Inspiration|Exhalation: Breath-Taking-Time and The Space Within Us.
Independent Art Project for Nuit Blanche 2022. Susan Beniston.
Image Design. Susan Beniston & April Penny
Experience drawing your own breath in artful ways and measure its length, to create a sculpture in the round with others.
Image Credit. www.nuitblanche.com
Location.
• Address: 401 Richmond Richmond Street West, Toronto - An accessible downtown location.
• Event and Location Information Here.
“A line is a dot that went for a walk.”
Susan’s Invitation to the Project.
From our first breath we are in relationship, and breathing has always signaled to us that we are alive. When Covid entered our lives, we were made much more aware of our breath, focusing on how safe and/or dangerous it could be. So now, how can we remain close while honouring different boundaries? Can we embrace our differences in touching ways, without touching? Yes. We can measure our own breath and show the crossovers which close the distance between us.
Breath was our theme for Nuit Blanche before Covid changed things. Similar ideas still apply. Even when we include contradictions, we can see similarities differently by staying playful through performance. And we can keep things thoughtful and safe.
We invite everyone to play their part in this performance of measuring breaths. We want everyone to experience the rhythm of their breath and see different rhythms in others in a calm, connected way. What can this look like? Everybody will be asked to provide personal thoughts so we can build upon a bigger idea over this 12-hour time period. What will be created is a sculpture made from what happens, in the relational Space Between Us.
Intention.
Susan chose the idea of drawing breath in artful ways, because it is fully accessible to anyone who chooses to engage. This project is experiential; designed to be fully inclusive, intergenerational, and cross-cultural. Open to ALL ages/all abilities. Anyone who wants to participate has the opportunity.
Another reason for selecting the idea of drawing breath was sustainability in terms of the resources (materials.) In fact, she believes in using bio-degradable elements that honour our material-resources, because ALL our actions and material choices matter. Susan will use up-cycled and ecological art materials that can either be reused, repurposed or returned to a garden for compost afterwards. So that the project is literally earth friendly.
Inspiration.
Susan is a facilitator in Art Hives, and she founded an Art Hive at Sheridan College. It’s called the Sheridan Art Hive Initiative, which was started in 2018, but it's part of an international network of community art studios. While teaching at Sheridan College, Susan had first-hand experience with people struggling with anxiety and depression, adjusting to the stressors of everyday life and often there were high needs, but limited resources available to assist.
Susan discovered the Art Hive model, which she liked because it was so flexible and embraced the Arts using art as therapy in a very gentle, kind, and caring way. The Art Hive also has a non-hierarchical framework, so it's not designed in a way where there's a teacher and students; it's about sharing skills and learning from one another. It is designed to be intergenerational, inclusive, and sharing in a way that makes people feel comfortable, safe, and supported.
Most importantly for “Inspiration|Exhalation” is breathwork and Susan's belief in mindfulness. Mindfulness is a practice that involves focusing one's awareness on the present moment while quietly noticing and accepting one's feelings, thoughts, and body sensations. These become evident through 'artful ways to draw breath’ using bilateral approaches that heighten our sensory-based attunement and expression. Susan notes that there have been numerous research studies completed all over the globe that show the positive impacts mindfulness has on our mental, emotional, and physical health. This is an integral part of how she approaches collaborative art making.
Pandemic Lens.
Susan chose the physical idea of drawing your breath long before COVID-19 had spread, infecting our world. Now, this creative process feels very different from when she originally designed it. Our relationship to breathing has changed and so has the sense of danger many people now share in relational proximity to one another. The potential for COVID's life-threatening respiratory complications and for some the lasting effects COVID can have on our bodies, makes this project even more timely and impactful.
“ Every single line means something.”
Follow/Connect Susan.
Susan Beniston • MFA, ATR-BC, RCAT, OATR
Nuit Blanche 2022 • Susan’s Project Link Here.
Instagram @susanbenistonarts
Sheridan College Art Hive Initiative
CollectiveEYEdentity: Connecting Community Curation
Sheridan Art Hives
Susan Beniston is a Toronto based artist, a certified art therapist and an educator. Active, creative spaces that inform her work include mindful-breathing practice and the Art Hive movement: to connect communities, to co-build relational knowledge (locally, nationally, internationally) and to increase resilience through socially engaged arts that are inclusive, accessible, and sustainable.
Follow Nuit Blanche.
Website • City of Toronto Nuit Blanche
Downtown Projects here.
Instagram • @nuitblancheto #nbTO22
Facebook • Nuite Blanche Toronto
“Nuit Blanche, Toronto’s all-night celebration of contemporary art, returns from sunset on October 1 to sunrise on October 2 for its biggest event ever. Expanding to include exhibitions in Etobicoke and North York, in addition to downtown and Scarborough, the long-awaited event features more than 150 artworks by local, national and international artists.”
Follow 401 Richmond Galleries.
Website • www.401richmond.com
Instagram • @401richmond
Facebook • 401 Richmond Street West
Nuit Blanche info. here.
“401 Richmond Street West is a restored, heritage-designated, industrial building turned arts & culture hub in downtown Toronto. It is home to over 140 artists, cultural producers, social innovators, microenterprises, galleries, festivals, and shops.”
Thanks to 401 Richmond and their Built for Art Team, who provided access to Helena Whittaker’s interview with Susan to add to this post.
