Creative Community Critique and Collaboration

Creative practice is something that we can’t do alone! We are always going to come up short on ideas, skills, confidence, connections etc. We need one another’s support to make creative practice sustainable.

I’ve really had to take community seriously in my move back to Vancouver. In Alberta I had a well established community, so it was discouraging to start again from scratch when I arrived back in Vancouver after six years away. Here are some of the steps I took in connecting with the arts community when I returned to Vancouver.

1. I found a studio. I knew that working around other artists was essential to maintaining my practice.
2. I applied for local things. One of the first projects I applied for upon returning to Vancouver was a performance series called Shooting Gallery. This performance art event connected me with other artists in the performance community who I still run into at events and volunteer with.
3. I got a job at an arts organization. I worked at the Vancouver Art Gallery for a year. This was an incredible experience because all of my colleagues were artists or people who cared deeply about art. And my job was to learn about art! Through this job I got to meet lots of important curators and artists including Takashi Murakami!
4. I reconnected with art alumni from undergrad. I tracked down people I had gone to school with and other alum who had graduated since to get connected with the community.
5. I started a crit group. Along with another friend I started a group that met to talk about art, give critiques, share rejection letters and drink whisky!
6. I joined a collective. I was invited to join the Open Book Arts Collective to create work for one of their exhibitions “Away.” The regular meetings and the goal of having an exhibition kept me working through a busy time when my creative work could’ve fallen to the wayside.
7. I got involved in collaborations. I’ve worked on a film “Summertime” with a filmmaker and dancer, an exhibition with Russell Leng, and a research-creation project with Josh and Erica. These collaborations challenge me to think in new ways and allow me to get inside someone else’s practice.