Theme: Equilibrium

We are in a crucial moment in history. The human race teeters on the edge of social, environmental and global chaos. In this polarizing time, it is imperative that we talk about how people can work together to bring about a more stable future.

This year TEDxECUAD uses the theme “Equilibrium” to evoke inspiration on balance, inner peace and the dynamics of opposing forces coming together. Like the spirit of TEDx events, the word “Equilibrium” spans disciplines of all kinds, from chemistry to art criticism. It plays like a sequel to TEDxECUAD’s 2017 theme “Bridging the Gap” which centered around the transition from our old campus and focused on how we can connect with the community surrounding our new one. Now that we have bridged the gap, it is time to work on finding equilibrium.

Emily Carr University of Art + Design
520 E 1st Ave
Vancouver, British Columbia, V5T 0H2
Canada

Acro Yoga

Acrobatic yoga

Acro Yoga (Paul, Chris, and Valtteri) share a love of strong technique, clean lines, and the natural beauty of British Columbia. Building connection through the collaborative practice of partner acrobatics, they are constantly learning about communication, trust, and the creative process; they find continual amazement in the unlocking potential of the human body through deliberate training and conditioning. Negotiating the fragile equilibrium between the limits of the human body and the downward pull of gravity has been a journey of discovery and a source of joy for all three of them.

Adiba Muzaffar

Media artist, Embodiment

Adiba Muzaffar is a media artist pursuing an MFA at Emily Carr University of Art and Design (Vancouver, British Columbia). Her practice has maintained close connections to the body as a site for the human psychological condition. Through non-fictional video narratives led by personal accounts and experiments with visual imagery, she has persevered to yank at the invisibility of stigma through several moving image works. Muzaffar’s recent work for the gallery space has taken shape via material explorations and visual tactility, challenging the surface limit of the bodily experience. While themes such as discomfort and control have been present in some way or the other in most of her work, she has furthered her enquiry to deride festered shame, guilt and unfreedom through the lens of human skin.

Angela MacDougall

Feminist activist

Recognized as a “remarkable woman” in 2014 by the City of Vancouver, and with good reason, MacDougall is a board member of the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre and an executive director at Battered Women’s Support Services. The fierce feminist has spent the past 20-some years supporting women and girls who have experienced gender-based violence. Her collaborative efforts with a number of diverse alliances highlight the underlying issue of violence against women in various community events, including the Women’s Memorial March. Her work as an advocate, front-line worker, activist, and trainer has brought an authentic voice of change to service and program delivery and community development.

Cameron Cartiere

Environmental Renewal

Cartiere's specialty is to use public art as the driver of community engagement and social change in order to improve the environment. A Professor of Public Art and Social Practice in the Faculty of Culture + Community at Emily Carr University of Art + Design, Cameron Cartiere is a leading author and practitioner in the field of Public Art. Partnering with municipal governments, other artists and writers, ecologists, scientists and institutions, she uses the power of public art to transform neglected urban spaces into vibrant installations that can save bees, preserve birds, and become new community spaces, all while teaching members of the public how to become creative participants, citizen scientists, urban gardeners and ecological crusaders. She has created award-winning public art installations throughout Canada, the USA and Mexico, including "As The Crow Flies," one of the longest public art installations in Canada.

Chloe Lloyd

Clementyne is a Songwriter, Performer, and Producer based in Vancouver, BC, Canada. With a background in audio engineering and music production, she takes inspiration from 70s pop and fuses it with modern recording mediums to create her unique sound.

Haig Armen

Music technology, Design

Haig Armen is a Professor and Designer living in Vancouver, Canada. For the last 6 years Haig has lead the Interaction Design Major at Emily Carr University of Art + Design. His research explores the intersection of design and programming, focusing on data visualization, gestural interfaces and music technology. His most recent efforts are in design-led entrepreneurship and creating new musical instruments using emerging technologies. Haig's background is in music and architecture with an extensive career as a professional musician and composer. Over the past two decades Haig has designed interactive work for prestigious clients like CBC, BMW, Chanel & Nokia. As a producer of CBC Radio 3′s groundbreaking online magazine during 2001-2005, Haig has received international design awards including Webby Awards, Prix Italia and Art Director’s Club of New York. When Haig's not teaching or hanging out with his family he can be found playing jazz guitar, hacking instruments and coding.

Jessica McMann

Jessica McMann is a Cree musician, contemporary dancer and choreographer. Her recent compositions and soundscapes explore Indigenous Identity and history. She has been dancing fancy shawl and hoop dance for 16 years, and has had the opportunity to present contemporary and traditional work at festivals across Western Canada, and tour Northern Europe. Currently her personal experience, Cree and Blackfoot language, and the strength of Indigenous women guide her current contemporary dance work. Her work has been shown at AlterNative: IndigiQueer, Talking Stick Festival (Vancouver 2012, 2013) Kootenay Cultural Festival (2012, 2015, 2016) Fairy Tales Film Festival (2012), ASTAM; Cree Festival (2012), Coastal First Nations Dance Festival (2011,2012, 2014, 2017) Vancouver Queer Film Festival (2011), Q the Arts Festival (2011), 7a*11d (2010). Her most recent work was shown at the Urban Shaman Gallery in Winnipeg as part of "The 60's Scoop; A place between." She has also toured in Sweden, Netherlands, and Belgium. She has created soundtracks for the ITWE Collective, performed with the Ambrose University Chamber Orchestra and the Foothills Philharmonic Orchestra, and was a guest musician for Laura Vinson and the Free Spirit. She also is a regular dance artist in Calgary schools.

Marie-Pascale Lafrenière

Makeup, Feminist-based art

Marie-Pascale Lafrenière is a post-media feminist artist from Gatineau, Quebec. She obtained her bachelor’s degree at Université du Québec en Outaouais in 2017 before pursuing an MFA at Emily Carr University of Art + Design. Her work questions the relations between female representation and mental health. In her performances, videos and art objects, she explores the ways in which pop culture and social media are redefining our perception of the female gender. She also draws inspiration from her own experiences with mental illness. In 2016, she was awarded the Scholarship of Excellence in Visual Arts by the Université du Québec en Outaouais and Axenéo7.

Ron Burnett

President + Vice-Chancellor, Emily Carr University of Art + Design

Dr. Burnett served as President + Vice-Chancellor of Emily Carr University of Art + Design from 1996-2018. He received the Order of Canada in 2013 and the Order of British Columbia in 2015. He was awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government in 2010 and received the International Digital Media and Arts Association Outstanding Leadership Award. Holding a BA, MA and PhD from McGill University in media arts, communications and cultural studies, Burnett began his career at Vanier College where he founded the Creative Arts Department. He later worked at LaTrobe University and became Director of the Graduate Program in Communications at McGill University. Burnett is also a photographer and filmmaker. Authoring over 150 essays and articles in books and journals globally, his writings on film were among the first published in Canada. He developed one of the first academic websites in Canada, and actively blogs on education, culture and the media.

Teodoro Monsalve

Neotropical painter

Hailing from Emily Carr University of Art + Design, Monsalve's practice includes painting, drawing, printmaking, installation and performance. Currently addressing interculturality, place and metamorphosis, he draws from his home country of Ecuador and his personal experience in Canada to create his multicultural voice. He has also explored motifs within the natural world of the Andes and the Amazon region of Ecuador, opening dialogue in historic landscape painting, and the exotic and the sublime experience of nature through the use of sacred plants and shamanic ceremonies.