Supporting the next generation of writers in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community

by ebingham | Mar 6, 2025 | Alumni, Award, donor, News, Theatre

Thanks to the Candis Graham Writing Scholarship, an award created by the Lambda Foundation alongside friends and family of the renowned lesbian-feminist writer and teacher, UVic student Zoe Bechtold is able to explore her diverse interests in writing and performance arts.

From stage acting and puppet theatre to writing interactive fiction, Zoe has a passion for exploring innovative and creative ways to tell stories—with a particular focus on queer characters and other underrepresented voices.

As a dedicated author with a growing portfolio of short stories, plays, and fan fiction, Zoe is currently pursuing a BFA in Theatre and Writing here at UVic. She was recently awarded the 2024 Candis Graham Writing Scholarship for her exceptional academic performance and compelling application essay. (The 2023 Candis Graham Scholarship went to fellow Writing student Elena Stalwick.)

“It’s motivating to feel that my writing is being recognized,” she says of the scholarship, which was established by the Lambda Scholarship Foundation Canada in collaboration with the family and friends of feminist writer Candis Graham for students in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and allies.

“I’m so glad this award exists to support the queer and trans community. I know so many talented queer writers and it’s meaningful to know that people and organizations are actively providing financial resources.”

Zoe (left) & her twin brother Link in Peter Pan at Calgary Young People’s Theatre (Rob Galbraith)

Leaving Calgary’s theatre scene to find community in Victoria

Growing up in Calgary, Zoe came to UVic with years of experience writing and acting, honed with support from the city’s theatre community. A major milestone in her acting journey included a serendipitous twist: her debut role at Calgary Young People’s Theatre was as one of the Lost Boys twins in Peter Pan—played alongside her own twin brother.

Encouraged by mentors who recognized her potential, Zoe chose to attend UVic, drawn to its reputation for creativity, supportive community, and stunning natural setting.

“It was partly the location—Victoria is really beautiful—and partly knowing older, accomplished actors I admired who have also studied here,” Zoe shares.

Since arriving in Victoria, Zoe has immersed herself in a rich tapestry of perspectives and opportunities that have nurtured her talents. At UVic’s Phoenix Theatre, she has contributed to productions every year of her studies, including Dead Man’s Cell Phone (2021), Spring Awakening (2022), The Importance of Being Earnest (2023), and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (2024).

“There’s a big theatre community here in Victoria—people I can ask for advice, like those at the Phoenix or graduates who are producing their own work. It’s really inspiring.”

Zoe practices her skills in a Green Fools puppetry workshop (Keith Cartmell)

Candis Graham’s legacy of creativity and advocacy

Zoe’s journey reflects the creative spirit embodied by Candis Graham. Like Zoe, she also came from outside BC and found a home in Victoria’s artistic community. Born in Ontario in 1949, she was a writer and editor of short fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, essays, and novels, unabashedly open about her lesbian and feminist identity, despite encountering discrimination. After moving to Victoria in 2001, she spent her final years writing, teaching, and running a greeting card company that combined word collages and verse—leaving behind a legacy of creativity and advocacy.

For Zoe, receiving the Candis Graham Writing Scholarship has eased the financial challenges of university life and allowed her to focus on her studies and creative pursuits.

“I’ve enjoyed using my time at UVic to explore and develop my expertise in theatre and writing. I am happy with the growth I have noticed in myself as a writer that has resulted from my classes and coursework,” she says.

Fascinated by unconventional storytelling that meshes the visual with the written word, Zoe is interested in studying puppet theatre and hopes to one day write and illustrate a graphic novel.

Looking ahead, she also envisions cultivating opportunities for both her and others by founding a creation company with her twin brother and a close friend.

“My professors are always telling us, ‘You’ve got to produce your own work,’ and that’s what I hope to do,” she says.

Learn more about giving to UVic.

Fine Arts engages with Governor General

by John Threlfall | Feb 14, 2025 | Alumni, Events, Faculty, Graduate, indigenous, Visual Arts

From left: UVic President Kevin Hall, Her Excellency Mary Simon,
His Excellency Whit Fraser; Ry Moran, Andrea Walsh, Carey Newman; Kylie Fineday

Her Excellency The Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, shared opening remarks last week at an emotional University of Victoria event to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Calls to Action. Simon touched on her personal experience at the TRC when she shared stories about her childhood and education in Nunavik, and the children in her community who were sent to residential schools.

Simon remarked that “when the TRC report was released 10 years ago, most Canadians learned about what happened for the first time. And I remember people being horrified, saying ‘I did not know.’ Years later, the findings of unmarked graves of children at former residential school sites moved people even more.”

Under the stalwart leadership of the late former Senator Murray Sinclair, along with the dedicated and often difficult work of the TRC Commissioners, Survivors, and many others, the TRC has left an immeasurable impact on Canadian society.

Today, the TRC continues to play a pivotal role in the daily lives of Canadians, shaping the path towards collective understanding of truth, reconciliation and the change called for within Canadian society.

In a recent letter, Simon, who is also a UVic Honorary LLD, tells Canadians that she is “encouraged to see Survivors, Elders and so many people supporting each other as we work to recognize Canada’s true, national history.”

The Right Honourable Mary Simon

Associate University Librarian – Reconciliation Ry Moran moderated a panel discussion featuring UVic faculty members Carey Newman (Fine Arts Impact Chair in Indigenous Art Practices), Andrea Walsh, (Social Sciences’ Smyth Chair in Arts & Engagement) and John Borrows (Law) to remind, encourage and inspire Canadians to think about actions past, present and future.

Simon impressed upon the audience the breadth of innovative work that UVic has done to respond to the 94 Calls to Action— some of them activated in the UVic Indigenous Plan—and spoke about the university’s hub for knowledge with its Indigenous resurgence and language revitalization program, the world’s first JD/JID law degree, the soon-to-be opened National Centre for Indigenous Laws (NCIL) at the Faculty of Law, the recent installation of the Survivors’ Flag, Orange Shirt Day, and decolonizing efforts on campus.

Sharing truth through visual testimonies

During the panel discussion, Walsh, visual anthropologist and honorary witness to the TRC (as well as a UVic Visual Arts alumna), spoke about the role that repatriating art from residential schools plays in the journey to reconciliation. Through her work with Survivors of the Alberni Residential School she has repatriated personal childhood paintings that once belonged to them.

When Walsh reflects on these significant moments, she sees through the lens of the Survivors what these pieces of paper mean to them—not just as sacred treasures, but as physical connections between generations. “This is the only thing I have as a nine-year-old,” said one Survivor.

For Walsh the artwork is a catalyst for starting difficult family conversations, contributing to governance, and for storytelling. Her hope for the future is that these fragile works of art will guide difficult conversations and action.

From left: Walsh, Newman, Borrows

The Witness Blanket and the power of community engagement

Multi-disciplinary artist and Department of Visual Arts professor Newman discussed the way that art can participate in truth, the formation of it, and the holding onto it in the process of reconciliation. His view of truth is seen on three levels: a personal one—how it reaches individuals; on a communal level—how it can bring people together, and on a structural level—for how it can impact and affect bigger things in subtle ways.

Watching people interact with his large-scale art installation the Witness Blanket, Newman noticed certain objects resonate when viewing the blanket – where an individual object will connect a person to a memory of their own life and experience. “Once we make a personal connection to something, it becomes important,” explains Newman. “And once it becomes important, then we are willing maybe to participate, to be uncomfortable, to roll up our sleeves, and do some of the work that needs to be done.”

As the concept for Newman’s project started to come to fruition, he found more people contributing to its creation, slowly building trust and developing ideas. “Throughout that process, I was changing my relationship with my material,” says Newman. “Once I started getting contributions from people—and I knew that they were mementos, that they had memories attached to them— it elevated my responsibility to them.”

Newman’s Witness Blanket at its permanent home in the Canadian Museum for Human Rights

A new chapter begins

Towards the end of her remarks, Simon provided an overview of the work that has been done in advancing the calls to action. She reflected on the many “firsts “that are happening in this country sparked by an awakening due to the TRC—witnessing the historic apology by the Pope in Canada; meeting with Canada’s Indigenous leaders and King Charles before his coronation to renew relationships with the Crown; the creation of the First Nations University of Canada in Saskatchewan, and the first Inuit University grounded in Inuit culture and language to be opened in a few years time.

Looking back on the last 10 years, Moran believes that our collective response should be clear in looking ahead, and that we need to maintain hope, belief, and conviction that respectful relationships and human rights will endure any obstacles and roadblocks placed in the way.

“Perhaps more than anything, the opportunity at hand is to remember the long and difficult struggle that it took to even make those 94 Calls to Action possible in the first place,” says Moran. “Generations fought, resisted, and struggled to create the opportunity for that Commission to even occur in the first place. This is not something we should take for granted, nor is it something that should be trivialized.”

“Ajuinata, never give up,” Simon implored the audience, using an Inuktitut word, reminding all in attendance that people need to engage students and youth in current discussions as they will be the stewards to carry reconciliation into the future.

Following the formal panel presentation, Simon then participated in a reconciliation discussion circle with current students, including Visual Arts MFA student Kylie Fineday (seen at the top) and AHVS MA student Chris Mockford.

Watch the full panel discussion here:

Chris Mockford

—Story by Lisa Abrams (Library) with photos by Greg Miller (UVic Photo Services)

Orion Lectures: “Thriving in the Arts” & “Connecting Audiences”

by ebingham | Jan 20, 2025 | Alumni, Events, Orion Series in Fine Arts, Research, Theatre

The Orion
Lecture Series in Fine Arts

Through the generous support of the Orion Fund in Fine Arts, the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Victoria, is pleased to present:

“Thriving in the Arts” & “Connecting Audiences”

Sara Topham & Pablo Felices-Luna,
Visiting Theatre alumni artists

12:30-1:45 pm Wednesday , February 5

Theatre for Young Audiences playreading

12:30- 1:45pm Friday, February 7

Both in Chief Dan George Theatre, UVic’s Phoenix building

Free & open to all

Presented by UVic’s Theatre Department.

For more information, please email theatre@uvic.ca

Through the generous support of the Orion Fund in Fine Arts, UVic’s Faculty of Fine Arts is pleased to present Sara Topham & Pablo Felices-Luna, Visiting Theatre Artists. All are welcome to attend this free event.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Sara Topham, a graduate of UVic’s Theatre Program, has performed on some of the world’s most prestigious stages, including Broadway, where she starred in revivals of The Importance of Being Earnest and Travesties and originated the role of Sally in Leopoldstadt. With 15 seasons at the Stratford Festival, plus work with the Shaw Festival, her roles have ranged from Shakespearean heroines like Juliet (Romeo and Juliet) and Rosalind (As You Like It) to dramatic leads like Hedda Gabler. Sara has performed internationally, from London to Washington, D.C., and San Diego, while contributing as a teacher and collaborator at theatres across North America. Sara works frequently with Manitoba Theatre for Young People as a co-director and choreographer.

Pablo Felices-Luna, a fellow UVic Theatre Program graduate and Artistic Director of Manitoba Theatre for Young People, has dedicated 25 years to Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA). Born in Peru and arriving in Canada more than 30 years ago, Pablo’s career has championed the artistic value of TYA, directing 15 productions and premiering seven new plays during his eight years as Artistic Director of Carousel Players. At MTYP, he continues to inspire with new works and international collaborations. Pablo is a passionate advocate for integrating TYA into professional artist training, drawing on his extensive experience to redefine the relationship between theatre and young audiences.

Free and open to the public | Find more at www.events.uvic.ca

For more information on this lecture, please email theatre@uvic.ca

About the Orion Fund

Established through the generous gift of an anonymous donor, the Orion Fund in Fine Arts is designed to bring distinguished visitors from other parts of Canada—and the world—to the University of Victoria’s Faculty of Fine Arts, and to make their talents and achievements available to faculty, students, staff and the wider Greater Victoria community who might otherwise not be able to experience their work.

The Orion Fund also exists to encourage institutions outside Canada to invite regular faculty members from our Faculty of Fine Arts to be visiting artists/scholars at their institutions; and to make it possible for Fine Arts faculty members to travel outside Canada to participate in the academic life of foreign institutions and establish connections and relationships with them in order to encourage and foster future exchanges.

Visit our online events calendar at www.events.uvic.ca

Sounds for Soldiers: Emily Armour’s Music for Veterans Project connects young musicians with military vets

by John Threlfall | Jan 15, 2025 | Alumni, Award, Graduate, School of Music, Undergraduate

Music alum Emily Armour with Pipe Major Roger McGuire of the Canadian Scottish Regiment
(Princess Mary’s) at 2024’s 80th anniversary of D-Day event at Victoria’s Bay Street Armoury

When it comes to honouring veterans, many people wear a poppy on November 11 and then literally call it a day. Emily Armour created the Music for Veterans Project as a cross-generational way to honour soldiers year-round. Armour’s program involves sharing profiles of a member of the Canadian military with a young musician. The youth then creates an original musical composition to honour that person.

“It’s wonderful that we all unite and honour veterans in November, but it’s important to have other moments throughout the year to make them feel special as well,” Armour says.

Now in its fourth year, the Music for Veterans Project (MVP) provides meaningful connections between Armour’s students and Canadian veterans. Over 100 pieces have been written by students ranging in age from 18 to just five years old. These works honour both deceased and living veterans, including those who still are on active duty or have served as reservists.

“What makes this project unique is that every piece is inspired by and dedicated to an individual person,” she says.

Honouring the past

The program started as a Remembrance Day event but has since grown in scope. “There are a lot of activities out there for youth around Remembrance Day, but there isn’t always an opportunity to do something focused on an individual,” says Armour. “Like many of us, some of my students may have had relatives who served, but do they know a veteran who’s alive? Have they ever spoken to one? Have they ever heard a veteran talk about anything — even just about themselves? Through this project, the students are suddenly realizing just how different veterans are.”

Armour is a professional piano teacher who received both her Bachelor’s (2012) and Master’s (2017) from UVic’s School of Music, where she primarily studied with famed professor Bruce Vogt. Her family’s strong ties to the Canadian Armed Forces inspired the project.

“Not only was my husband in the military, but my grandmother served overseas during World War II: she was a physiotherapist in England and Germany between 1944 and 1945. I’ve seen how important and valuable it is for veterans and people in the Canadian Forces to have these moments of acknowledgment and positive recognition— but it’s just so amazing when it’s coming from youth.”

Composing from memory

Averaging between one and four minutes in length, each simple but evocative composition is inspired by an information package compiled by Armour. Veterans are chosen through a mix of word-of-mouth and organizational outreach. The creative lens is strictly focused on the soldier as a person: no additional historical information is added to the profile the student receives.

“There’s a lot of love, thought and care that goes into the process,” she says. “It’s emotional for everybody, because it’s so personal: even the titles of some compositions are drawn right from the material. It’s a very personal acknowledgment, as opposed to giving a drawing of a poppy to a veteran . . . which may be fantastic, but it lacks the personal acknowledgment music has.”

The compositions are always instrumentals with the idea of allowing the listener to conjure their own thoughts and feelings from the piece. She feels the greatest value is not actually the music itself: it’s why the music is written.

“As artists, it’s always kind of about us—what can this do for me and my career and my voice—but this is decidedly not about them; it’s for the person who gave their life in France during WWII, or whenever. It taps into something deeper because they’re doing it for somebody else.”

Emily Armour presents Commanding Officer Lt Col Slade Lerch with one of two plaques crafted on oak by a local veteran to commemorate the eight-piece collection created for the anniversary of D-Day

Memory beyond life

The age range of the veterans honoured reflects Canada’s involvement with international conflicts, from World War I to today’s peacekeepers. The program has honoured two living centenarians and a 35-year-old Afghanistan veteran—with a century’s worth of soldiers in-between.

Armour says it’s been a positive experience for her students. They receive a certificate signed by the veteran or partner organization and often get to professionally record the music. The veterans receive a copy of the music.

Many pieces are quietly reflective, with titles like “Beyond the Fray”, “Remembering a Hero” or “The Sacrifice for Freedom” (all of which can be heard at musicforveteransproject.com, many paired with a photo of the veteran). But Armour highlights one light-hearted piece called “Ballad for Seanmhair” (Gaelic for “grandmother”), which was composed for the 2024 80^th anniversary of D-Day.

“The title seems very strange for a commemorative piece about a soldier, but his next-of-kin was his grandmother: that was the person who would have been informed of his death. I was so proud of my student for thinking about the impact of their service. It shows how this project can help heal and unite people from such different worlds, both historically and emotionally.”

Looking to the future, Armour has now established MVP as a federal not-for-profit and is opening participation to other piano teachers; they’ve also started working on projects that are both larger and more national in scope.

“Last year we did an event at the Royal Oak Burial Park in Saanich: it was our first public event and we had a ceremony at the war graves plot featuring a procession with Vice Regal Piper Ken Wilson, a group of active Air Force members and WWII pilot George Brewster as a guest speaker,” she recalls. “My students announced the names of the veterans and the title of their pieces; then, as we played professional recordings of the music, they lay the sheet music on the graves.”

Armour and four of her students were also thrilled to attend a 2023 event at the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa, where audience included Indigenous elders, ambassadors and other dignitaries. “That was a life-altering experience,” she says about watching her student play pieces honouring three Indigenous veterans, as well as former Senator Lieutenant-General Roméo Dallaire.“

Music students Kai, Keira, Luke, Maya, Théo & teacher Emily Armour with
former Chief of the Defence Staff General Wayne Eyre during a trip to Ottawa 2023

Growing commemoration

Currently, the Music for Veterans Project is involved in two new efforts: the Honouring Garden, created in collaboration with Nova Scotia’s Veteran Farm Project Society to commemorate women veterans, and Oaks of Remembrance, a unique living memorial marking the 110th anniversary of World War I’s Battle of Kitcheners’ Wood.

Part digital and part environmental, Oaks of Remembrance will see new Garry oak trees planted at Saanich’s Royal Oak Burial Park, where current trees will also be designated as memorials for individual veterans; the public will then be able to go online to hear the musical compositions and learn about both the veteran and the student.

“Oaks of Remembrance will commemorate members of the Canadian Scottish Regiment, Vancouver Island’s only infantry unit, who wear an oak leaf battle honour on their uniform representing this 1915 battle in Belgium — they’re one of the few units in the whole Commonwealth who actually wear a battle honour on their uniform,” Armour explains. “And since Royal Oak Burial Park already has a connection with the Commonwealth War Grave Commission, it’s going to be a beautiful fusion of nature and music that will stand forever as a fully embodied remembrance.”

The sound of history

When asked if she has a favourite moment over the last four years, Armour hesitates. “I don’t know if there could be just one, there have been so many: seeing tears in the eyes of a veteran as they listen to the music, talking to a family member about somebody who recently passed away . . . it all reminds me of how important this project is.”

As a veteran told Armour after hearing the piece composed for him, “You and your students have no idea how much this piece of music means to me, and I will use this gift to get me through some of the tougher days ahead.”

Top 10 Fine Arts stories of 2024

by John Threlfall | Jan 3, 2025 | Alumni, Art History & Visual Studies, Award, climate, donor, indigenous, Orion Series in Fine Arts, School of Music, Theatre, Undergraduate, Visual Arts, Writing

There’s no better time than the start of a new year for a moment of reflection on the previous year’s accomplishments. With that in mind, we’re happy to present the Fine Arts Top 10 of 2024: an inspiring series of story highlights about our students, faculty and alumni!

Attendance at Fine Arts events cracks 20,000

It was a banner year for public participation in the Faculty of Fine Arts, with more than 20,000 people attending over 300 scheduled events. Thanks to our wide variety of cultural and scholarly offerings — including concerts, plays, recitals, exhibits, readings, poster fairs, film screenings, visiting artist talks and other special events — Fine Arts remains UVic’s largest and most consistent academic unit for public engagement.

Fine Arts is also an essential and vital cultural partner on campus and in the community, with a direct and lasting impact on the region’s quality of life. Victoria’s arts and culture sector employs over 10,000 people across the CRD and generates about $800 million GDP activity annually (2021 CRD study) — a core part of the $1.8 billion in added income UVic contributes to Greater Victoria.

The annual Visual Arts BFA show attracted over 1,000 people

A busy year for the Climate Disaster Project

It was an incredible year for the Climate Disaster Project (CDP). Based out of our Writing department and led by Sean Holman, the Wayne Crookes Professor of Environmental and Climate Journalism, the CDP not only mounted September’s world premiere of Eyes of the Beast:Climate Disaster Survivor Stories — the first full-length documentary theatre production based upon on-the-ground climate disaster reporting — but also collaborated with UK media outlet The Guardian in November to publish a series of COP29. And in April, the CDP was named the winner of a Special Recognition Citation for exceptional journalism that doesn’t fit traditional categories at the National Newspaper Awards — Canada’s top journalism awards — and was also nominated for awards with the Canadian Association of Journalists and the Canadian Journalism Foundation. The CDP also started a new partnership with Brazil’s newspaper and presented a two-day workshop as part of the Legacy Gallery’s summer exhibit, Fire Season, on top of its regular work collecting and sharing climate-survivor testimonies by students and instructors in 13 post-secondary institutions worldwide.

“We are entering a new era of disaster, where our seasons will become increasingly defined by the traumatic events they bring, and we need to learn how journalism can help us survive those traumas together,” says Holman, who founded the CDP in 2021. “We are so honoured the National Newspaper Awards have recognized our efforts to empower disaster-affected communities inside and outside Canada.”

Sean Holman_Climate Disaster Project - Luke Galati Photography1-inset

Holman at the NNAs

Student Community Impact Awards tops $13,000

The annual Fine Arts Student Community Impact Awards recognize individual achievements or outstanding efforts made by full-time Fine Arts undergraduate students beyond their traditional studies — and 2024 saw us surpass $13,000 presented to 11 students since 2021. These juried, donor-funded awards were once again presented at the Greater Victoria Regional Arts Awards in November.

This year’s recipients included Rebecca Fux (Visual Arts), Thomas Moore (Theatre) and Claire Jorgensen (Visual Arts), each of whom receives $1,000 for their individual projects. Rebecca received the award for her work mounting two exhibits of new paintings at separate local artist-run centres during her final year of studies: You Can Cry In Front of Me at Xchanges Gallery, addressing aspects of grieving and healing for young women after sexual assault, and The Weather Inside at the Fifty-Fifty Arts Collective. Thomas was recognized for his work directing and producing three shows with Timetheft Theatre Society — Of Theseus at the Victoria One Act Play Festival, the independently produced Horse Girl, and Carpet at the 2023 Fringe Festival — all of which provided opportunities for young queer and neurodivergent artists. And Claire received her award for winning a competitive commission to create a new large-scale mural embodying themes of diversity, community and wellness for UVic’s Island Medical Program — titled “A Dream of Vitality” — which she then painted live over the course of a month in the lobby of the Medical Sciences building.

Jorgensen working on her mural

Kathryn Mockler wins Victoria Book Prize

Ww were thrilled in October when Writing professor Kathryn Mockler was named the winner of the City of Victoria Butler Book Prize for her new story collection Anecdote. Originally announced as a finalist alongside recently retired Writing professor Tim Lilburn (Numinous Seditions: Interiority and Climate Change) plus Writing alumni Ali Blythe (Stedfast) and Arleen Paré (Absence of Wings), as well as local poet Shō Yamagushiku (Shima), the prize came the same month as she was revealed to be one of three jurors for the 2024 Governor General’s Literary Award for Poetry.

In her acceptance speech, Mockler noted that she was “humbled to be in the company of these finalists and their beautiful books” and then went on to donate the $5,000 prize to three local charities. “No matter how solitary the act of writing can feel, a writer is always addressing a collective, shared world — describing, analyzing, critiquing, redefining and expanding it,” she noted in her acceptance speech. “Writers cannot ignore the world that shapes their words nor the world that receives them.”

Carey Newman named Royal Society Fellow

In September, artist and scholar Hayalthkin’geme Carey Newman was named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. UVic’s Impact Chair in Indigenous Art Practices and a professor with both our departments of Visual Arts and Art History & Visual Studies, Newman has a regional, national and international impact by combining art and Kwakwaka’wakw knowledges to address Indigenous and environmental injustice. His projects — like The Witness Blanket and Seedling — transform conversations around reconciliation and decolonization across social, institutional and political paradigms, driving innovation and collaboration that challenge status quo approaches to research in the arts, climate, leadership, transsystemic law, collections management, conservation, technology and more.

“Transformative change involves reaching hearts and minds. So, when I make artwork about specific issues, rather than telling people what to think or how to feel, I want them to engage with it on their own terms and take ownership of their thoughts and realizations,” explains Newman. “When something becomes personal it becomes important, and once it is important we are more willing to change our ways. Art has this power.”

So many guests!

We had an incredible lineup of over guest artists this year who took time to share their knowledge and experience with our students and the community through masterclasses and public talks. Our popular Orion Series welcomed award-winning filmmaker Atom Egoyan, Grammy-winning soprano Barbara Hannigan and pianist Bertrand Chamayou, authors Carleigh Baker and Zehra Naqvi, artist Crystal Mowry, scholar Anna Dymond, art historian Alice Ming Wai Jim, screenwriter Michael MacLennan, theatre artists Randi Edmundson and Shizuka Kai, documentarian Ali Kazimi plus musicians Sandeep Bhagwati, Jude Brereton, Corey Hamm, Faustino Diaz, Jonathon Adams, Chloe Kim and Tom Foster.

Our busy Visiting Artist series welcomed the likes of Jessica Stockholder, Kemi Craig, Justin Seiji Waddell, Debra Yepa-Pappan, Gootlh Ts’milix Mike Dangeli & Sm Łoodm Nüüs Mique’l Dangeli, Sonja Ahlers, Wayne Baerwaldt, Skawennati, Tina Rivers Ryan, Robert Burke and Julia Eden Hardenberg. Acclaimed author John Vaillant was our 2024 Southam Lecturer in Writing, while Gord Hill was this year’s Lehan Lecturer in Arts & Activism, and Joseph Kakwinokansum and Jónína Kirton were the guests for 2024’s sxʷiʔe ̕m “To Tell A Story” Indigenous Writers & Storytellers Series.

Various other guests included renowned pianist Minsoo Sohn (courtesy of the Martha Cooke Fund) while the Belfry Series saw Christine Quintana and Tobin Stokes speak to Theatre students.

Award-winning filmmaker Atom Egoyan

This year’s Indigenous Writers series

Honorary Doctorates

Fine Arts was thrilled to see two Honorary Doctorates presented at UVic’s Fall Convocation ceremonies in November: En’owkin Centre co-founder Jeannette Armstrong (above left) was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Letters (DLitt) while Puente Theatre founder Lina de Guevara received an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts (DFA). As an influential advocate for Indigenous peoples’ rights, Armstrong has been a force of change and wide-scale community impact through her artistic, research and educational vision; as a writer, director, educator and actor, de Guevara has left an enduring legacy on our national theatre landscape through her active support of immigrant and refugee communities.

Armstrong (left) & de Guevara

New faculty members

Even in times of fiscal restraint, it’s important to keep our faculty cutting-edge, so we were excited to welcome a new group of professors this year. Critically acclaimed Canadian opera singer, national CBC Radio Saturday Afternoon at the Opera host and School of Music Distinguished Alumni Award recipient Marion Newman returned to campus this year as an assistant professor in Music; Vancouver author and poet Wayde Compton joined the Writing department as an associate professor; Ts’msyen Nation dancer, choreographer, Sm’algya̱x language learner/teacher and curator Sm Łoodm ‘Nüüsm Mique’l Dangeli is now an assistant professor of Indigenous Arts with our Department of Art History & Visual Studies; and assistant research professor in composition and music technology Lauren McCall is our newest hire, starting in January 2025 at our School of Music.

Marion Newman

Alumni achievements

Back in March, UVic announced the recipients of the 2024 Distinguished Alumni Awards and Fine Arts was once again proud to see three of our outstanding graduates included among the 18 recipients being recognized across the three categories: Presidents’ Alumni Award recipient Carrie Tennant (Music), Emerging Alumni Award recipient Dennis Gupa (Theatre) and Indigenous Community Alumni Award recipient Ivy Martin (AHVS/CRM). “This diverse group of graduates contribute their skills, passions and leadership to many different fields, including the arts, education, law, science, engineering and business,” says UVic President Kevin Hall. “Advocacy, community building and climate action are common threads woven through their work. In that sense, they shine a light on the values and priorities that define and unite us at UVic.” Read about their individual accomplishments on the alumni awards webpage.

In other outstanding alumni news, viral internet comedy sensation Laura Ramoso (Theatre) mounted a global tour which included appearances at LA’s Netflix is a Joke festival, an appearance on CBC Radio’s Q and a sold-out performance at Victoria’s 1,400-seat Royal Theatre; 2024 graduate Sie Douglas-Fish (Visual Arts) made news by getting hired straight out of the program by Montreal-based Acrylic Robotics and saw their art featured on CBC TV’s national Dragon’s Den show; actor and playwright Medina Hahn (Theatre) filmed a movie version and recorded an interactive audio book of her Governor General’s Award shortlisted play Inheritance: A Pick-the-Path Experience; poet Cara-Lyn Morgan (Writing) published her latest collection Building a Nest from the Bones of My People, which explores her Indigenous (Métis) and immigrant (Trinidadian) roots; and CBC “30 Under 30” award-winning violinist Chloe Kim (School of Music) returned to campus as an Orion Lecturer.

Martin (left), Tennant & Gupa

Fantastic philanthropy

We’ve saved the best news for last: despite being hit with the same budget cuts that have impacted UVic as a whole, we are thrilled to announced that we have raised over $4.8 million for the Faculty of Fine Arts this year—exceeding our 24/25 academic goal by nearly $1 million . . . and with three months left in the fiscal year! Congratulations go out to hard-working Fine Arts Development Officer Samantha Krzywonos for her dedication and passion in working with our donors to ensure that our students have the best possible experience during their studies here.

The arts have always been and continue to be intimately linked to philanthropy—think of folks like Peggy Guggenheim, Alice Massey or Gertrude Vanderbilt—so it’s no exaggeration to say that we couldn’t do this without our generous donors. Whether it’s individual donations that fund projects like the Bruce More Chamber Singers Legacy Fund, the Student Community Impact Awards or the sxʷiʔe ̕m “To Tell A Story” Indigenous Writers & Storytellers Series, family memorials that create opportunities like the Lehan Family Activism & the Arts Lecture Series, or estate gifts that create exciting inititatives like the Martha Cooke Fund, our donors are an integral part of the Fine Arts experience.

Finally, we would be remiss to not acknowledge the more generous philanthropic donations that have led to named professorships like the Jeffrey Rubinoff Nexus for Art as a Source of Knowledge fund, the Wayne Crookes Professorship in Environmental and Climate Journalism, the Audain Professorship in Contemporary Art Practice of the Pacific Northwest, the Harvey Stevenson Southam Lecture Fund in Journalism & Non-Fiction and the Williams Legacy Chair in Modern & Contemporary Arts of the Pacific Northwest. These foundational gifts create positions for key faculty members to share their specific knowledge and experience with our students, the community and the world.

Thank you all!

Fine Arts development officer Samantha Krzywonos

Double Your Fine Arts Gift on Giving Tuesday

by John Threlfall | Dec 3, 2024 | Alumni, Award, donor, indigenous, Writing

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December 3 is Giving Tuesday, a day when the entire UVic community will unite around a common cause — supporting the students and programs that make this university the very special place it is.

This year, UVic’s Faculty of Fine Arts is raising funds to honour and celebrate Indigenous voices through the sx ʷiʔe ̕m “To Tell A Story” Indigenous Writers & Storytellers Series — and we have a special opportunity to double your gift, as the first $5,000 donated before midnight tomorrow (Tuesday, Dec 3) will be MATCHED dollar-for-dollar by one of our generous donors.

Will you make a Giving Tuesday donation to the Indigenous Writers & Storytellers Series?

YES! I’LL MAKE 2X THE IMPACT

The inaugural sxʷiʔe ̕m event at UVic’s First Peoples House in 2023

Inspiring & uplifting

Created by acclaimed Métis poet and Department of Writing professor Gregory Scofield, this annual series is an inspiring way of uplifting Indigenous literary achievements and engaging with our local community of writers and readers. “My goal is to honour the nations on whose territory we live, and to celebrate and honour the writers and storytellers in our communities,” he says.

Launched in 2023, the inaugural sxʷiʔe ̕m series featured two acclaimed UVic Writing alumni: Syilx Okanagan multidisciplinary author Jeannette Armstrong and award-winning WSÁNEC poet Philip Kevin Paul. This year we presented Icelandic/Red River Métis poet Jónína Kirton and Cree author Joseph Kakwinokansum.

Joseph Kakwinokansum (left) & Jónína Kirton in conversation with Gregory Scofield in 2024

An exciting time

There are so many important stories to be shared by Indigenous artists, through mediums of literature, film, music, dance and oral storytelling. Your donation on Dec 3 — which, again, will be doubled — will connect Fine Arts students and local community members with Indigenous perspectives, knowledge, creativity and history. Giving Tuesday is an inspiring day when millions of people unite around good causes: it’s hard to think of a better cause than uplifting the voices of Indigenous artists.

“It’s a very exciting time for Indigenous writers and storytellers,” says Professor Scofield. “As more Canadians become aware of truth and reconciliation, more people are reading works by Indigenous writers and gaining knowledge of our history.”

Twice the impact

Will you see the impact of your gift doubled by making a Giving Tuesday donation to the sxʷiʔe ̕m “To Tell A Story” series before midnight (Tuesday, Dec 3)?