Residency: September 01st-October 31st, 2024
Exhibition: January 10th-February 8th, 2025
The gallery will be closed to the public for the duration of the group artist residency. Studio visits can be coordinated by sending request emails sent to info@khyber.ca.
Project Description:
Wounded Healer is a transformative exploration of the intricate dynamics between artists and their mother figures, encapsulated within a two-month-long artist residency program over September-October 2024, followed by a one-month multidisciplinary group exhibition at the Khyber Centre for the Arts in January 2025. Set against the backdrop of diverse artistic mediums and guided by the support of a seasoned art therapist, the project delves deep into the complexities of maternal relationships, seeking to unravel emotional and spiritual wounds while encouraging personal growth and expression.
Wounded Healer is curated by artist Kordeena Clayton who will be participating and exhibiting alongside six other Halifax-based artists LaMeia, Tanisha Sampson, Mamie Jane Bell, Jools Annie, Bria Chiome-Miller, and Anita Chastanet. The participating artists demonstrate artistic work and exploration across a variety of mediums.
Curatorial Concept:
Wounded Healer emerges from scholarly discourse and astrological symbolism, drawing particular inspiration from the mythological narrative of the comet and sun-orbiting minor planet, Chiron. The project is rooted in the acknowledgment of the multifaceted nature of maternal influence and its profound impact on individuals’ lives.
Named after a centaur in Greek mythology, Chiron is a teacher and a healer who, ironically, could not heal himself. In astrology, Chiron became known as the “wounded healer”, a place that represents a person’s deepest emotional as well as spiritual wounds.
Kordeena Clayton has invited local artists whose individual works engage with themes of reflective spaces, processing emotions, and psychological ferment associated with their mother figures. The practices of the participating artists naturally intersect with the project’s focus. By acknowledging the challenges and complexities inherent in the mother-child dynamic in the proposed residency program, Wounded Healer aims to provide a safe and nurturing space for artists to creatively explore, reflect, and ultimately, heal.
Participating Artists:
Kordeena Clayton is a multidisciplinary artist of African Nova Scotian and Kalinago descent (Carib Indian). Born in Mi’kma’ki, Clayton is a proud, Queer, self-taught, visual artist who focuses on the importance of representation of Black and Brown people, inclusivity, and self-embracement. Clayton’s creative determination and artistic visions developed from the colour complexities her oldest daughter faced growing up at a young age. At the time, there was little to no representation, felt or seen in the media. The motherly instinct of healing and caring for her child opened the creative avenues, in which she has since created meaningful representation, that supported and encouraged healthy, important self-esteem and self-acceptance. Clayton works with various mediums; painting, photography, graphic and clothing design, film, and sculpture. With an unapologetic approach to art-making, Clayton’s creations serve as a testament to the limitless power of expression rooted in belonging.
@kordeena.demetra
LaMeia is a visionary force who masterfully creates safe spaces that nurture the connection between mind, body, and spirit. Celebrated as a ‘Bridge Builder,’ she cultivates dynamic discoveries, bringing initiatives to life that intertwine in harmony. Rooted in North Preston, LaMeia empowers others to engage deeply and meaningfully, transforming spaces into cultural hubs that foster both local and non-local connections. As an interdisciplinary artist, facilitator, and designer, LaMeia embodies mindfulness and peace, guiding projects that align with the natural rhythms of the environment and urgency of community needs. Her journey is a testament to lifelong learning, blossoming through collaborations with local youth and unique initiatives that strengthen community cohesion—all while catalyzing a future where artistic expression liberates and promotes positive change.
@lkinnects
Tanisha Sampson is an African Nova Scotian textile artist and photographer from Uniacke Square, in the heart of the North End. As a descendant of Africville, a Black community by Halifax’s shoreline that has been forcefully relocated by the government, Sampson’s craft is a reflection of using natural material provided by the land like her ancestors. Her process begins with searching for the perfect tree branch lying on the forest floor or washed up on the beach. The found organic object than becomes the hanger/vessel on which she weaves and webs the yarn. This act of repurposing inert organic matter with yarn is a way of repurposing urban spaces. Sampson’s peace is found within her process of searching along with the intricacies of weaving and knotting. She embeds the natural world within cityscapes, paying homage to the natural world within a post-colonial society.
@teeshsknottyhobby
Mamie Bell is an interdisciplinary artist and baker born in Epekwitk (PEI) living in Kjipuktuk (Halifax). She graduated from NSCAD University with a BFA in 2013 and from NSCC Pastry Arts in 2022. Bell works mainly with media arts through live projection, mixed media installation, and printed matter. Her work explores repetition, co-regulation, and the creation of calming environments through interactive and immersive installations. Since becoming a parent of two, she has explored process-based work about the invisible and physical labor of parenthood and the body’s relationship to care work. In 2022, Bell participated in the Media Arts Scholarship program at the Centre for Art Tapes in Kjipuktuk and became part of MOTHRA: Artist-Parent Project residency on Mnisiing (Toronto Island) in 2024. Bell has recently started working as an advisory committee member for the visual arts sector on Balancing Act’s Level UP!, a national initiative that aims to increase equality, accessibility, and employment opportunities for artists and cultural workers with caring responsibilities in Canada.
@mamiejbell
Jools Annie (Julia Hutt) is a self-taught multi-disciplinary artist residing in Kjipuktuk, Nova Scotia. Inspired by her own experience with pregnancy, birthing and baby-raising, Jools works with both traditional and digital illustration to create anecdotal scenes that portray snapshots of early parenthood. Common themes in her work include lactation, body positivity, and birthing people’s mental and physical changes. This work aims to challenge the capitalist devaluation of child rearing work and traditionally gendered work, such as housework and feeding kids. Jools does commissioned portrait work for new parents and families. Some of her recent collaborations include educational graphics for Nova Scotia Public Interest Research Group(NSPIRG), and portraits for artist Elise Peterson’s podcast Talk Cool Moms based in Los Angeles, CA. Jools also regularly collaborates with her partner Lance Sampson (Aquakultre), working on video art direction, production, and set design, as well as album artwork. In 2019, she was the artist in residence for Wellness Within’s conference Confronting the Carceral State: Autonomy, Community, and Liberation. Since then, she has produced work with Wellness Within and Martha Paynter to raise awareness about reproductive justice in the Canadian prison system. Their most recent collaboration is a book titled Abortion to Abolition, for which she produced 24 illustrations. In 2022, Jools received the Media Art Scholarship at Centre for Art Tapes (in Kjipuktuk). During this program, she created an animated piece titled Today, Any Day, that offers a glimpse into the repetitive and mundane tasks of early motherhood. Jools is currently working on a new body of work inspired by her time at home with her kids.
joolsannieart.com | @joolsannie
Bria Chiome-Miller is a multidisciplinary African Nova Scotian artist, jewelry maker, graphic facilitator, and designer based in Kjipuktuk. Born and raised in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, Chiome-Miller’s artwork spans public installations, gallery exhibitions, and a diverse range of printed media. Their creations, including stickers, art prints, t-shirts, keychains, and original paintings, have garnered recognition, locally and internationally. Despite grappling with chronic migraines, Chiome-Miller’s creative spirit perseveres, leading to experimentation with jewelry design using clay, glass, crystal beads, wire, vinyl, and resin. Through their business Bria Makes Things, they strive to share their handmade pieces with the world, fostering connections and spreading joy through art.
briamakesthings.bigcartel.com | @briamakesthings
Anita Chastanet is a queer Kjipuktuk/Halifax-based interdisciplinary artist , born in St. Lucia and raised in Tkaronto/Toronto. Her artistic journey spans DJing, music production, 3D modeling, video, web, and graphic design, where she seamlessly merges digital realms to create immersive experiences. As a co-founder of Nectar DJ Collective, Chastanet is renowned for her high-energy, dark, and innovative underground electronic sets. Drawing inspiration from electronic, ambient, and experimental music, her sonic landscapes intertwine with visual explorations of identity, memory, longing, friendship, and play. Proficient in Blender, Adobe Suite, and FL Studio, Chastanet continuously pushes the boundaries of artistic expression, sculpting new worlds for audiences to explore and immerse themselves in.
anitanitanita.wixsite.com | @aniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiita
