Artists at school
Workshop: Indigenous storytelling, culture, singing and drumming
Participants sit in a circle with the artist. The workshop begins with a welcome song. A presentation of the Mi'gmaq nation of Gespeg and the Gespe'gewa'gi territory follows. The artist presents indigenous drums, with their symbolism and their uses, and shares some traditional songs. Other aspects of Mi'gmaq culture are addressed, such as the special link with the territory, the importance of hunting, fishing and language or even the role of the birch in daily life. The children learn around ten words and a song. At the end of the meeting, participants have the opportunity to reflect on their experience and a question period is planned. The workshop can also focus on the presentation of a Mi'gmaq tale.
Medicinal's Wheel Workshope.
Presentation of the medicinal's wheel, its meaning and its uses. The medicinal wheel, also called the circle of life, is a cosmic symbol and part of the traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples. Participants will be invited to think about their own environment (physical and human) in order to design their personal medicinal wheel.
Structure :
Maximum number of students: 35 per workshop
Choice: 1 to 3 1-hour workshops.
Project presentation document
2022-2023
Public school
For all the information, please consult the website of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education
Part A school welcomes an artist
This component allows students to participate in long-term artistic experimentation (from four to twelve weeks). It also gives artists the opportunity to have a residency experience in a school environment and to draw inspiration from it to create a personal work.
Role of partners
This component encourages the diversification of cultural projects offered to students throughout their training. Artists are invited to introduce young people, in an active and participatory manner, to the world of creation through the discovery of varied works and professions linked to arts and culture.Students participate in projects that put them in contact with the creative thinking of cultural partners, their means of expression, their language and different aspects of the profession. Artists can thus contribute to the development of young people's critical thinking and aesthetic sense, a better understanding of themselves and others as well as the strengthening of their self-esteem.It is important to mention that educational and cultural partners must work together to develop an artistic project. The teacher must be a stakeholder in the project and provide teaching expertise. The cultural partner therefore in no way replaces the teacher when carrying out the project. Its role is to support participating students in a creative process that extends over several weeks.
Presentation of the artists
Valérie (Ivy) Hamelin
Valérie's artistic approach starts from a reflection on cultural identity, a desire to touch the essence of the drum and voices through oral, percussive traditions; and musical. A member of the Mi'gmaq Nation of Gespeg, she is connected to indigenous drumming, then to African percussion. What inspires him:the breath, the murmur, the word, the cry and the steps, its footprints, the rhythm, the cadence, the drum and the beating heart. What characterizes Valérie is the union between the voice, sung, and the rhythm that inhabits the body. It is the transformation of the body into a catalyst, into an instrument of creation. She accompanies her acolytes, Sadio and Cheikh Anta, on doundouns, singing, transverse flute, dancing and gumboots (body percussion).