In-depth Artist Profiles ⎯ Entering their creative workspaces, profiling artists to discuss the why behind their art. STUDIO SESSIONS IN-DEPTH ARTIST PROFILES — Entering their creative workspaces, profiling artists to discuss the why behind their art. Read More The Check In: Quinn Rockliff ISSUE 16 | HAMILTON | STUDIO SESSIONS INTERVIEW — Balancing art, livelihood, and integrity in an age of endless content Read More Colour Me Senseless: Helen Beard ISSUE 15 | LONDON | STUDIO SESSIONS INTERVIEW ─ In an aesthetic ecosystem that favours monotone greys, this UK artist is bringing sexy back with bold colours Read More Phantom Details: Agata Wierzbicka ISSUE 14 | WARSAW | STUDIO SESSIONS “If you want to create and you have such a strenuous need, it won't matter to you if you have a large or small studio” Read More Quinn Rockliff ISSUE 6 | TORONTO | STUDIO SESSIONS Drawing strength and self-hood through nude self-portraiture in an image-obsessed era Read More Naledi Tshegofatso Modupi ISSUE 16 | JOHANNESBURG | STUDIO SESSIONS INTERVIEW ─ Where heritage meets modernity: vibrant portraits that refuse erasure and celebrate sisterhood Read More CLOISTRAL: Marija Tiurina ISSUE 12 | HAARLEM | STUDIO SESSIONS Illustrating the fascinating tension between the familiar and the fantastic Read More Iryna Maksymova ISSUE 12 | LVIV | STUDIO SESSIONS The Ukrainian artist contrasting the hyper-masculine imagery of the war with harmonious female figures Read More Floyd Kuptana: Urban Hunter ISSUE 6 | TORONTO | STUDIO SESSIONS Celebrating the life of an Indigenous Artist Read More Toe Fish ISSUE 16 | TORONTO | STUDIO SESSION INTERVIEW ─ On the struggle to create in a city that can’t afford its artists Read More Facetime: Kachelle Knowles ISSUE 13 | NASSAU | STUDIO SESSIONS INTERVIEW — “Living in a nation that relies on tourism has convinced people that looking ‘less Black’ is more tolerable.” Read More Bree Stallings ISSUE 6 | CHARLOTTE | STUDIO SESSIONS Artist; Community Leader Read More Victoria Kagalovska ISSUE 9 | KYIV | STUDIO SESSION Before the Invasion Read More Alma Singer’s Rules for Living ISSUE 16 | CAMBRIDGE | STUDIO SESSIONS INTERVIEW — With humour, colour, and a childlike scrawl, Alma Singer reclaims vulgarity as a tool for survival and truth-telling in the gallery. Read More Is the studio a public place? ISSUE 14 | STUDIO SESSIONS INTERVIEW — William Kentridge, the eminent South African painter and star of Self-Portrait as a Coffee Pot, weighs in Read More Anna Zvyagintseva ISSUE 10 | MAASTRICHT/KYIV "How can I even make art now?"

Galleries & Exhibit Venues ⎯ From fledgling outposts to mega-galleries, profiling exhibit venues large and small. SPACES GALLERIES & EXHIBIT VENUES — From fledgling outposts to mega-galleries, profiling exhibit venues large and small. Read More Floyd Kuptana at Gallery Arcturus ISSUE 16 | TORONTO | SPACES INTERVIEW — A tribute to the late Inuit sculptor whose vivid, haunting works continue to challenge how Canada remembers its artists. Read More In Praise of the Flâneur : Justin Wong ISSUE 13 | TORONTO | SPACES The prolific street photographer reveals perspectives on Toronto, Tokyo, and time Read More Elsewhere ISSUE 15 | OTTAWA & TORONTO | SPACES Anishare and HUM Microgallery are two exhibition platforms closing the gap between space and spectator Read More A MOCA Retrospective ISSUE 14 | TORONTO | SPACES INTERVIEW — As a trio of fall exhibits wrap up, Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas reflects on the powers of hybridity Read More MOCA Spring 2025 ISSUE 15 | TORONTO | SPACES As Toronto’s Sterling Road evolves into a vibrant creative hub, its resident museum-cum-gallery space stays ahead of the curve with innovative exhibits Read More Warbling ISSUE 14 | LONDON | SPACES INTERVIEW — Robyn Graham clears space for quiet art Read More The Home Universe: What Makes the Object MILAN | ISSUE 15 | PARTNERSHIP RETROSPECTIVE ─ For Milan Design Week 2025, Hermès returned to La Pelota with its new scenography by Charlotte Macaux Perelman and Alexis Fabry Read More A Walk With Amal ISSUE 8 | ON THE ROAD | SPACES Meet “Little” Amal, the 3.5 metre puppet and beating heart of The Walk.

Essays, Opinions, & Ideas ⎯ Profiling the art of the written word, with perspectives on the ideas behind the art and the artists that inspire us. ARTS & LETTERS ESSAYS, OPINIONS, & IDEAS — Profiling the art of the written word, with perspectives on the ideas behind the art and artists that inspire us. Read More No Neutral Ground ISSUE 16 | SANTARCANGELO DI ROMAGNA | ARTS & LETTERS Why cultural institutions must take a stand as authoritarianism chips away at freedom and democracy Read More Skank Bloc Bologna: Alternative Art Spaces ISSUE 15 | BOLOGNA | ARTS & LETTERS Can art spaces that eschew commercial activity truly sustain themselves without succumbing to corporatization? Read More Ross Gay On Inciting Joy ISSUE 10 | INDIANA | ARTS & LETTERS The celebrated poet on his latest collection, and holding space for gratitude Read More Alexi Murdoch on Moral Urgency ISSUE 16 | ARTS & LETTERS INTERVIEW — Why artists must confront power, take risks, and answer the call of Gaza Read More There’s Always This Year ISSUE 13 | COLUMBUS | ALT.ITUDE The celebrated poet and essayist on basketball, time, and the city Read More Anis Mojgani’s Radical Empathy ISSUE 11 | OREGON | ARTS & LETTERS INTERVIEW — In conversation with the Poet Laureate of Oregon Read More J-L Cauvin: Yes, Art is Dead ISSUE 16 | THE BRONX | ARTS & LETTERS INTERVIEW ─ As social media algorithms reward sameness and stunt discovery, one comedian’s struggle for visibility shows what’s at stake for artists everywhere Read More Return to the Rat Park ISSUE 12 | TORONTO | ARTS & LETTERS Emerging research at the University of Toronto strengthens the link between social isolation and increased vulnerability to addiction Read More Environmental Consciousness ISSUE 10 | ARTS & LETTERS Three Artists Activating Art in the Fight Against Climate Change

Classical Artists & Ensembles ⎯ Covering classical music on a global scale: from soloists and quartets, to composers and leading orchestras. ENSEMBLE CLASSICAL ARTISTS & ENSEMBLES — Covering classical music on a global scale: from soloists and quartets, to composers and leading orchestras. Read More Disobedient: Anastasia Rizikov ISSUE 16 | PARIS | ENSEMBLE INTERVIEW — Three EPs and one vision to reimagine classical music for a modern era Read More Off The Record: Peter Gregson ISSUE 15 | ENSEMBLE The Scottish composer, producer, and cellist rediscovers simplicity with his latest self-titled album Read More Legends, Myths and Lavender ISSUE 13 | ENSEMBLE What happens in Debussy, and in Moccio’s music, is not a direct mimetic relationship of sounds to images but an open mesh of possibilities Read More Bruce Liu’s Year with Tchaikovsky ISSUE 14 | MONTREAL | ENSEMBLE INTERVIEW — Music intended for amateur pianists finds expert hands in this latest recording of The Seasons Read More Yolanda Bruno’s Dear Jeanne ISSUE 16 | TORONTO | ENSEMBLE INTERVIEW ─ On gut strings, gratitude, and the enduring generosity of Jeanne Lamon Read More Top 8 Albums That We're Listening PARTNERSHIP | ENSEMBLE Listen along with a free 30-day subscription to the world's largest catalogue of classical recordings Read More Lang Lang in France ISSUE 13 | ENSEMBLE The superstar Chinese pianist uncovers a garden of Gallic delights Read More The Staying Power of John Adams ISSUE 14 | LOS ANGELES | ENSEMBLE INTERVIEW — The composer reflects on "Frenzy", "City Noir", and why contemporary music is beginning to atrophy Read More Sokolovic and Sylliboy on Loss and Land ISSUE 15 | MONTRÉAL | ENSEMBLE INTERVIEW ─ You Can Die Properly Now, a new work for soprano and orchestra, is a meeting place for Indigenous and diasporic homesickness Read More Steve Reich Collected Works ISSUE 15 | LOS ANGELES | ENSEMBLE A 27-disc box set delivers a life’s worth of music to a new generation of listeners Read More Top 10 Classical Albums of 2024 ENSEMBLE Listen along with a free 30-day subscription to the world's largest catalogue of classical recordings Read More Reflections with Timo Andres ISSUE 12 | NEW YORK | ENSEMBLE The pianist and composer on bringing the latest release by Sufjan Stevens to life Read More CANNOPY partners with IDAGIO! Plus an exclusive interview with John Adams on his latest compositions Read More The Best Classical Albums From January ENSEMBLE Listen along with a free 30-day subscription to the world's largest catalogue of classical recordings Read More The Mundane Minimalism of Max Richter DECEMBER 10, 2024 | OXFORDSHIRE On the Richter scale, this latest album goes to the max Read More Anthony Barfield ISSUE 8 | NEW YORK | ENSEMBLE INTERVIEW — The "Invictus" composer discusses barriers, collaborators, and his earned ambition

Lara St. John’s She, Her, Hers Lara St. John by Stacy Kendrick The Celebrated Violinist on Fighting Classical Music’s Toxic Background. WORDS BY ARLAN VRIENS | NEW YORK | MUSIC MAR 16, 2023 | ISSUE 10 Canadian-born violinist Lara St. John is a passionate champion of music that challenges the norm. With her 1779 Guadagnini violin in hand, she has appeared at concert halls worldwide, been invested into the Order of Canada, and recently launched her album of solo violin music by women composers, She, Her, Hers. For all her success, St. John is also all too familiar with classical music’s darker sides. Her 2019 exposé about the abuse she suffered at the Curtis Institute of Music sent shockwaves through the classical music world and continues to embolden victims to tell their stories and challenge institutional powers. St. John joined smART Magazine from New York for a frank discussion tackling some of classical music’s most intractable problems: rampant protection of predators, misogynistic and white-centred repertoire programming, and how to find healing in a marred musical world.

Sebastian Gaskin Debuts with “LOVECHILD” Sebastian Gaskin INTERVIEW — The Toronto-based multi-instrumentalist on his unique mixology of Indigenous and pop idioms Words by Eva Stone-Barney | Interview by Michael Zarathus-Cook | Photography by Norman Wong ISSUE 15 | TORONTO | HOMEGROWN Sebastian Gaskin has had a busy couple of years. He won the Vince Fontaine Indigenous Song Award for "Medicine" at the 2024 SOCAN Awards, and previously earned a Western Canadian Music Award for R&B Artist of the Year and the Kevin Walters Songwriting Award in 2021. Gaskin’s singles “Ghost,” “Medicine” and “Cherie Amour” have topped Canadian Charts. It’s not difficult to see why: his music combines stylistic features from pop, R&B and indigenous sonic palettes to create something individual, honest. He describes the sounds of his childhood, growing up in Tataskweyak Cree Nation in Northern Manitoba in the early 2000s, where his mother kept the radio dialled to country stations and his grandmother, a respected community leader, belted out Southern gospel classics. The combinations of seemingly disparate musical idioms is a part of who he is, where he comes from. Most recently, Gaskin released “Song For Granny”, whose paired-down finger picking and vocals peaks listener’s interests before the addition of layered harmonies, rhythm guitar, and expressive percussion. “Everything will be alright, healing in time,” he sings, adding his voice to the choir of Indigenous artists asserting the pressing need for public expressions of Indigenous hope, joy and resilience. His debut album, LOVECHILD , will be released on February 21, 2025. CANNOPY x Sebastian Gaskin

BODY: Cassils "Becoming an Image", Performance Still No. 3 (Perth Institute of Contemporary Art, Perth International Performance Festival), 2019. Photo by Manuel Vason INTERVIEW — “What better way to push for trans presence and historical archives than to burn images of trans people into the eyes of cis beholders?” Words by Gus Lederman ISSUE 14 | LOS ANGELES | MATERIALS Casills by Dane Thibeault It’s circa November 2012, and a 2,000-pound monolith of clay sits in a blacked-out room at the ONE Archives in Los Angeles, a flashbulb hangs above it. Grunts and deep breaths are heard as images of a body in combat with this monolith are captured in fleeting flashes of light. This is the beginning of Cassils’s perpetual project, Becoming An Image , which has been evolving over the last decade as a continuous archive of trans visibility, violence, and aging. The project lives on as a counter to what seems to be the factory setting of our public discourse: the active erasure of this identity’s collective history. The spectrum of violence that exists around us—which we are losing sensitivity to at alarming rates—ranges from the gruesome broadcast of Israel’s attacks on Palestine and Lebanon to the subtle but intimate conflagration of anti-trans legislation being pushed in the United States. On the more intimate end of this spectrum, trans bodies are policed, displaced, invisibilized, and disempowered. A staged performance might be the last place we think of turning to in order to engender our resistance but Becoming An Image seems designed precisely to propel us into embodied action. Cassils, a transgender artist based in Los Angeles, confronts this brutality. In 2015, they were lit on fire for 14 seconds during a performance titled Inextinguishable Fire , at the National Theatre in London, England. A video of the performance was then presented, with the footage extended to fourteen minutes of slow burning, charging the audience with the dual task of witnessing the horrors of self-immolation and inferring the daily violence we are confronted with from this performance. Whether by being ensconced in fire, or beating the living hell out of a mound of clay, or being encased in an ice sculpture that melt through their own body heat— Tiresias (2011)—Cassils endures pain, discomfort, and exertion not as a necessary means to their work but as a cornerstone of its context and meaning-making. By refusing to turn away from this self-inflicted cruelty, they invite the audiences to follow suit as a co-conspirator. This is especially true of Becoming An Image , wherein the images created by momentary flashes of a synchronized bulb and camera are burned into the retina of the viewer. Absorbing these images, alongside Cassils’s evocative vocal performance, the audience is unavoidably confronted with the question of what it means to be a witness and bystander of violence that is intimate, global, and everything in between. "Becoming An Image" Performance Still No. 4 (ONE National Archives, Transactivations, Los Angeles), 2012. Photo by Eric Charles Cassils’s artistic lineage can be traced back to a long legacy of performance art, beginning with artists in the 1960s seeking to break out of the confines of galleries and their elitist exclusivity. Whereas performance art is often relegated to the esoteric isles of today’s artistic ecosystem, its roots can be found in the richly diverse soil of what Cassils describes as democratic art, as suitable for the white-box gallery as for the nightclubs they used to perform in. This “democratic” outlook also happens to be the most convenient one for an artist whose relentless output defies categorization─from sky typing ( In Plain Sight, 2020) to public protest ( VB Intervention , 2002). Their artistic output explores the trans experience not only through their own identity, but also through their art’s abilities to transcend conventions of form, material, and presentation. Interestingly, their body has become a living canvas where this variegated artistic experimentation is played out, which is all the more impactful considering the attempts to legislate and restrict trans bodies into a binary. "Becoming An Image", Performance Still No. 2 (Incendiary, MU, Eindoven, Netherlands), 2015. Photo by Rem Van Den Bosch Cassils’s artistry has transformed, over the last few decades, from a resource to spread awareness about trans liberation targeted at cisgender people, to an inherent practice of trans liberation. One of their most recent works, Human Measure (2022), is a contemporary dance piece with a cast of five trans and nonbinary performers. Confronting the recent rise of transphobic rhetoric and anti-trans legislation in the States, the work gives the stage to trans and non-binary people to articulate their own presence, indulge in intimacy, and embrace the multiplicity and fluidity of their bodies. The expansive world-building of Cassils’s output aims to bring trans and nonbinary people into the process, fostering a culture of solidarity through platforms for imagining the possibility of a different reality. Another component of Human is the creation of live cyanotypes, following an ophthalmologic streak that Cassils has been exploring over the years. Here they play with the duality of darkness and low lighting in opposition to flashes of light, an experiment founded in their ophthalmological study of how images can be “seared” into retinas─which dates back to the inception of Becoming An Image . The result of this experimentation is a process of hijacking the physiology of the audience—their collective body —to experience living photographs and become living archives of an otherwise ephemeral performance. What better way to make the case for trans presence and the presentation of their histories than to burn images of trans people into the eyes of cis beholders? "Resiliance of the 20%", Installation Image No. 1 (Body of Work, Ronald Feldman Gallery, New York), 2013. Photo by Megan Paetzhold The foundations of this argument were laid by Cassils with Becoming An Image , and continues to interrogate the hurdles of trans visibility in a quest to illuminate a collective truth. This argument feels relevant now more than ever, as we witness Israel’s destruction of the libraries, universities, and archival consciousness of the Palestinian people. When material archives are decimated by 2,000-pound bombs, the idea of Palestine can be kept alive through its people─and in the moral retina of its supporters around the world. "Ghost" (Body of Work, Ronald Feldman Gallery, New York), 2013. Photo by Megan Paetzhold It’s a privilege to get to construct your own image, to choose the memories that linger in the minds of those who perceive you. Cassils recognizes their privileged positionality as a white transmasculine person and understands the danger of drawing a parallel between the violence they perform on a soundstage and the violence of genocide on the global stage. They note that the stakes—and bodies involved—are very different. From Turtle Island to Palestine, trans and Indigenous histories are being made invisible to create a palatable “archive” of the dominant narrative. "Becoming An Image", Performance Still No. 1 (National Theater Studio, SPILL Festival, London), 2013. Photo by Manuel Vason Becoming An Image is evocative precisely because it is an archive—particularly of trans violence. The block of clay begins as a clean-cut monolith and is transformed at the end to a sculpture of performed violence, embedded with every knuckle-mark and imprint of the artist’s body. Throughout the performance, the pitch blackness of the setting forces Cassils to use the encircling audience as a guiding map, bringing them back to the clay monolith when they get lost in the darkness. The stage, therefore, is always set for communal action, where the archive cannot be created by Cassils alone. In the audience of such a performance, the darkness forces us together to rely on each other for pathfinding. Though embodied in the performer’s person, Becoming An Image allows us to practice this communal resilience in real time, and reminds us that an alternative future is possible. Cannopy x Cassils

Profile: Sarah Kinsley’s Escaper Sarah Kinsley “To have chosen to work with a female producer simply because she was a woman would have risked the integrity of the project.” Words by Eva Stone-Barney | Illustration by Dane Thibeault ISSUE 14 | ALT.ITUDE Sarah Kinsley couldn’t resist the pull of indie music. It was classical music that the California-born, New York-based breakout artist studied as a child: she grew up playing violin and piano, performing with orchestras, and learning music theory. She has since broken away from the classical world, though, moving with confidence into popular music. Her viral singles Over + Under and The King , and most recently her debut album, Escaper , marry emotional lyrics, an indie/alternative production sensibility, and expansive instrumentation to create a palette of sonic colors that is entirely her own. Escaper tells a story of grief, and her desire to steal away from the death of a close friend. Although it explores a very specific period of pain in her own life, Kinsley’s loss resonates much farther afield. “There are beautiful things worth keeping us […] alive,” she sings on the album’s sixth track “Beautiful Things,” a sentiment that rings as true after the loss of a friend as it does in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic; at the height of numerous ongoing geopolitical conflicts; and as climate change continues to produce fatal conditions the world over. On her North American tour, Kinsley shared her grief with a live audience for the first time. To her surprise, this was a healing experience, which brought a whole new perspective to her own words. While creating the album was one form of healing, sharing it proved to be another. Sarah Kinsley by Kalya Ramu for Issue 12 of Cannopy Kinsley saw Escaper come to life with the help of GRAMMY-award winning producer John Congleton, whose previous collaborators include Sharon van Etten, St. Vincent, Regina Spektor, Angel Olsen and Canadian duo Tegan & Sara. Angel Olsen’s fourth studio album, All Mirrors , co-produced with Congleton, was particularly influential for Kinsley. She remembers being totally taken in by the dream-like sounds of the record’s string parts, Olsen’s mesmerizing vocals, and the wide array of percussion and electronics. The similarities are evident: like Escaper , All Mirrors marries epic symphonic production qualities with personal, reflective prose. Congleton was something of a bucket-list collaborator for Kinsley, she shares. Having produced all of her previously released EPs and singles by herself in the comfort of her apartment, the process of working with someone else on her music wasn’t entirely evident. Kinsley had never had to describe her musical ideas to a collaborator, had never needed to put her instincts into words, or outline the ways her musical style often challenges genre categorization. It took developing a shared vocabulary — a clear, efficient means of communication – for the pair to start making magic together. Fans of Kinsley’s might be surprised at her decision to work with Congleton, After all, the rising-star has been fairly outspoken about the lack of female producers recognized for their work in popular music. In 2022, only 2.8% of producers across 1000 popular songs were women, and in 2024, for a fifth consecutive year, no women were nominated for Producer of the Year at the GRAMMY Awards. These are facts of which Kinsley, a producer herself, is all-too-aware, and ones she hopes will change in her lifetime.While she remains committed to being part of that change, and to amplifying the voices of fellow female producers as much as possible, it is important to her that these efforts do not lead to tokenism. Female producers should be recognized for the quality of the work that they do, they should be hired and collaborated with because they have interesting and valuable creative ideas – not simply because they are women. Kinsley therefore stands by the choice to work with Congleton on her debut album. She chose to work with a man, yes, but beyond that, with someone who was exciting and inspiring to her. She believes that truly successful musical partnerships need to be organic and sincere. To have chosen to work with a female producer simply because she was a woman would have risked the integrity of the project. Kinsley took her grief and made it into something beautiful, sometimes even upbeat. She took her classical training and spun it into indie-pop. She took the lack of female producers in her industry, and created a producing partnership with one of her heroes. It’s hard to say what Kinsley will do next. We’ll be listening.

The Road To Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs A Brief History of Disney: Part 3 WORDS BY RICHARD OUZOUNIAN | LIGHTHOUSE IMMERSIVE The decision to embark on the production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was a momentous one on many levels. Creating the first full-length, cel-animated feature film in full Technicolor emphatically placed Disney at the head of the pack and generated an incredible amount of both admiration and resentment in the world of animation. It carried an incredible financial risk with it as well. No one really had an accurate idea what a feature-length animated movie would cost, since there had never been one in the sound era before. Walt defied his closest advisers, including his wife Lillian and his brother Roy, by making the film. He had to mortgage his home to get things started and even had to turn to Bank of America for a loan to complete it. But for Walt, this was so much more than an exercise in showbusiness brinksmanship. He really believed that if his company were to grow, his artists and filmmakers had to learn how to tell the stories he had always dreamed of telling – stories larger than life that could make people laugh and cry at the same time. Walt was also smart enough to realize that his devoted team needed to grow and develop a skillset that was still beyond most of their reach. At one point, Walt commented, “I definitely believe that we cannot do the fantastic things based on the real, unless we first know the real.” Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was publicly announced in June of 1934. Walt not only had to make a feature, he had to train a team as well. He brought in renowned art instructor Don Graham to teach his animators how to draw from life and empowered other people like Ben Sharpsteen and Dave Hand to help provide a unifying force in the stories that were being constructed. To Walt, “If the story is good, the picture may be good, but if the story is weak, good color, music, and animation cannot save it.” Someone once asked Sharpsteen what Disney’s secret weapon was and he said, “We analyze.” During the film’s lengthy development period, that kind of analysis greatly benefited Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs . What was initially conceived as a comic romp acquired more depth and humanity, as most clearly evidenced in the change in the depiction of the evil Queen from a rotund troublemaker to an elegantly beautiful villainess. Walt elevated two of his animators to a higher level in Snow White by entrusting the two major characters to them. Norm Ferguson, who had previously animated Pluto and the Big Bad Wolf, came into his own as the primary animator for the Queen’s persona of an ugly hag. Hamilton Luske became one of the two primary animators for Snow White (along with Grim Natwick, the creator of Betty Boop). Luske’s contribution was part of a distinguished career that would climax with his winning an Academy Award® for Special Visual Effects that included the animated sequences in Mary Poppins (1964). Arooj Aftab, Vijay Iyer & Shahzad Ismaily LISTEN NOW https://loveinexile.lnk.to/pre order Cody Fry LISTEN NOW www.codyfry.com Víkingur Ólafsson ON TOUR NOW www.vikingurolafsson.com Samara Joy LISTEN NOW www.samarajoy.com Bruce Liu ON TOUR NOW www.bruce-liu.com Gimeno Conducts Beethoven 5 TICKETS ON SALE NOW www.tso.ca/concerts-and-events Disney Animation: Immersive Experience TICKETS ON SALE NOW CLICK HERE Another advance that made this project so special was the vertical multiplane camera, a Disney invention which allowed numerous images to move past the camera at various distances, creating a three-dimensional sense of motion in animation. First used in the short film The Old Mill (1937), the multiplane camera added an extra level of artistry and believability to Snow White, proving useful until the advent of computer animation. The team on Snow White worked seamlessly together, even though Walt confessed years later that, “I didn’t know what I had or what would happen to it.” The film became an enormous success, justifying all the risks that Walt had taken and premiering to a celebrity audience at the Carthay Circle Theatre in Hollywood on December 21, 1937. The review in Variety summed it up: “So perfect is the illusion, so tender the romance and fantasy, so emotional are certain portions when the acting of the characters strikes a depth comparable to the sincerity of human players, that the film approaches real greatness.” Walt had achieved his artistic goal. And the financial news was welcome as well. In its original run, it earned $7,846,000 in international box office receipts. But best of all, he had a creative team with whom he could confidently move into the future. Issue 11 – 1NTERSECT1ONS Sign Up to Keep Up ! Our newsletters bring you the best in the visual and performing arts. Exclusive interviews. Global Coverage. Local Perspectives. Substack Medium

Naledi Tshegofatso Modupi Naledi Tshegofatso Modupi INTERVIEW ─ Where heritage meets modernity: vibrant portraits that refuse erasure and celebrate sisterhood Words by Abuk Lual | Illustration by Dane Thibeault ISSUE 16 | JOHANNESBURG | STUDIO SESSIONS There’s strength that exudes from a woman when she’s in her most vulnerable state. Something about resilience that translates into power. Stories of vulnerable experiences can sometimes evoke powerlessness, but it is empowering to have conversations about these experiences. Naledi Tshegofatso Modupi is a South African multidisciplinary artist primarily based in Johannesburg. Her work focuses on themes of femininity, vulnerability, culture, and identity, where her art conveys the multifacets of womanhood. Modupi works with different mediums including ceramic, illustration, painting, and photography to support storytelling by and for underrepresented individuals. Her series 31 Faces 31 Voices conveys thirty-one women in portraits that embrace their stories, their personalities, and their beauty. Too often, the perspectives of Black women are overlooked or obscured, so Modupi creates an open space for expression and an outlet for their voices to be heard. The significance of her series enables conversations about Black representation and vulnerability. Modupi embodies the role of a protector; she helps to reclaim these women’s narratives, while challenging the narrative of vulnerability as a weakness. Rather than hyper-realism, her illustrations use colour and linear elements to accentuate individuality, and to express the confidence it inspires. Within these lines, their voices are heard, and their evolving identities take shape. The use of linear elements supports the natural beauty of each woman as Modupi contours their faces throughout her portraits. She outlines cheekbones, smile lines, eyelashes, full lips, and — most importantly — details of textured hairstyles. Accessories such as beads, earrings, and headwraps affirm a proud connection to African heritage and culture. Some of her works evoke African decorative masks, using outlined facial features and colour blocking drawn from African landscapes and fabrics. From warm tones like red and orange to cool hues like blue and purple, the emotions of her characters seem to animate through the flowing colours that move across their faces and bodies. I love to see black women freely expressing themselves, especially how Modupi visually communicates the complexities of womanhood and celebrates sisterhood. For example, some of her work depicts women with a vertical line descending from the pupil. The artwork stood out for me because it’s common for black women to feel like their tears are not seen, and their pain isn’t acknowledged. Modupi creates an atmosphere in her work where this vulnerability is not only permitted but purposefully licensed. AESTHETIC ETIOLOGY Your South African heritage deeply inspires your subject matter, to what extent is that true for your aesthetic as well? NM ─ I can say that the varied and vibrant colours I use are strongly influenced by my Sepedi culture, which celebrates brightness, bold contrasts, and vibrancy. These tones reflect joy, energy, and presence, qualities that are central to how Sepedi people express identity and pride. At the same time, I’m merging these traditional influences with the modern world I grew up in. My upbringing in the city exposed me to contemporary aesthetics, design, and global culture, which I naturally weave into my work. On the other hand, my visits to family in rural areas exposed me to textures, colours, and contrasts that feel distinctly African. Raw, layered, and unapologetically real. In my art, these two worlds meet: the modern and the traditional, the polished and the “grungy.” I love exploring those contrasts, because they mirror the South African experience itself, where heritage and modernity exist side by side, both acknowledged and celebrated. Read the full interview with Naledi Modupi – and discover over 30 other artists and organizations – in Issue 16 .

Le Diamant Photography By Stephane Groleau - Courtesy Of Ex Machina A dynamic cultural beacon revived the past, repurposed for the present, and designed for the future WORDS BY ISABELLA ELIAS | QUÉBEC CITY | PERFORMING ARTS FEB 28, 2023 | ISSUE 11 Nested in the crux of the Upper and Lower Towns of Old Québec, Québec City, echoes of the past and visions of the future gleam along the faceted glass atrium of Le Diamant performing arts centre. Standing at the cultural intersection of the city, the architecture of the performance centre is a medley of historical and modern aesthetics. For Robert Lepage — actor, writer, designer, stage director, and Artistic Director of the multimedia company Ex Machina — the concept of Le Diamant is a tool that allows for the revitalization and maximal dissemination of Ex Machina’s creative output on the world stage. Originally operating out of La Caserne, an old fire hall, the 25-year-old company began conceiving of Le Diamant (“The Diamond”) as the technical and spatial demands of their productions began pushing the limits of their relatively sizable outpost. The result of this conceptual exploration is an audacious multifunctional powerhouse of the arts, dazzlingly engraved on the epicentre of Canada’s Francophone history.

J-L Cauvin: Yes, Art is Dead J-L Cauvin INTERVIEW ─ As social media algorithms reward sameness and stunt discovery, one comedian’s struggle for visibility shows what’s at stake for artists everywhere Words by Samir Jaffer | Illustration by Dane Thibeault ISSUE 16 | THE BRONX | ARTS & LETTERS A brief scroll through the YouTube comment section of comedian J-L Cauvin — a New-York-based stand-up best known for his uncanny Donald Trump impressions and sharp political satire — will fill you in on just how pervasive the influence of social media algorithms is. In his latest special, Donald Trump vs. Canada , Cauvin delivered a tour de force of a show on a chilly Wednesday evening in April that brought a full house roaring with laughter at Yuk Yuk’s in Toronto. That same show is available for free on Cauvin’s YouTube channel and has left viewers asking, in resounding fashion, “WHY ISN’T HE MORE FAMOUS?!” The answer to that question, based on Cauvin’s comedy career trajectory since 2020, is that the algorithms which curate and disseminate content on social media are meticulously selective in a manner that favours homogenised content, manicured to the point of banality. Oftentimes, the algorithm appears to cull content that diverges from the established values of those who program and operate said algorithms. Given the wide reach and instantly gratifying nature of social media, platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and X have become a primary destination for consuming any and all forms of entertainment, encompassing everything from art to “content”. The never-ending scroll has become a shortcut that bypasses critical audience engagement and conscious selection, thereby shortchanging genuinely talented and dedicated artists whose work gets relegated by the algorithm and is never seen by a wider audience. Moreover, as Cauvin recounts, even people who have followed and subscribed to him have told him of instances where they believed he had left social media and comedy at large because he never showed up in their feeds anymore, despite the fact that he continues to put out a refined and plentiful body of work. As algorithms whittle down what is made popular among the masses, one can only ask: where does this leave artists with an eye for creative expression rather than marketing and the ability to game the algorithmic system? The content of art and entertainment used to reign king while marketing reigned queen; today, marketing is the whole royal family, the castle, and the entire kingdom. As a result, every creative is susceptible to algorithmic fallout ─ not just artists like Cauvin who are perpetually on the verge of breaking through, but A-listers and established thespians already in the public eye. Actor Maya Hawke of Stranger Things fame has been candid about directors in the film industry who, when pitching their film for investment to producers, are instructed to cast actors who hit certain follower counts if the director wants their production funded. Denzel Washington, speaking on the state of art and fame during a recent press tour, was quoted as saying, “You don’t have to be good now. You just have to be eccentric, you just have to do something stupid, you just have to get people to follow you.” In the case of Cauvin, he’s not just some content creator doing the “stupid thing” that will get people to follow him. He prides himself on his published work and his extensive catalogue of material reaching back as far as the early 2000’s. Most famously, his impersonation of Donald Trump is a far cry from a mere impression. His short-form videos online aren’t just an exercise in catching eyes; rather he seeks to disarm viewers with an obvious laugh as a way to slip in an honest reflection of the man whose mind he seems to briefly inhabit, as only a studious expert of his craft could do. Cauvin flies in rarefied air when he dons the red hat and the ill-fitting wig on stage, but he has been failed time and time again by public policy, propagandistic agenda, and wannabe technocrats who shape social media algorithms. In an age where word of mouth and sheer talent no longer carry even a quarter of the weight that manufactured online virality does, Cauvin and artists of his ilk are examples of determination and purity of creative will. Many question whether or not art is dead, and the conversation will rage on as long as it remains relevant. The fact of the matter, however, is that art cannot survive without those who cannot help but follow a calling. The number of people who can be ascribed as such will dwindle as the machinations of the algorithm bear down on us all. So, yes , art is dying ─ and Cauvin thinks it’s too late. Preview Clip: Art is Dead?

In the Garden: Basia Bulat Basia Bulat by Richmond Lam The Canadian folk artist talks Montréal, motherhood, and finding new music in old lyrics. Words by Sherene Almjawer | Illustration by Kalya Ramu ISSUE 9 | MONTREAL | HOMEGROWN For over 15 years, Canadian folk singer-songwriter Basia Bulat has imbued her music with expressive lyricism and a uniquely strung voice capable of flooring an audience of any size. Her musicality is informed by various influences, from classical — having played the upright bass in her high school’s ensemble — to Polish disco. Since the release of her self-titled, independent EP in 2005, Bulat has gathered an international fanbase equally devoted to her first songs on ukulele as they are to the songs on her latest album, which are accompanied by a string orchestration. This album, The Garden , is a reimagining of some of the most celebrated songs from the artist’s discography, projected through the looking glass of the artist’s stylistic evolution. It also marks her first project since having a baby a year ago with her husband, who is also a musician (under the moniker Legal Vertigo). Bulat joins Cannopy Magazine from Montréal to talk about how The Garden welcomes many versions of spring and celebrates a city that’s inspired her music. How did you arrive at the idea to recreate the songs on The Garden for string instrumentation? BB ── I was a bit isolated over the past couple years and had a lot of old jazz, folk, and country compilation vinyls that I was listening to. I was struck by how a lot of my favourite artists had a tendency to revisit songs and play with them. For some of these songs, we have larger orchestral arrangements to create the feeling that I love about chamber ensembles, quartet, and classical music, where each instrument has their own part and they all play together in conversation. A lot of these songs had strings, but as the accoutrement; now, we give the strings the heart of the song to carry on the message. In a song like “Infamous”, the strings are the rocket fuel to send the song into space. With the version of the songs in The Garden , it’s like we’re looking down on Earth, or onto our past selves. I love both arrangements, but in terms of that time warp feeling that we all had in 2020, and because I was pregnant, I was conscious of changes. I am the same, but also different. It was a really fun way to explore all of that. You were a stand-up bassist in high school. How much did the orchestral setting influence your musical thinking? BB ── It’s hard to find people who had the easiest time in high school, but some are lucky enough to have a refuge, and playing in ensembles was my refuge. That’s why I particularly took to Béla Bartók, a Hungarian composer, because that was the first time I felt a connection to music that everybody was listening to. There’s an element to the melodies, scales, and chords in the music my Polish grandmother played that embodied the feeling of being present and excited. I guess I’ve always been chasing that feeling a little bit in my own music, but this was a way to return and renew that feeling. How has Montréal inspired you and changed over the last decade? BB ── Maybe it’s because I’m not from Montréal, but I always romanticised it. I romanticised the music and poetry. Whether you wanna call it the universe’s kismet, something in this city collaborated with the universe to give me a lot of my songs and recordings. I found the love of my life and had my baby girl here, so I really fell in love with the city. Maybe it’s the energy stored in the mountains or in the streets. It’s a bigger feeling that sometimes I’m still on the outside of, but I think I’m fascinated by that. One year into it, what’s surprised you the most about motherhood? BB ── The one thing that the books don’t prepare you for is how much everything you thought you dealt with in your past comes back for round two. It’s about coming to terms with yourself in terms of your parenting approach, or what your fears and hopes are. It’s like a secret level unlocked in the video game of, “Okay. Everything I do she sees and internalises instantly,” and that reflects back to myself. What are the things I wanted to teach myself or learn that I’m still evolving? Like a garden, it’s still evolving. Speaking of gardens, do you have a favourite one? BB ── The garden I spent the most time in is my mother’s. She and my grandmother taught me everything I know in that garden. My grandmother taught me how to make flower crowns out of clovers in the grass. She’s a real green thumb. Her and my mother lived in an apartment building in Poland and, in their village at the time, there were community plots. There was beauty and survival in her methods of gardening and nothing was wasted. There was a kind of impulse to come back every day to check on everything, to be very dedicated to details. So, that’s the one I spent the most time in and the one that I love, probably, the most as well. As a kid, I planted trees with my brother there. We bought a live Christmas tree one year, and now it’s 30 feet high. There are a lot of memories in that garden. What are you listening to and who inspires you at the moment? BB ── Because my daughter’s almost one now, I’m returning to a lot of the music I listened to from when she was born. I was actually listening to Jimmy Cliff when she was born. He is someone that has always inspired me because he sings with so much joy and pain. He has so much defiance, strength, and tenderness in the same phrase. I’m listening to a kitschy genre of Polish music called “disco polo”. I’m interested in exploring this because I haven’t found any women singers of this era of disco pol0. I’m also listening to Etta James, the latest José González, a Turkish singer named Özdemir Erdoğan, Roger — this incredible singer and love-song writer — and to João Gilberto’s Amoroso . What’s your favourite Legal Vertigo song? BB ── ( Laughs ) Probably “Feeling Finite” from his previous album, Tragic Future Film Star ! If I have to pick one of the new ones that he’s working on, it’d be “Sunsets”. The chorus goes: “Looking at sunsets is free, or at least it used to be until recently when they made time into money,” and it’s really good.

Emmet Cohen: FOREVER MODERN Emmet Cohen by Kalya Ramu Renowned Jazz pianist takes the pandemic in stride WORDS BY JOHN NYMAN | NEW YORK | MUSIC APR 11, 2023 | ISSUE 5 Joining in from the book-and-houseplant-lined walls of his Harlem walk-up minutes after getting off the yoga mat, renowned jazz pianist Emmet Cohen cut a different figure from his slick, tuxedo-clad appearance on the cover of his newest album, Future Stride . Both personas, however, are very much part of Cohen’s creative philosophy. Buoyed by his deep gratitude for both the contemporary New York jazz community and the older generation of jazz masters he’s studied and performed with in his ongoing Masters Legacy Series, Cohen’s thoughts give an invigorating glimpse at the insight and innovation behind his contributions to a genre he calls “forever modern.”