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Arts

Illustrating new worlds with old objects

Saba Heravi's piece is comprised of small drawings, thread and fabric. Photo courtesy of Saba Heravi.

Introducing two artists from the first annual VAVxCUCCR residency

In celebration of the Concordia University Centre for Creative Reuse (CUCCR)’s first year of operation, the centre will host their first annual residency in collaboration with the VAV Gallery. Together, the VAV and CUCCR have selected seven undergraduate fine art student-artists who will be featured in an exhibition on March 22. The artists have been tasked with creating zero-waste artworks using CUCCR’s materials.

The Concordian will profile the artists-in-residence each week leading up to the birthday event. Last week’s issue featured Bianca Arroyo-Kreimes’ animation, Ballad for the Spirits, and Gabrielle Desrosiers’ sunset studies.

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Roxane Fiore has a DEC in graphic design from Ahuntsic College, and is now in her last year of painting and drawing at Concordia. She works primarily in drawing, but relies heavily on collage for inspiration and compositional components. Collage allows her to create new perspectives by enabling her to “access things that are beyond what I can invent,” Fiore explained.

Roxane Fiore sifted through magazines to find images suited to her vision.
Photo courtesy of Roxane Fiore.

While searching for images, Fiore looks for textures, colours and unrecognizable shapes among figurative imagery. She flips through magazines, tearing out and cutting up pieces that intrigue her. Then, she scans all she has collected in order to work with the images digitally.

“I have a large digital collection of random pieces that I can use and gather together, and there is a lot of chance happening in my work,” the artist revealed.

Fiore enjoys the element of surprise that comes with juxtaposing random images with each other. Once satisfied with the juxtaposition, the artist will add, remove and play with different features until she creates something balanced that catches her eye.

Sometimes, Fiore will take the individual collage pieces and make a manual assemblage to photograph. That process allows her to obtain shadows and create an interesting “trompe-l’oeil,” or illusion.

Usually Fiore creates large works, but for the CUCCR residency, she has adapted her process. “This time around, I was scanning through the material found at CUCCR with an idea of the type of imagery I was looking for,” Fiore said.

This project, titled Places I Have Never Been to; Things I Have Never Seen, is a series of small, square drawings measuring 7.5 inches, drawn in pastel and charcoal. “Their small size invites the viewer to search for details and experience the world through my eyes,” she said. This series illustrates her perception of the world. She is in a constant search for form, shapes, texture and colour. The pieces also exemplify how she crops images in her mind, focusing on the beauty within the everyday and the mundane.

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Saba Heravi was born in Iran and moved to Canada five years ago to continue her studies in architecture. Heravi has a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the Azad University of Mashhad in Iran, and received her master’s in architecture here at Concordia. However, she always wanted to study fine arts and become a “career artist.” Heravi is currently finishing her third year in studio arts at Concordia, with a major in drawing.

Her work revolves around the ideas of home, identity and memory. As an immigrant, the collision of cultures and identity is the artist’s daily reality. Heravi’s work approaches this broad subject in fragments, so she can make sense of what is going on.

“I try to tell intimate stories by utilizing objects, stories and photographs,” Heravi explained. “In my work, objects and belongings become as important as the subject to expose the narrative. They are an integral part of my narrative.”

Heravi creates pocket worlds for the many different versions of herself. Photo courtesy of Saba Heravi.

Recently, she has been working on drawings of little worlds. The population of these worlds consist of women and young girls, all representative of herself. The artist’s characters are calmly engaged in strange activities and poses in relation to their surroundings. For example, some may be doing yoga, and some may be dropping or breaking things on purpose.
Initially, Heravi planned to use drawing as the main medium for the residency project. However, after exploring CUCCR’s depot, she realized drawing alone wouldn’t convey the message she was aiming for. “I decided to mainly use objects from CUCCR, and drawing as a secondary tool. This way, CUCCR’s recycled material would play the leading role in my project,” Heravi said.

The artist used a lot of stationary materials, fabric and string to accompany her drawings, as well as some hardware, like screws and bolts, to assist with the installation process.

“The objects vary, which I think is whats makes this projects challenging. You don’t necessarily find the objects you had in mind, and you will end up using something you had never thought of,” Heravi explained. At CUCCR, this very moment Heravi describes is referred to as “CUCCR magic.”

Mark your calendars for CUCCR’s birthday at the VAV Gallery on March 22 at 6 p.m. Stay tuned for next week’s profiles of student-artists Gabrielle Mulholland, Laura Douglas and Mikaela Kautzky.

Feature photo courtesy of Saba Heravi

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Arts

Cycles, transitions and reanimating materiality

Photo courtesy of Bianca Arroyo-Kreimes.

Introducing two artists from the first annual VAVxCUCCR residency

In celebration of the Concordia University Centre for Creative Reuse (CUCCR)’s first year of operation, the centre will host their first annual residency in collaboration with the VAV Gallery. Together, the VAV and CUCCR have selected seven undergraduate fine art student-artists who will be featured in an exhibition on March 22. The artists have been tasked with creating zero-waste artworks using CUCCR’s material.

The Concordian will profile the artists-in-residence each week leading up to the birthday event.

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Bianca Arroyo-Kreimes moved to Montreal from Toronto three years ago to pursue her studies in animation. Arroyo-Kreimes is an experienced digital artist and is currently in her third year in animation.

“I try to see my art as a way to explore the many ideas I have going on in my head,” she said. “It’s a way of resolving them, I guess.” Most of her past work focuses on mythology, humanity and identity. Arroyo-Kreimes enjoys experimenting with under-camera animation methods, such as stop-motion.

Her work, Ballad for the Spirits, is a collection of one-minute video loops that address ideas of karma, the afterlife and recycling. Using a great mass of odds and ends like buttons, metal knobs and string from CUCCR, Arroyo-Kreimes has given these seemingly random objects a new purpose, a new shape, body and voice.

“The objects are now awakened and alive again in the bardo [a state between death and rebirth], as objects pass from one hand to another similarly to the way karma works,” she said.

The way she sees it, karma, rejuvenation and the recycling of objects are linked and belong within the same imaginary venn-diagram.

Ballad for the Spirits is a collection of one-minute video loops that address ideas of karma, the afterlife and recycling. Photo courtesy of Bianca Arroyo-Kreimes.

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Gabrielle Desrosiers completed a DEC in set and costume design at the École de théâtre de St-Hyacinthe in 2007, and began her BFA in studio arts at Concordia in 2014.
The foundation of Desrosiers’ work lies in her travel experiences. Last year, she spent a semester abroad at the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem, Israel.
Desrosiers is a multidisciplinary artist, focusing on performance art and installation, combining various elements and mediums. For the residency, she is presenting part of a research-based project. She is fascinated by the gradient colours of the sunset and twilight period right before nightfall. Currently untitled, Desrosiers’ installation questions the metaphysical and psychological effects, reactions and suggestions of this

Desrosiers’ piece is based on the gradient of colours found in the sky during sunsets and twilight. Photo courtesy of Gabrielle Desrosiers.

natural, observable phenomenon.

“I paint gradient colours of the sky and sunset on a flat surface, which is similar to the frontal position our body takes to look at it,” Desrosiers said. “But, in fact, the sky is all around. The sky is not a surface; it is an intangible, three-dimensional thing.”

She explained that her goal is to recreate the gradie

nt motif on a structure by reconstructing the two-dimensional surface and transforming it into an engaging, three-dimensional experience.
“I think that the verb ‘to experience’ is really important here,” Desrosiers said. She reflects on the twilight period as a symbol of ending and beginning. “It’s a transition,” she said. “A moment of time sort of suspended […] It is the end of something, and the beginning of something else. It’s a cycle.”

Desrosiers selected material from CUCCR that seemed interesting in connection with her research. She recalled spending large amounts of time in the depot, which led her to be inspired by the textures and patterns, or materiality of the objects. Desrosiers’ installation uses large sheets of paper, found objects, latex paint and a kiosque tent, all courtesy of CUCCR.
The artist said she is glad to be part of the CUCCR residency, as its zero-waste goals are similar to her own. She reuses her own material and often re-integrates them into different projects. “I feel like there is no complete finality in each of my projects,” Desrosiers said. “They can continue to evolve or merge [with others].”

Mark your calendars for CUCCR’s birthday at the VAV Gallery on March 22 at 5 p.m. Stay tuned for next week’s profiles on student-artists Roxane Fiore and Saba Heravi. Follow the Concordia University Centre for Creative Reuse on Facebook and Instagram @cuccr.

Photos courtesy of the artists.

Categories
Arts

It’s a matter of time and place

What do impressionist-inspired paintings, sculptural pieces about political language and a film exploring cultural identity have in common? They’re all featured at the FOFA Gallery’s ongoing exhibition, Matter of Place.

Matter of Place is this year’s edition of an annual undergraduate exhibition which aims to represent the diverse art practices and research interests of students in Concordia’s Faculty of Fine Arts. This year, the mediums used in the exhibition vary greatly, from paintings, photography and ceramics to videos, textiles and audio art.

In addition—as is the case every year—students from several other departments contributed their talents to the exhibition. Concordia professor Angélique Willkie’s contemporary dance class was invited to participate by choreographing performances inspired by the exhibition’s artworks, and a number of art history students were tasked with writing essays about each piece in  Matter of Place. These essays have been published in a catalogue created by Concordia design students, which is available to view and purchase at the gallery. The exhibition’s interdisciplinary approach welcomes the viewer into an immersive and multifaceted experience.

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Florence Yee studies painting and drawing, which she described as more traditional fields of art. Her installation at the exhibition, This is Not Photorealism, is a collection of seven paintings hung together salon-style in the vitrine of the FOFA. Most of her paintings reference Claude Monet, a 19th century French impressionist artist who painted water lilies he imported from Japan. Monet even bought land in the French countryside so he could build a large, Japanese-style garden and paint the flowers in their quasi-natural habitat.

“I always liked Monet’s paintings as a child,” Yee said. “As I grew older, I realized that many people associated me with water lilies because I’m an Asian woman and I’m sweet like a lotus flower. Sometimes, it can be a good association, and other times, it can feel like a stereotype.” Yee said she was interested in how these Japanese symbols came to represent French nationalism. She reproduced original Monet paintings to look like blurry photos taken by tourists, including a timestamp at the bottom to indicate when she made each piece.

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Chris Mendoza is a third-year studio arts major with a minor in art education. His sculpture and performance pieces were inspired by the 2016 American presidential election. Mendoza said he finds political language fascinating.

“I was just really interested in language and how it affects the way we perceive the world around us,” he said. “The performance that I submitted was a bit of an exploration of that.”

According to Mendoza, the sculpture is elevated by his accompanying performance. The objects of his sculpture are arranged in a certain configuration, and his performance adds meaning or use to the objects.

Given that such a small number of students are chosen to participate in this exhibition, Mendoza said he feels it is definitely an accomplishment to have his work included.

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Although one of Kevin Jung-Hoo Park’s latest films was selected for the exhibition, the piece, titled Letter(s) from a Gapping Zone, is unfinished.

“It started out with following my father’s oldest memory—when he went up to the mountain with his father to bury his one-year-old sister,” the film production student explained. The film has since evolved into “an autobiographical fiction of a filmmaker who fails to find home.”

For the purpose of the film, Park tried to pinpoint the exact location in South Korea where his aunt was buried. This search was also done in the hopes of reconnecting with his roots, because Park said he has always struggled with his Canadian identity.

While editing the footage, Park said he realized he was just hurting himself by delving into his family’s past. The film takes place in the village where his grandmother lives and where his father was born, yet Park said he felt like an intruder. Since the villagers aren’t used to being filmed or photographed, they were constantly staring at Park while he worked.

Eventually, Park said, he hopes to develop Letter(s) from a Gapping Zone into a longer documentary piece by adding voice-over narration about his experience making the film.

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Camille Lescarbeau’s piece, titled Doux Labeur (2017), is comprised of a hand-typed book and a tape recording. Photo by Kirubel Mehari.

Born in Gatineau, Camille Lescarbeau moved to Montreal five years ago. She studies art history and studio arts at Concordia, but is currently travelling in Iceland. Her contribution to the Matter of Place exhibition is a hand-typed book on a shelf with a tape recording. The piece, tiled Doux Labeur, was created last year in her Art X class, a course that emphasizes “critical and conceptual thinking over medium-specific creation,” according to the university website.

When asked what inspires her to make art, Lescarbeau said it is often her creative friends. “I was a dance teacher in high school, so I have been surrounded by people who dance and do music. Many of my friends write poetry, so their writing also inspires me.”

Matter of Place runs until Feb. 23 at the FOFA Gallery in Concordia’s EV building. The gallery is open Monday to Friday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The performance evenings run until Feb. 8, each starting at 5 p.m. Entry is free. More information can be found in the event section of the Concordia website.

Feature photo by Kirubel Mehari

Categories
Arts

Sharing stories of family and cultural identity

The Toronto-born filmmaker has received three awards from TIFF. Photo by Charles Duquet.

Concordia student Carol Nguyen shows self-discovery and reflection in captivating films

Carol Nguyen is the director, writer and editor of eight short films—she is also 19 years old. The undergraduate student at the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema found success at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) as a three-time winner of the Jump Cuts award for young filmmakers in 2014, 2015 and 2016. Nguyen is also an ambassador of the Share

Her Journey campaign, a TIFF initiative to raise awareness about gender equality in film. Additionally, she attended the 2018 Sundance Film Festival as an Ignite fellow to establish and develop connections in the film industry.

The common thread among the Toronto-born filmmaker’s notable works, like How Do You Pronounce Pho? (2014), This Home is Not Empty (2015), and recently, Every Grain of Rice (2017), is her use of distinct aesthetic forms and voiceover presences.

Born from personal struggles and understandings, the films don’t adhere to traditional documentary mediums, varying in their use of live action, animation, archives and miniatures. Nguyen’s work plays with the way we perceive reality and embraces creative techniques that are truthful to the filmmaker’s stories. She is a committed filmmaker and returns to consistent themes throughout her body of work.

As a child who grew up in a hybrid Vietnamese-Canadian household, Nguyen’s cultural identity is a prominent feature of her films. In one of her first shorts, How Do You Pronounce Pho?, she explores this hybridity. Told from her perspective as a teenager, the film shows Nguyen as she realizes the cultural differences between her school peers and herself. “Food was a metaphor for me trying to blend into another culture,” the filmmaker explained. “When you are young, you don’t think about complex ideas like that, and it comes out in the most simple things, like your school lunches and comments, as microaggressions.”

Nguyen’s film, Every Grain of Rice (2017), explores the relationship between food and cultural assimilation.

In this work, Nguyen shows her interest in the topic of hybrid culture. Her narration describes her experience tasting “culturally unstable” Western concepts of ethnic cuisine versus authentic Vietnamese meals cooked by her mother. The film empowers the candid young voice while still considering it in the process of learning about cultural hybridity.

How Do You Pronounce Pho? reflects on the process of learning not to limit ourselves to certain groups and languages. For Nguyen, it’s important to interact, collaborate and share ideas with others in a multicultural society. “Not to do so would mean missing enriching and impending stories and experiences,” she said.

As beautiful as hybrid culture can be, it can also be frightening. Three years after making How Do You Pronounce Pho?, Nguyen explored her fears in Every Grain of Rice, a film that delves into the relationship between food and cultural assimilation. She addressed the cultural assimilation that follows each generation. While emotionally attached to some of her parents’ Vietnamese traditions, the young filmmaker doesn’t substantially continue them, but holds the last tie with Vietnamese culture in her family.

“When my parents die, everything that goes along with my Vietnamese culture will die with them,” Nguyen said. “I’m not going to carry the recipes and the stories that they have.”

Thinking of topics for her films wasn’t always so clear for Nguyen. In 11th grade, Nguyen experienced a bout of writer’s block and became extremely uninspired. “I was stumped. I didn’t know what to make a film about,” she said. “Something that helped me was my teachers getting me back to the roots of film, back to my personal roots, asking questions like: ‘Why are you making this type of film? Why does it matter to you?’”

This Home is Not Empty (2015) is centred around a miniature paper replica of Nguyen’s childhood home.

What followed was This Home is Not Empty, in which Nguyen tried to portray her nostalgia for childhood. Using paper, she created a highly detailed miniature of her childhood home. The small-scale house is abandoned, sitting in a studio. Shots of the replica are contrasted with lively family photographs. The miniatures are constrained to dark grey tones on an insignificant scale. Objects are on the ground, her childhood fish tank is smashed and food is left out on the miniature table. With this film, Nguyen builds a paper collage of archives and reconstructions. She compares the photographs to the paper replica so the viewer can interpret their nostalgic relationship.

The filmmaker confronts the audience with a unique approach to represent her thoughts.  The film’s universe isn’t constrained to fictionalized memories. In a delicate way, the viewer is brought outside the paper house. Nguyen presents her work while embracing the process of making it. The filmmaker shows the hands that place the objects of the paper house, and the studio in which it is lit. The film presents her memories with honesty.

Nguyen’s films depict her internal explorations, and their highly controlled aesthetic gives a sense of restrained emotions. This February, Nguyen will direct her ninth film, the second to be produced within the Mel Hoppenheim film production program.

You can see This Home is Not Empty and How Do You Pronounce Pho? on Nguyen’s Vimeo page.

Feature photo by Charles Duquet.

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Opinions

Neurological disorders and education

Graphic by Zeze Le Lin.

A student’s realization that help is offered at Concordia for those who need it

University is a wonderful experience that allows you to grow mentally and emotionally. However, if you are living with a neurological condition, your time spent in higher education may be muddled by the difficulties of coping with your disability.

A 2017 Statistics Canada report shows that 31 per cent of Canadians aged 25 to 64 without disabilities have a university degree at the bachelor’s level or higher. In comparison, less than 16 per cent of people with a physical or mental disability between those ages have a university degree. The report also indicates that “the percentage with a university degree decreased as the severity of the disability increased.”

These statistics baffle me. I believe every individual has the capacity to succeed, given the proper resources. These figures make me wonder if Canadian universities, including Concordia, offer the proper resources for students with such conditions to reach their full potential.

This year, I learned about a neurological disorder I had never heard of: dysorthographia. My friend, Audrey Lamontagne, a first-year Concordia student in the Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) program, is affected by this condition. I asked her to speak candidly about how it impacts her learning and if she has benefitted from any resources at Concordia.

First, I wanted to know what dysorthographia was in Lamontagne’s words. She explained that the condition makes her incapable of identifying spelling mistakes and she has difficulty solving mathematical equations. It also impacts her social skills, notably her ability to understand sarcasm. Moreover, she said, “I practically don’t have short-term memory,” meaning she quickly forgets what she studies.

In contrast, her long-term memory is above average. If she ingrains something in her mind, she will remember the information for the rest of her life. However, Lamontagne said she needs to work three times harder than an individual without dysorthographia to store information in her long-term memory.

This all seems difficult to cope with, especially in an academic setting, so I asked her the burning question I had in mind: Does Concordia help you cope with your condition?

According to Lamontagne, the Access Centre for Students with Disabilities (ACSD) offers her 15 hours of free tutoring per semester for any class she struggles with, and a notetaker so she can focus on lectures better. When doing tests or exams, she is alloted extra time and given access to a computer with Word Q and Antidote—programs that help her identify and correct her spelling mistakes. Overall, Lamontagne said she is very satisfied and appreciative of everything the university has offered her.

I am happy to know that students who struggle with neurological conditions have access to resources that can drastically improve their situation in school. I am even happier to know that students are taking advantage of these resources. According to Statistics Canada, 14 per cent of the Canadian population aged 15 years or older—that’s 3.8 million individuals—reported having a disability that limited their daily activities.

As someone with a mental health condition, I can empathize with those struggling with neurological conditions. The weight of your responsibilities as a student anchor you down, and it feels extremely unfair that you have to deal with an extra infuriating hurdle. All schools should help their struggling students. After all, those students will be going out into the world with all the knowledge they acquired from school.

If you or someone you know is affected by a neurological condition, know that you are not alone. You deserve help, support and guidance in order to perform to the best of your ability. Most importantly, you need to be kind and patient towards yourself. Take advantage of everything that is offered to you. Why struggle alone when help is available?

Graphic by Zeze Le Lin 

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Opinions

If Concordia classroom walls could talk

Graphic by Zeze Le Lin.

Women have spoken about this “open secret” before

I recently had a conversation in which my friend declared his surprise that sexual misconduct, the same thing that sparked the Hollywood mega-scandal, occurred in the microcosm of our university. I did not understand this reaction any more than I did when I opened an email from Concordia president Alan Shepard last week. In the email, Shepard stated how “disturbed” he was by the allegations of sexual misconduct made against faculty members.

As news story after news story breaks, I find myself increasingly suspicious of the surprised reactions coming from the heads of host institutions. The way individual cases are framed as “scandals” undermines the severity of the issue of sexual misconduct as a whole, relegating it to isolated incidents committed by bad people, rather than a chronic, social malady. This culture that perpetuates sexual misconduct was created and functions based on the very behaviour now denounced as “scandalous.” If we can agree that women have been systematically oppressed throughout history, then why are cases of sexual misconduct often viewed as one-time, “scandalous” occurrences?

It should be no “open secret” that women have always faced varying shades of sexual misconduct across all professions and within all social institutions. The teacher-student dynamic offers an extra level of vulnerability; I can’t help but feel like I’ve fallen into a terrible trap every time I receive an unsolicited sexual or otherwise inappropriate comment from a teacher who is too friendly for the wrong reasons.

I know too many of my peers have found themselves in these situations and worse. We often carry into the classroom the same anxiety, the same enduring mentality of self-preservation we feel when walking alone at night.
To deny knowledge of these allegations proves only greater faults in the university’s administration. Women have long been trying to speak out about what has only now become a front-page scandal. For Concordia’s president to say he will “respond effectively when it does happen” and yet only respond when a male former student retrospectively declares remorse for having witnessed it—this only reinforces a system that effectively silences or ignores women when they try to speak up about their experiences.

A thorough investigation is a place to start, however overdue it may be, because merely being “shocked” and “disturbed” is not nearly enough to change an institution and the toxic culture that pervades it.

Graphic by Zeze Le Lin

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Opinions

Getting a ‘handle’ on mental illness

Graphic by Zeze Le Lin.

One student’s experience with OCD and depression, and how she learned to seek help

Close your eyes. Imagine walking the halls of Concordia University, just like every other day. All is well when, unexpectedly, your breath is stolen away from you. Your limbs become numb and your vision starts to wane. You panic. Your body does not belong to you anymore. Your flight or fight response kicks in, and all you want to do is escape the absolute dread you are feeling.

For some, this may sound like a horror movie scenario. Unfortunately, many students at Concordia do not have to imagine this nightmare. Attending school, studying and completing assignments are a struggle for individuals suffering from mental illness, such as myself. Luckily, those afflicted by mental health issues don’t have to struggle alone.

When I was a child, I had rituals I felt compelled to do even though they made no sense. Whenever my mother left the house, I felt the need to kiss her four times on each cheek. If I did not do this, I believed she would die a horrible death and it would be my fault. No one understood my behaviour until I was diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) at age 12.

“So great,” I thought to myself. “I have OCD. I need to pull out and push in my chair four times and twist doorknobs until it feels just right. This is not what I want to be doing, but I can handle this.” And I did. All by myself.

A few years later, I began to experience a new feeling. It wasn’t quite sadness. I had felt sadness before. This feeling was far worse. It made me feel like I was imprisoned in the world I called home. This feeling turned the world grey and black, with only nuances of the colours I knew were supposed to be there. At 16, I was diagnosed with depression.

“So great,” I thought to myself. “I have depression to go along with my side dish of OCD and anxiety. I really don’t want to find out what dessert will be.” I was in absolute misery, but once again, I handled it on my own.

The thing about ‘handling’ a mental illness is that, eventually, the handle breaks. I took on the demons in my head alone for so long that they took the reins of my life. I had no choice but to watch as they sucked the life out of me.

At this point, I was so worn down that I simply did not care anymore. I stopped going to school because I thought: “What is the point in trying anything when your mind is constantly clouded with dark thoughts?” On good days, I would force myself out of bed, brush my teeth and, if I was lucky, I could muster the energy to take a shower. But when it came time to leave the house, I would crumble and find refuge under my blankets. On bad days, I didn’t make it out of my bedroom.

I don’t remember the exact moment I decided enough was enough, but I remember feeling angry. I felt angry that my brain was holding me hostage; it was robbing me of experiences, challenges and opportunities. I finally decided it was time to get the help I needed. I found a psychologist in the youth sector of the Jewish General Hospital as well as a psychiatrist who prescribed me medications to level out my emotions.

I am learning new ways to cope with these emotions, like focusing on the present instead of freaking out about some imaginary scenario that might never happen. Now, I make an active decision to care for myself every day.

I won’t lie—getting better is difficult at times. However, it’s the most worthwhile work you will ever do for yourself. And like any new endeavour, the beginning is the hardest part. Admitting to yourself that you are sick and that you need help puts you in a vulnerable position. Once you start getting better though, it will all be worthwhile.

Statistics Canada reports that one in five Canadians will experience a mental illness in their lifetime. You may have heard this statistic a hundred times before, but I would like you to take the time to reflect on it. Statistically speaking, you, someone you know or someone you will meet will struggle with a form of mental illness. If you are suffering, please seek help. If you know someone who is suffering, please help them. Life is too precious to be spent in mental agony, and you are too important to stand for it.

Graphic by Zeze Le Lin

Categories
Arts

Capturing the raw beauty in everyday people and places

Figure 3: Hassan II Mosque across the water from Paloma Beach in Mohammedia, Morocco.

New to Concordia’s photography program, artist ASVJAD is inspired by a recent trip to Morocco

Working mainly off of his Instagram account, ASVJAD strives to capture raw beauty in everything and everyone around him. Born in the Bay Area of California and, as he put it, “molded” in Montreal, the Concordia artist discovered his passion while conducting freelance shoots of his classmates and capturing candids for the Fine Arts Core Education High School yearbook in 2013.

ASVJAD explained that he started out using a small second-hand digital camera. The more he photographed, the better he got, learning more about his own style along the way. The artist said he aspires to produce works as eye-catching and provocative as Terry Richardson’s and as timeless as Robert Mapplethorpe’s. These inspirations can be seen in his portraits, which have an incredible dramatic edge, both in black and white and in colour.

ASVJAD photographed by his mother in Morocco.

ASVJAD is also inspired by old black-and-white foreign films and the work of Sally Mann (particularly Candy Cigarette circa 1989). He prefers to use subtle props to pack a punch, a choice that is influenced by Ren Hang’s modern and eclectic photographs.

As a freelance artist, he enjoys collaborating with other freelancers because it enables him to work without the creative restraints that may come with working for an agency.

In his work, ASVJAD focuses on empowerment, sexuality and the body. He said he looks for a unique, structural appearance, a fresh face and a distinct energy. When organising a photoshoot,  ASVJAD will often take the time to get to know his models and go over styling (clothing, hair and makeup) options long before the day of the shoot.

Utilizing his background as a fashion stylist, ASVJAD will even help former clients shop for upcoming events. “I always had a love for fashion—I think it comes from my mother. From a very young age, she and my aunt would make their own clothes,” he explained.

ASVJAD often asks his subjects to think back to a time when they were sad or angry, as he likes to play with emotions in his work, specifically surrounding the past. This creative process allows the artist to enhance aspects of his clients’ personality, mood and overall aesthetic.

During a recent trip to Morocco, the artist spent much of his time photographing everyday Moroccan lifestyle.

Paco photographed by ASVJAD for a new series on the LGBTQ+ community in Morocco.

His goal was to capture members of the LGBTQ+ community, an extremely oppressed group in Morocco because of the country’s strict laws against same-sex relationships. Since he was dealing with such taboo subject matter, he said reaching members of the community proved to be rather difficult.

This series of photographs remains incomplete, due to the fact that only two individuals were willing to have their pictures taken. ASVJAD was able to get in touch with Paco (the model in figure. 2) only after contacting him through social media. ASVJAD said he is planning on adding to the series throughout the upcoming year. “Every single person has something to offer, no matter their skin colour, race or sexual orientation,” the artist added.

One of his photographs (figure. 3) was taken on 35mm film. It outlines the Hassan II Mosque across the water from Paloma Beach in Mohammedia, Morocco. Having visited his home country a mere three times, ASVJAD grew up seeing the pristine landmarks, tourist attractions and stunning Moroccan imagery only through photographs. In order to record a raw, Moroccan reality, he attempted to understand the country with the same energy and attention that he gives to his models, the artist explained. ASVJAD photographed the flea markets and the outskirts of Casablanca, as seen in one image (figure. 4), which shows a man praying in the streets.

The artist said he has “always appreciated the fact that photography can freeze a moment in time that can never be completely recreated.” ASVJAD shows his love for spontaneous moments and quick glimpses into the psyche when it comes to retouching his work. He only ever makes changes to the colouring, sharpness of his photographs and editing their overall appearance when the subject requests it.

ASVJAD is now enrolled in Concordia’s undergraduate photography program. He said he is looking forward to exploring technical lighting, working in studio spaces, developing film in darkrooms and being surrounded by creative people of all disciplines. The artist said he hopes his work will grow and evolve from the constructive criticism of his peers in a new, structured environment.

Photos by ASVJAD

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Student Life

Bartender Banter: Getting to know the glamorous grape

Photo by Danielle Gasher

A sommelier shares some tips on getting into wine tasting and pairing

There’s something about wine that feels elitist. Intimidating even. People have been making the drink for over 4,000 years. Families have fallen out over its production. The wine industry is a multi-billion dollar industry. In the United States alone, the wine industry contributes over $160 billion to the American economy, according to the research firm MKF Research.

Some are willing to wait 20 years to open a bottle to taste it at its full potential. For a newbie, wine can feel like abstract art—unattainable and overpriced.

Photo by Danielle Gasher

But Le Majestique’s sommelier, Benoit Saint-Hilaire, says while there is an element of prestige to wine, no one should be intimidated by it. After all, “people have been drinking it for over 4,000 years to party and have fun,” he says.

I sat down with Saint-Hilaire to discuss the basics of tasting, pairing, and to get the scoop on some budget-friendly wines students should get their hands on.

Saint-Hilaire became interested in wine thanks to his family. His parents would host dinners, and that’s when he started developing his taste. Saint-Hilaire stresses that the wine tasting experience is extremely subjective. He believes it is important to remain humble when discovering different wines, and to respect different tastes. “Remember, the wine isn’t bad, it’s just not your taste,” he says with a laugh.

Getting into it

Saint-Hilaire says the best way to get into wine, and to develop your taste, is to… well… taste! So if the expert says it, drink away, fellow Concordians! By tasting a lot, he explains, you learn to pick up different subtleties, odours, flavours and notes. He recommends taking it by region, focusing on one at a time. By tasting different wines from a specific region, he explains, it enables you to make connections between the subtleties of different grapes and different estates. He also recommends reading up on the producer. “When I buy a wine, I always go on the estate’s website—I see how they work,” Saint-Hilaire says.

Photo by Danielle Gasher

Pairing

Saint-Hilaire says he is no purist, and believes people should just pair to their taste. That being said, he likes to implement a balance between the flavours of the meal and his wine. For example, for a richer, greasier meal, he would recommend a lighter, fresher wine with some acidity to balance the flavours.

Some recommendations

When asked to recommend a few wines and regions for students to try, Saint-Hilaire’s eyes shoot open. “There are too many!” he exclaims. But for students and beginners, the sommelier says you can’t go wrong with adventuring into the Côtes du Rhône wines. He says you can get good ones starting at $25.

Still in France, he also recommends wines from the Alsace region because they’re accessible, balanced and “easy to drink,” as Saint-Hilaire puts it. He also recommends drinking wines from Spain and Portugal because they are cheap and flavourful. “Drink Spanish wine my friends!” Saint-Hilaire exclaims. He assures a good bottle can easily cost under $20.Surprisingly, Saint-Hilaire also recommends checking out Greek wines. While he admits you have to seek out the good ones, he says you can find good value for your money. Saint-Hilaire recommends trying Greek wines from the Tetramythos estate. Their red wine is the Kalavryta, which he says is comparable to a Pinot Noir.  For white wine lovers, he recommends the Roditis, which he describes as crisp and fresh. Both the red and white are currently available at the SAQ, as well as on Le Majestique’s wine list.

So if you value your wino education, it’s time to start tasting everything, pairing as you wish, and checking out those wines from Spain and Portugal! Cheers, folks!

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Student Life

My personal experience having a YouTube channel

Graphic by Thom Bell

How YouTube taught me life skills and how to be confident

I started my YouTube channel four years ago. In the beginning, the purpose was basically to post random music video covers of some of my favourite songs. Now, my YouTube channel has evolved and completely shifted focus—I now film and post videos about beauty, food as well as lifestyle-type videos. I’ve also recently started filming videos of my travel getaways and story-time videos. I plan on expanding on more aspects of myself for others to see.

When I started out, I was definitely nervous about filming videos and having them posted on a platform as big as YouTube. However, I knew that, if anyone could do it, I could. I’ve always had the courage in me to do anything I want. I’ve never really been afraid of what other people think.

However, I faced some disapproval when I first started out. My mom and sister judged me for the videos I posted on my channel. They called them stupid and useless. For a while, I felt discouraged about this negative feedback. Recently, I saw insulting comments posted on my videos. I deleted them and pretended they never existed. Of course, deep down, it hurts.

When you film videos and post them online, you need to be prepared for any comment that may come your way—the good, the bad and the ugly. You need to shrug off the hateful comments and keep moving forward. This is my current mindset for my YouTube journey, and it feels good. I have gained enough self-trust and confidence through YouTube— I know I am doing this for nobody else but me.

My YouTube channel means a lot to me. It’s the place where I can truly express myself with people around the world. Filming videos has definitely boosted my confidence. I can see myself evolving and becoming more “social” online by reaching out to people from all over. It makes me feel free to say and do whatever I want.  It has also helped me practice speaking aloud and in front of a camera. These skills translate well in my academic life. My channel has also forced me to be more socially-active with friends and when meeting or talking to strangers.

I also like the idea of helping people through my YouTube videos. I want to be a role model for others. Making these videos has made me want to help others overcome the same struggles I’ve dealt with in my life, including bullying and issues with self-image. I also want my YouTube channel to be a light, fun environment where I can also post funny skits, travel adventures and videos about makeup.

If you’re thinking about starting a YouTube channel, be yourself and do not be afraid to express yourself and branch out. This will help you develop a thick skin and ignore hateful comments because, at the end of the day, you are doing what makes you happy. There are always going to be people online hating on your channel, but use it as motivation to make your content better and take more risks through your videos. As Walt Disney once said: “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”

Graphic by Thom Bell

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Student Life

What is the real key to happiness?

Photo by Ana Hernandez

A University of the Streets Café discussion reflects on the “pursuit of happiness”

University of the Streets Café hosted yet another edition of its public discussions at Café Aux Deux Marie on St-Denis Street last Wednesday to discuss a hefty topic—the illusive pursuit of happiness.

The talk was moderated by Anurag Dhir, a community engagement coordinator for McGill University’s Social Equity and Diversity Education Office. The event featured speakers who explored the idea of purposefulness and happiness in their line of work: Peter Hartman and Juniper Belshaw. Hartman is a motivational speaker and founder of Happy For A Change, an organization that looks to spread the word about positive global initiative. Belshaw currently works for the Cirque du Soleil as a senior advisor for talent management, but she used to work and volunteer a lot in the  non-profit sector.

The atmosphere of the talk was quite relaxed. Once the speakers made their preliminary addresses, participants were encouraged to join in on the discussion.

While the intention of the talk was to discuss how to lead a life of impact within a community, the natural course of discussion led to the attendees sharing their views on what happiness means to them, and how to achieve a life of happiness. Most of the audience members agreed that living a life of happiness begins with the acceptance that things happen, and one can’t control everything.

There was a general consensus that, to live a life of positive impact, one must first find positivity in their own life. This echoed the sentiments of Belshaw, who at the end of her introduction said “maybe tonight I’m hoping to talk about how we build sustainable social change where we’re creating the world we want, but also living it as we do it.”

Peter Hartman, who also organizes discussions about finding a purpose in life through his organization Happy For A Change, said he’s used to hearing a lot of discussions turn into talks about the pursuit of happiness.

“There is overwhelmingly this focus on happiness,” he said. “I was hoping we would get beyond that… but I find it so useful, because every time we have that conversation we get a little bit further,” into what it means to lead a life of purpose.

Photo by Ana Hernandez

Hartman explained that, for him, living a life of purpose means living a life of meaningful action. “It’s when there is intention behind the actions that you do,” he said. “It’s not just that you have relationships—it’s the manner in which you have relationships that contribute to your overall purpose.”

Relationships, Hartman added, can be as basic as the contact a person has with a store clerk.

This and other guiding principles are the basis of Happy for A Change—what he calls a philosophy and a movement—with the goal of using people’s own search for happiness to make a positive change in the world.

“We understand that everybody is different and people want to work on different things, so we’re trying to find the lowest common denominator, what is the smallest action possible that we can convince people to do that would create change?” said Hartman. For the speaker, that action is going on social media. Hartman believes that going on social media is something that practically everyone does every day and he tries to harness its power by convincing people in the self-help industry to use their financial means to promote and market ideas that create a better society on social media.

Attendees discussed their thoughts on finding happiness through community engagement. Photo by Ana Hernandez

University of the Streets Café is a program part of Concordia’s Office of Community Engagement, which has existed for 15 years. According to Alex Megelas, the organizer of University of the Street Café programming, their mandate is to “promote a culture of community engagement at Concordia.” They do so by creating links between staff, students and different community based groups and organizations. University of the Streets Café is one of their initiatives.

Megelas said his principle role is to create discussions that reflect the goal of the program. This year, their goal is to look at city engagement and, more specifically, “how we live in cities as, individuals and together, [and] create shared experiences.”

The next University of the Streets Café discussion called “Representative Democracy: How do we foster citizenship literacy”, and will be held on March 9 at 7 p.m. at Temps Libre at 5606 De Gaspé St.

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Student Life

My religion: My Muslim faith

Warraich and his siblings as children. From left to right, Ahmed, Qasim, Fatima and Mohammed.

One Concordian’s honest portrait of what his faith means to him

As a Canadian-born Muslim, I’ve learned to live and grow in this country during one of the most trying times for Muslims around the world. Faith seriously entered my life when I was eight years old. My father had just been diagnosed with lymphoma and leukaemia, and his situation was quite dire.

We had been a relatively religious family up until this point, going to the mosque most Fridays and spending time within the Muslim community. However, my father’s sickness deepened our faith. We heavily relied on God and on our knowledge of the Islamic faith to get through that hard time.

Warraich’s father and brother

At the worst point of his sickness, it seemed not much more could be done, so my father planned a visit to the holy city of Mecca. There, he performed the Islamic hajj pilgrimage—a must for any Muslim before they die. After his pilgrimage, my father had a miraculous recovery, which further solidified his faith, and our family’s faith.

Religion is all around us. For thousands of years, it has been a driving force behind civilizations and understanding societies and the people who fill this planet. Sadly, it has also been the cause of many acts of war, genocide and persecution—whether it is a group of people using religion as a front to further their own political motives and agendas, or a group being persecuted for following a particular religion.

It seems to me that, these days, people increasingly dislike the concept of religion. Many cite it as outdated and the cause of the barbaric acts of violence we have all seen throughout the world.

I have found it difficult to refute these ideas in discussions with nonreligious or atheist people. Many who don’t practice any religion know very little about religion. As such, I believe when people see images and videos of people carrying out acts of violence in the name of religion, they paint a picture of that religion based solely on the brutality—ignoring all the positive sides of religion.

Islam is based on five pillars all Muslims should adhere to. The first pillar is “ shahada,” a declaration that there is only one God, and the Prophet Muhammad is the last of his messengers.  The second pillar is “salat,” a prayer Muslims perform five times a day. The third pillar is “zakat,” which means giving charity to the poor and to those in need. The fourth pillar is “sawm,” which is the act of fasting during the holy month of Ramadan. The final pillar is “hajj,” the pilgrimage to Mecca.

These pillars represent the basis on which Islam was created. Growing up, my parents really emphasized the importance of kindness and generosity.

“This should be the focus of your time here on earth,” they’d say.  Islam’s pillars reinforce kindness. This is why faith plays such a big part in my life. Many people say: “What if it’s all fake? And you’ve lived your life trying to be good all for nothing?” Yet, that is the point of Islam and many other religions in the first place—to sacrifice, and live your life for others, having faith that this is your purpose.

Warraich’s father (top left), with his siblings and other relatives

For me, regardless of whether it’s all fake or not, religion has taught me these key principles. To be kind, generous, empathetic, honest and to help people, regardless of their faith. Living with these ideals and trying to uphold them regularly is, in my opinion, a good way to live your life—this is regardless of what you feel happens after we die. This is why I find religion so powerful.

On Jan. 29, in la grande mosquée de Québec in Quebec city, six men, four of whom were fathers to young children, were massacred as they stood for evening prayer. The term I want to introduce here is “shahid.” This word is used to denote a martyr, a person who has died fulfilling a religious commandment.

Though people will say these men were not fighting for Islam in the typical way we think of today, these men are the brightest and most valued of Muslims—innocent, humble and hardworking fathers who were taken from this world and from their children too early. We must not forget what happened almost 10 days ago, we must not forget the names of these men, and we must always remember what they and their families were forced to go through in order to shed light on the problems our society faces. May they find their way into eternal paradise and may their families be lessened of the burden they now face.

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