centres in multiple urban and rural locations province-wide, the Victoria Hospital mental health ward, Carmichael Outreach, and Regina elderly care homes.

Common Weal has been doing amazing work for over 20 years, but I worry that our impact goes largely unnoticed. Right now, I’m focussing on increasing our profile. We’ve recently partnered with Go Giraffe Go, a local writing and design firm, to undergo a comprehensive brand audit and research project. Long-term, this will lead to a comprehensive three-year communications plan. That’s pretty exciting stuff for a strategy nerd like me. I’m eager to work towards further locating us within national and international community arts movements. I’m seeking funding for the team to attend the International Community Arts Festival in Rotterdam next spring and on the lookout for opportunities to write about and present on our work across Canada.

Capacity is a major challenge in the non-profit arts world. As Executive Director I’m expected to be an expert in human resources, bookkeeping, policy-making, fund development, programming, marketing and communications, sector research, partnership growth, risk management, and managing a Board of Directors. It’s a lot to juggle. I’m trying to be patient with myself. I’ve spent much of the last ten-months getting my head wrapped around where the organization was at when I arrived. Next spring I’ll be writing multi-year grant applications to our core funders at the Saskatchewan Arts Board and Canada Council for the Arts. I’m genuinely excited for the opportunity to think of the organization in the long-term and sink my teeth into where we’ll go from here.

KC: What's important to you?

I have an urge to contribute. For me, that means committing significant time and energy to community building efforts that further grow our city. It’s important that I’m active in generating the types of action I want to see. We all have a responsibility to make a personal investment in the arts. The creative landscape of Saskatchewan is so vibrant, but it’s often woefully under supported. Outside of my professional capacity I’m committed to my roles as a volunteer, audience member, and patron. Everyone can support creation by seeking out opportunities to engage. Buy art by local artists and attend shows featuring bands you’ve never heard of and go to independent theatre productions. Invest in the things you know you’ll love and those things that are unknown or challenging. Big picture, it’s really about championing the contribution of people; their ideas and passions and potential. I think we could all use a little more of that. Not to mention the vital opportunity to see the world through a lens that differs from our own.

I tend to struggle with the legitimacy of my role in the arts ecology. There’s a dichotomy, for me, between creator and administrator. I revere creators and tend to view my own work as less integral or inspirational. In reality, the relationship between the two is interdependent. We need to recognize the distinct needs of arts administrators by building capacity and developing future leaders through dedicated mentorship and growth opportunities. There’s value in establishing a career in arts support roles. Grant writing may not be the sexiest part of the arts, but it’s important. Right?!

I’m constantly evolving in my relationship with myself as a parent. I work hard to recognize my daughters, Gaia and Ever, as individuals, independent from each other and from me. I try to cultivate curiosity and wildness in our home. There are so many different ways to be a mother. For me, it’s paramount that I don’t let myself be absorbed by the role. When I was pregnant I spent a lot of time dreaming about who I hoped my children would be. At some point I realised I wasn’t holding myself to the same high standards. Since I had no idea how to be a mother, I decided the best I could do would be to invest in my potential as a human being and hope to set an example. As a wee family of three, we’re hardly ever home. The girls are constantly being dragged to meetings and events. They get their clean clothes out of a pile on our basement floor and Skip the Dishes feeds us more than I do. I’ll never be much of a homemaker, but I hope that what we lack in domestic stability I make up for in new experiences and adventures. I want my daughters to see me as an individual who is diligently invested in the things that matter to me. In turn, it’s important that I create the space for them to figure out what contribution they’ll make some day.

Other things that are important to me (in no particular order): the Heritage community, hot sauce, big books, eyebrows, my yellow couch, and creating forgotten manifestos with kindreds over good food and drink.

KC: What do you like most/least about Regina?

I grew up in Rouleau and I left as soon as I was able, moving to England when I was 16. I spent over ten years intermittently traveling and studying in Vancouver. There was a point where I would have vigorously denied any possibility that I’d end up living in Regina, but I couldn’t be happier to be putting down roots here. At least once a day I feel completely overwhelmed with gratitude to be surrounded by this community. The wealth of creativity here is an endless source of inspiration. There’s a pervasive feeling that what’s most important is to make things better. Regina folks seem to have collaboration in their bones, which results in the lack of ego and ownership that contributes to sweeping community-building efforts. It’s a beautiful thing. I’ve always viewed Regina as a bit of an underdog. If Regina is an incubator for revolutionary practice, it’s because of the freedom that comes from being underestimated.

I have a love/hate relationship with how close the community is here. On the one hand, makes it impossible to burn bridges. It’s a wonderful gift to have to resolve conflict in ways that make it possible to continue living and working together. On the other hand, the introvert in me would relish more opportunities to be invisible. I’m also keenly aware that I live in a bubble filled with people who think a lot like me. There’s certainly a side to Regina that’s insidious and exclusionary.

KC: What is your impression of Saskatoon?

For me, the city is all of the amazing folks presenting exceptional arts programming in communities and schools. Before I started at the Saskatchewan Arts Board (in 2011) I’d only been to Saskatoon a handful of times. My role with the agency saw me visiting at least once a month. Organizations like Sum Theatre and PAVED Arts are doing really exciting work right now. And I think Saskatoon has the most enthusiastic educators I’ve ever met. I’m in awe of teachers like Monique Martin, Desiree Macauley, and Jennifer Gallays, who I’ve witnessed stretch themselves to bring the authentic arts experiences into the classroom.

As Saskatoon becomes familiar I find more and more excuses to visit. I’ll make the drive for live shows at The Broadway, Nuit Blanche YXE, shopping at Hardpressed, the Saskatchewan Jazz Festival and more. I don’t think Saskatoon has more going on than Regina, but it does feel as if the community is perhaps more supportive of what’s happening.

KC: How do you survive the winters?

I love the prairies, but my biggest pet peeve about living here is how often we complain about the weather. Does complaining make you warmer? It’s beyond me.

I lived without seasons for a long time and missed them terribly. I’m fairly intense so perhaps climate extremes suit my sensibilities. There’s a beauty to the cold. Aesthetically, there’s nothing quite like seeing the entire city sparkle after the first snowfall. I love the way it feels to come in from the cold and feel the tingle of thawing flesh and a rush of colour to my cheeks. I love eyelash icicles and skating in the middle of downtown and bundling up for long walks. I love watching people rush inside in a flurry of snow and slowly unwrap themselves, layer upon layer. Winter is such a dramatic sensory experience and ongoing juxtaposition between comfort and discomfort. I really revel in that tension.

So I guess I survive the winters by embracing them. Don’t you have to love it a little bit to keep living here?

From the Proust Questionnaire: What is your greatest fear?

Being trapped by circumstance. I have unending anxiety around the constraints of stability and permanence or letting myself need anybody or anything. I’m almost pathologically independant. I think it’s about choice and needing to believe I always have a choice. Like Jeannette Winterson, “I am domestic, but only if the door is open.” I need to believe that no matter how firmly I appear to be putting down roots -- relationships, my career, contractual obligations -- I could walk away tomorrow. I suppose this makes me sound flakey, but I’m not. Give me the illusion of boundless choice and freedom and I’m incredibly committed.

Links:

Common Weal Community Arts - http://commonweal.ca/

Lumsden Beach Camp - http://www.lumsdenbeachcamp.com/

Queen City Hub - http://queencityhub.ca/

Regina Folk Festival - http://www.reginafolkfestival.com/

Planned Parenthood Regina - http://www.plannedparenthoodregina.com/

FadaDance - http://www.fadadance.ca/

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