I am an Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia- Okanagan. I studied at the Lecoq Theatre School in Paris, and have my MFA in film directing from the University of British Columbia- Vancouver.  I have a Bachelor of Arts in Drama (Distinction), and a Bachelor of Education in Drama and English from the University of Alberta.  I have worked as a performer/creator for theatres in Canada and the U.S. committed to devised work and have written, directed and produced narrative and documentary independent film and lifestyle series television (for which I won a Leo Award in 2001 for Best Director in a Lifestyle Series).  My research in eco-art examines indoor and outdoor public spaces as performance venues for live and media art that is designed to be interventionist in nature. As a body-based performance artist concerned with ecological issues, I also consider the body itself as a kind of geographical terrain.  For me, ecological art situates itself at the intersection of human activity (the sensory body) and the environment within which that activity takes place.  I position the sensory body more specifically as the site of ecological practice and belonging.

Teaching Philosophy

For me, teaching is dialogical, relational and always reciprocal. I teach people, not curriculum. Recently I have noticed that students are experiencing a kind of root shock. It is as if they are fledgling plants that have been lifted from the soil and suspended in the world with roots dangling in the air, thirsty for purpose and belonging. I like to design my studio/classroom as a home of sorts, as a patch of soil where students can dig, plant, pluck, chop, harvest and dig again. My pedagogy engages the figurative and literal space for sensorial and emotional ways of knowing; explores questions, tensions, joys, fears, assumptions, privileges, failures, aspirations … humanity, in all of its messiness; and encourages students to become social acupuncturists. Scientists have done their job. Now it’s time for our students, for the artists, creative thinkers, storytellers and provocateurs to help our communities re-imagine ways of belonging as we navigate our uncertain future. Our work together is an exploration of how to connect to the world around us, to align our work with our beliefs, and to use our imaginations and artistry to enter the fray.