Welcome to Antigonight 2023
November 24 & 25
Hurricane Lee may have kept us from presenting the 14th Antigonight festival on Main Street in September, but all is not lost! Join us November 24 and 25 for the Antigonight pop-up festival during the Town’s Christmas on Main Street event.
Friday November 24, Nat Cann & Caitlin Wilson will present their project Our Neighbourhood at the Bistro of the library from 1pm-4pm. In the evening starting at 6pm, ACALA and Game Night can be found on Main Street near Church ; dancers Marite Kuus and April Beattie will be performing Hold me, hold you near 5 cents to $1 and Thunder Feather Youth Drumming Group from Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation will be on the Main stage at 6:15pm sharing traditional stories and drumming.
Nat Cann and Caitlin Wilson, Our Neighbourhood
Saturday November 25, Antigonight will be taking over the Community Room of the library from 1pm-4pm to present: L’Arche’s sock puppet making workshop Bring Your Own Sock; a greeting card workshop by Qi Cai; Tapestry of Tales a project from Arts Health Antigonish; Breaking the Silence (BTS) will present the Topacio Reynoso Pacheco Award winner; and two mural projects one a partnership with Arts Health Antigonish, the Town of Antigonish and artist Noella Murphy and one with ASAP and artist Andy Pumphrey.
Artists
Nat Cann & Caitlin Wilson - Our Neighbourhood
Our Neighborhood is an interactive workshop where participants will use stamps and ready-made templates to make their homes in the form of paper lanterns. Originally a foil to another project, The Neighborhood, each iteration of Our Neighborhood takes on new audiences, uses differing printmaking methods, and expands perspectives depending on the cooperating parties, locations and uncovered themes.
Nat Cann and Caitlin Wilson are print centric artists based in Moncton, New Brunswick, an Acadian colonial city which sits on the unceded territory of the Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) and Mi’kmaq Peoples.
Thunder Feather Youth Group
14 year old Michael Earl Lafford is an Indian Bay Drummer that started when he was 1. To date, he still drums with Indian Bay and family drum Lone Feather. At 13 Michael started a youth group called Thunder Feather. In just 1 year they have performed at gatherings and demonstrating at school functions throughout Cape Breton. The youngest singer is Adam Francis at 8 years old. He started leading songs when he was 7. Adam travels with Michael performing in different school and gatherings.
Instagram:
Marite Kuus and April Beattie - Hold me, hold you
Textile has always been a social art form. Hold me, hold you is a textile based exploration of interpersonal relationships that quietly float within our communities. A double ended backstrap loom serves as an apparatus for connection, whether it’s a refresher between family members, a reminder of old times between friends or a new discovery between strangers.
Marite Kuus (she/her) is an artist, writer and childcare worker based in Kjipuktuk/Halifax. Originally from Estonia, since moving to Nova Scotia in 2021 she has lived in Sydney, Hammonds Plains and Halifax. Through her work she continues to romanticise small towns and seek out indentations in the grass.
April Beattie is a textile artist working towards a BFA in Fashion & Textiles at NSCAD. She is a seamstress, a weaver and a knitter, drawing inspiration from high-visibility, pedestrianism and sustainability. Her practice focuses on repurposing materials to create wearable garments
ACALA - Games Night
Join us for an interactive game night as we solve the hangman's puzzle and play a night-long game of scrabble! This interactive instillation invites participants to contribute a word to the scrabble board throughout the night and keep the hang man safe.
The Antigonish County Adult Learning Association has been participating in Antigonight through literacy based projects since its inception. ACALA supports art in all of its iterations and encourages literacy through artistic expression, especially when it comes to theater, music, visual representation, poetry and creative writing. ACALA has not only participated in Antigonight, but has also engaged in a variety of arts based projects with Arts Health Antigonish to bring our learner’s stories to the stage.
L’Arche - Bring Your Own Sock
Come join us and create your own sock puppet! All supplies will be provided and there will be a mini theater to make your puppets come alive!
At Hearts & Hands, we do visual arts and crafts, performance art, and community outreach, both individually and collaboratively. We engage in our broader community by participating in artistic events, selling our art, and building relationships of mutuality with local artists. Hearts & Hands is also the connectivity we feel to each other when expressing ourselves, and the mutual transformation that occurs as people create and share with one another. Hearts & Hands provides an avenue for us to express our voice, vision and truth, and we invite others to join us!
L’Arche is an international organization where people with intellectual disabilities, and those who assist them, live together, work together and share many aspects of their lives.
Andy Pumphrey - Special Presentation - Mural
Come by and visit Andy to see her plans for a mural to commemorate Arts & Health Antigonish (AHA) for their 10th anniversary. You could even fill out a blade of grass that could become part of it. While visiting Andy, Play a game for small groups to create a community creature together, or have her show you how to make an origami frog that actually hops
Instagram: @ArtistAndyPump
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Noella Murphy - Special Presentation - Mural
Antigonish Culture Alive (ACA) in partnership with the Town of
Antigonish and the Town’s Community Enhancement Committee are excited to announce the selection of Noella Murphy’s painted work, Gathering with Queen Mary, as the 2023 official town mural. In recognition of Arts Health Antigonish (AHA!) celebrating their 10-year anniversary, this year’s theme celebrates the value of arts engagement for personal and community health.
Noella Murphy’s piece blends her botanical paintings with a still-life of ‘Queen
Mary’ a revered visual art teacher and advocate for arts throughout her 100+ years.
Mary is seen drawing with others, gathered around a table, visiting, sharing, and creating together.
¡Topacio Reynoso Presente!: The Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network (BTS)
Topacio Reynoso Pacheco was a young activist, leader, and artist from Mataquescuintla in southern Guatemala. She drew, painted, sang songs, played the guitar, and wrote poetry to engage other youth in the defence of their territory and rights. Topacio was a victim of the violence and repression experienced by many in Guatemala who raise their voices to defend the land. In 2014, at the age of 16, she was assassinated. Today her case remains in impunity but her legacy remains an inspiration to her family, community, and youth resisting the repression and violence of megaprojects. Since 2016, Breaking the Silence has offered the annual Topacio Reynoso Pacheco Award to youth groups in Guatemala who engage in creative resistance to defend their territory and use art for the protection of the environment. The 2023 winners will be announced on September 12th, and their work will have its Canadian premiere at Antigonight!
A Tapestry of Tales
Arts Health Antigonish is creating an exciting new radio show and podcast called A Tapestry of Tales. It will air on CJFX (98.9 XFM). Two storytellers, Laura Teasdale & Yannick Laplante are travelling across our region visiting seniors and collecting their favorite stories to play on the show. They will be searching for stories about: big turning points in life, inspiring mentors, beloved animals, surprising events, miracles we witnessed, hilarious moments, childhood hijinks and the supernatural among other fun topics!
Meet the Team
Carissa Ainslie, Iris Augustine and Clarissa Pasion make up this year's core coordination team, with big thanks to Amberlee Boulton and Addy Strickland who have joined as Co-Chairs of the festival!
Carissa Ainslie (she/her) is a Queer maker, community arts organizer and graduate of OCAD University’s Material Art and Design: Fibre program. A member of the Feminist Art Collective (FAC), she is also the founder of the Made by Feminists makers market, and was coordinator of the March 2020 Feminist Art Festival. This event showcased multidisciplinary work from over 75 Canadian and international artists in addition to three days of programming. It was through FAC that she realized her love of fostering creative community partnerships, and supporting artists by providing platforms for their work and development. She sat on the board of directors for East End Arts, a local arts service organization, where she witnessed the importance of community level access to, and support for, the arts. She currently sits on the board of Creative Pictou County as vice-chair.
Carissa returned home to Mi’kma’ki/Nova Scotia last year after twelve years away to start an artist residency and retreat space in Pictou County. This is her second year as the coordinator for Antigonight and she is excited to be a part of such an amazing community arts event once again!
Iris Augustine is a local Fine Artist with an interest in creating dream-like and mystical works, often using the tool of abstraction to express emotion, fantasy and her own mental landscape. Having been involved with Antigonight throughout her youth, she is excited to play a larger, more hands-on role and connect with and share the magic of art with people in the community.
Clarissa Pasion (she/her) is a fourth year Sociology and Fine Arts student at St Francis Xavier University. Originally from the small rural community of Brookfield, NS, she has been a creative soul since she was a child and is working towards developing her own unique style as an artist. She enjoys painting and sewing, but is always looking to challenge herself with something new. When she is not studying or practicing art, you can find her at the beach (even in the winter), or dancing to some live music with friends. Clarissa is so happy to be working with the awesome team of Antigonight this year!
Contact us at antigonightartfest@gmail.com
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