LAUNCH Festival Continues to Celebrate Vancouver’s Emerging Professional Artists
In its second year, LAUNCH reveals 10 new artists & acts, from dance and music to film and performance
Photos by Ash Tanasiychuk LAUNCH Festival! is an interdisciplinary performance & mentorship showcase of Vancouver’s professional emerging artists. 2014 was the Festival’s second year. Presented by 149 Arts Society, which “dedicates itself to arts programming that is provocative in nature, and that serves to engage, challenge and inform.” The society’s name is “inspired by Woodward’s […]
In The Loop: Musician Chersea Talks LAUNCH Festival
Written by Dillon Ramsey Edited by Christopher Millin Photos of Chersea’s 2013 LAUNCH Fest performance by Ash Tanasiychuk Anyone who hasn’t watched a “loop artist” at work is missing out. “Looping is basically a form of live DJing,” summarises local singer-songwriter Chersea, whose unique technique of manipulating live music through electronic equipment won her the […]
The Wide Perspective: Filmmaker Rami Katz Talks LAUNCH Festival
written by Justin Ramsey edited by Faber Neifer Photos by Ash Tanasiychuk “I love Vancouver,” states Rami Katz affirmatively. “I love the landscape and the environment here—it’s just a beautiful place to live.” This is quite the declaration, given today’s quintessentially-Vancouver weather: grey, chilly, and drizzly, even on a Sunday morning in late May. Nevertheless, […]
Medical Drama: Theatre Artist Yvette Lu Talks LAUNCH Festival
written by Justin Ramsey edited by Christopher Millin Yvette Lu has a distinction to her name that is unusual for an artist: the prestigious suffix MD. “I wanted to be a doctor for a long time,” Lu recalls fondly, “ever since I was a small child.” We are sitting in Revolver Café, a trendy coffee […]
Perpetual Motion: Dance Artist Meredith Kalaman Talks LAUNCH Festival
Written by Dillon Ramsey Edited by Christopher Millin For Meredith Kalaman, it seems that inertia doesn’t exist: from her full schedule, to her physically-demanding practice, to her constant creative process, the Vancouver-based performance artist is always on the move. After all, she has been honing her dance talents since she was three, has studied many […]
Spatial Poetics XII: Release Me @ SFU Woodwards
Interdisciplinary and experimental evening binds both performers and audience through challenging conceptions of space and expectations
Words by Shalon W-H and Celesse McCarthy To kick off the 37th annual Powell Street Festival, an interdisciplinary event entitled Spatial Poetics XII: Release Me took place on July 6th 2013. On the top floor of SFU Woodwards Goldcorp Centre for the Arts is a small stage – Studio D – equipped with scaffolded seating. […]