update: 2024.12.6
Participating Project | Exchange Residency Program (Creators from abroad) |
---|---|
Activity Based | Quebec City |
City / Place stayed | Tokyo |
Period | 2024.5 - 2024.7 |
I was born in a small town called “Seven Islands” (Sept-Îles, Quebec. Canada). My dad happened to be a snow crab fisherman at some point, using Japanese traps. Most of the crab coming up was and still is sent to Japan. My purpose for this residency is to follow the crab, draw it and eat it in Tokyo. I am curious about how it is consumed and celebrated on the opposite side of the globe, on another archipelago. Through that quest and through my drawings and puppets, I hope to reach out with Japanese people and their millenary culture as well as with other artists, to open new dialogues from the other side.
During my residency, I used the quest for Quebec snow crabs in Tokyo as a pretext to immerse myself in Japanese fish markets, aquariums, restaurants, rivers, and sentos, where I observed the profound cultural connections Japanese people have with water. Sketching and observing in those environments, I drew parallels between the plastic seafood displayed in restaurant windows, the availability of goods on a major online shopping site, yokai folklore, puppets and the ritual of washing oneself. I discovered shibori, a technique for dying and texturing silk, traditional Japanese clothing and visual patterns. I connected with living arts through butoh encounters and assisting traditional Bunraku performances. I had the chance to share with puppeteers and experiment with puppets built using techniques I had never seen before. Inspired by my workspace, I created Kani no obake or Personal yokai, a performance featuring a self-made costume and a series of wall puppets that blend drawings on washi paper, kimono shibori scraps, crab shells, and fugu fins.
Kani no obake - puppets out of the wall, 2024
Kani no Obake - puppet detail, 2024
Kani no obake - performance costume, 2024
Kani no obake - performance costume, 2024
Soupe de crabe Tsukiji market 2024
During this residency, I experimented with new puppet techniques and discovered materials that I wish to continue exploring. By incorporating snow crab carcasses from Quebec, I learned a lot about the animal and became more aware of climate change through the social, political, and economic realities of the import-export industry. I hope to integrate more of these reflections into my upcoming work.
What I would do differently is travel to Ise-Shima during my first month. I went there after my residency period and made many incredible connections with my work and research.