“Becomes Body of Water Interwoven with Territories Beyond the Sky is a short film of a land-based performance in my home region of Elmastukwek, at the base of the Blomidon Mountains, NL. Wearing a hunter/gatherer skirt with graphic elements from Beothuk caribou bone pendants, I patiently braid long strands of grey fabric and neon green tulle. The strands are attached to an exposed root system in the bog during the autumn season. I activate the strands in the wind – braiding the past and present while moving towards a future. This is an embodied practice. Interweaving movement and endurance with the environment to generate an ephemeral expression. Imagining the deeper relationship that our presence on the land has with the cosmos. Creating a narrative where the 22-foot braid transforms into a body of water flowing through Skite’kmujuawti, the milky way.”
– Meagan Musseau
Meagan Musseau | Performance, Audio & Video Editing
Jenelle Duval | Audio Track
Casey Koyczan | Videography
Meagan Musseau
September 28th to October 10th
Neptune Theatre Lobby
Free
Meagan Musseau is L’nu from Elmastukwek, Ktaqmkuk territory (Bay of Islands, western Newfoundland). She nourishes an interdisciplinary arts practice by working with customary art forms and new media such as basketry, beadwork, land-based performance, video, and installation. She focuses on creating artwork, dancing, learning Mi’kmaw language, and facilitating workshops as a way to actively participate in survivance.
Her work has been exhibited nationally at Open Space, Victoria; grunt gallery, Vancouver; Ociciwan Contemporary Art Centre, Edmonton; AKA Artist-run, Saskatoon; Ace Art Inc., Winnipeg; VOX, centre de l’image contemporaine, Montreal; and internationally at Canada House, London, United Kingdom. She has performed at Spirit Song Festival (2019), Bonavista Biennale (2019), #THIRDSHIFT (2017), as well as in landscapes across Turtle Island. Her work has been featured in publications such as Canadian Art, Border Crossings, and Visual Arts News. Her practice has been supported by awards such as an Aboriginal Arts Development Award, First Peoples’ Cultural Council (2016), Atlantic Canadian Emerging Artist, the Hnatyshyn Foundation (2018), and the Sobey Art Award longlist (2021).
