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C A N N O P Y

Art is True North

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Hubs & Huddles column of Cannopy Magazine, which focuses on multi-purpose performance centres
Ensemble column, which highlights classical artists and ensen, which highlights classical artists and ensembles
Ellington column, which features jazz vocalists and instrumentalists
Studio Sessions column, which focuses on in-depth artist profiles — particularly visual artists in their creative spaces
Materials column, which focuses on artists working across various creative media; Profiling Various Creative Media
Spaces column, which highlights galleries anSpaces column, which highlights galleries and exhibit venuesd exhibit venues
Fourth Wall column, which focuses on the global theatre industry
 In Motion column, which focuses on the global dance industry
In Focus column, which highlights the global film industry
Alt.itude column, which focuses on global alternative music
Homegrown column, which highlights Canadian alternative music
Arts & Letters column, which focuses on essays, opinions, and ideas related to the arts

Art for Environmental Consciousness

Three Artists Activating Art in the Fight Against Climate Change

WORDS BY LEILA REFAHI

NOV 07, 2022 | ISSUE 10

As an artist focusing on endangered animals, I travelled to Malax, Finland in the fall of 2017 to join the Malakta Art Factory’s residency program. I was invited to the Merenkurkku School in Vaasa to perform an art project during my stay, and I designed one that aimed to teach students about fur farms and how the leather industry violates animal rights. We gave students materials to create artworks on this theme, and they created origami birds using paper that was printed with animal fur patterns. Afterwards, we configured these paper birds into an installation that was showcased in the school hall. I travelled to Germany and Iran in the following years where I led the same art projects, and each time I found myself continually amazed by the engagement of the students, their interaction with the process, their eagerness to create art, and also their conversations about animal rights. These experiences raised new ideas for me, and they also made me reconsider the relationship between art and environmental justice.


Throughout art history, nature has long served as the source of inspiration for artists. This influence...

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