current work
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Fricot (2024) The dish called fricot is a well known soup throughout the Acadian diaspora, taking its particular iteration in every Acadian community yet constant across generations. It is an iconic comforting dish that evokes nostalgia for most Acadian people. “Fricot” presents to viewers re-imagined folklore and mythologies that embody Acadian culture. Set in a fabled forest, a fictional Acadian character is seen wandering along with a cast of 2D hand-painted animal marionettes. Traditional Acadian food preparation, language, and ancient customs are layered throughout this video. “Fricot” uses special lens distortion in order to induce a dreamy state and experiments with the combination of digital as well as analog Super 8 footage to enhance the whimsical and nostalgic ambience of the work. As the story unfolds, the Acadian character visits a raccoon, a porcupine and a grouse represented as marionettes. They are all identified by their Acadian namesakes « mascouèche, madouesse, perdrix ». Echoing the ancient customs of Chandeleur and Mi-Carême, the Acadian character is dressed in an eclectic mix of old clothing that hides their identity while collecting ingredients for a meal and singing the traditional “L’Escaouette" song. More specifically, the Acadian character is searching for ingredients to prepare their family’s fricot recipe: potatoes, carrots and turnip. Each animal neighbor leads the Acadian character to a food cache, contributing one of these ingredients before the Acadian returns to their forest pantry and begins to make a fricot.
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Tintamarre (2023) examines the historical link between Acadians and the Tantramar Marsh, highlighting their connection to the word Tintamarre. Tintamarre is at its root an Acadian (Chiac) word meaning clangour or din. In more recent history, it has become an Acadian tradition of parading in the streets making noise using homemade and improvised instruments as a symbolic voice affirming the strength and resilience of the Acadian identity, typically in celebration of National Acadian Day. In this work, I am expanding on the word “tintamarre”, exploring the complexities of its meaning through the history of the Tantramar Marsh and the Acadian connection to tidal areas. The Tantramar tidal salt marshes located near the town of Sackville, New-Brunswick, were originally named Tintamarre by the Acadian settlers in reference to a great noise. Migratory birds would traditionally use these marshes as a place to rest from their journey and feed. When they decided to move on, they would fly away altogether in thousands, creating a huge racket. Therefore came the name “Tintamarre”. The name was later changed to “Tantramar” by the English. This work draws poetic parallels between the ongoing decline of bird populations due to human related causes with the loss of the Acadian namesake referring to them. A reclamation of Tintamarre is performed in the salt marsh landscape by a fictional Acadian character with a symphony of homemade noisemakers. In the spirit of a Tintamarre parade, this video uses noise-making as an assertive voice highlighting this intertidal landscape as it intersects with the Acadian identity.
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À la valdrague (2023) An imagined folk tale depiction of this saying from old Acadian dialect, part of the Rêverie Acadienne project.
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Slaque ton haria! (2023) An imagined folk tale depiction of this saying from old Acadian dialect, part of the Rêverie Acadienne project.
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Hanger les hardes su la ligne (2023) An imagined folk tale depiction of this saying from old Acadian dialect, part of the Rêverie Acadienne project.
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Cotchiner (2023) An imagined folk tale depiction of this saying from old Acadian dialect, part of the Rêverie Acadienne project.
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GHOST WALKER (2022) An homage to the hardships of winter in the forest, this video follows the strange procession of a ghostly white figure, seemingly communicating to us through ritualistic actions.
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EDNA (2021) sets the stage to examine the process of grief through nostalgia. Amongst a warmly lit arrangement of objects, the artist paints a fragmented picture her late grandmother's identity through a display of her treasured and intimate items. Using performance, the artist highlights her own genealogical traces inherited from her grandmother by putting on her grandmother's clothing and jewellery and immersing herself into her objects.
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FESTOON (2020) Woodland inhabitants decide to decorate the remnants of an old dilapidated cabin by adorning it with colourful flagging tape. Festoon is a performative video piece created in the field. After hiking out to this remote spot in the forest, I use costume, improvisation and a special appearance from my dog Chaya to create an intuitive performance recorded through video.
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MOOSE CALL (2020) Moose are endangered in Nova Scotia. The artist attempts to call for moose using hunting techniques that imitate the bull moose's cry and antler rubs during mating season as a symbolic gesture inviting the moose back to the land. A bobblehead moose toy is playfully captured in the style of trail cam footage.
older work
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SNOW BLANKET (2020) measures the length across an unbroken field of snow using a roll of pink flagging tape.
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TRAIL MARKER (2019) depicts the artist marking her path in the woods using orange flagging tape.
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FREEWHEELIN' (2019) depicts the artist taking a joy ride between trees with an old tire found dumped in the forest.
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SEA GRASS (2017) is an experimental video engaging with the landscape of Kanaka Bay on Saysutshun Island, BC through a found washed-up section of astroturf. As the tide slowly rises, the video documents my attempt to carefully incorporate this piece of artificial grass into the landscape by “planting” it. I meticulously place handfuls of sand around the fabric edges protruding from the astroturf and gently pat and smooth the sand until the object has been fully incorporated into the beach. This small green rectangle of faux-nature pasted into the landscape resembles a doormat leading into the ocean.
*Filmed during my time participating in the Murmur Land Studios: Wanderlines field-school.
*Filmed during my time participating in the Murmur Land Studios: Wanderlines field-school.
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RED CARPET (2010) The landscape is presented to the viewer by rolling out the red carpet.
*Video produced while participating in the Full Tilt Artist Residency in McIvers, NL.
*Video produced while participating in the Full Tilt Artist Residency in McIvers, NL.
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WOODLAND (2017) is a quiet, meditative video remarking on the colours, textures and sounds of the forest.
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SHORELINE (2018) is a video collage documenting a walk around the shoreline of a small island.
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A Fool's Errand (excerpt) (2010) documents the journey of two travellers hitchhiking across the Gaspé peninsula in Quebec, lingering on the roadside non-spaces of the highway waiting for a ride and searching for tucked away spaces where they can pitch their tent for the night.
*This short-film was made with the help of Faucet Media Arts Centre and Strut Gallery's Summer Production Honorarium.
*This short-film was made with the help of Faucet Media Arts Centre and Strut Gallery's Summer Production Honorarium.
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Library Cards (excerpt) (2010) Artists examine discarded library card from the NSCAD University Library in order to find their old signatures from long ago.