Ivanie Aubin Malo

As the living world burst into colour and then was blanketed in snow, Est-Nord-Est transformed its space into a meeting place for the Wolastoqey Nation and its close analogues from other Indigenous nations and the Wabanaki Confederation. This residency, curated by Ivanie Aubin-Malo, brought together Catherine Desjardins and Janna Nicholas, along with isits from Martin Savoie, Kateri Nisnipawset Aubin Dubois, Léa Garneau, Terry David Young, Ariane Desjardins, Mélanie Brière, Marie-Eve Chabot Lortie, Marcus Merasty, Natasha Kanapé Fontaine, Angela Beek, Samaqani Cocahq. Although traditional creation and techniques were certainly a main feature of the residency, I learned during my visit that relationships were at its heart.

Throughout the fall, Ivanie Aubin-Malo played two roles: artist and curator. Although her own practice involves mainly movement, the place encouraged her to explore a material practice. During my visit, she and Martin Savoie were finalizing preparation of two moose skins intended to resonate rhythms of thunder activated by the body, in a pelvis-hipbone-sculpture whose first iteration was part of her performance Wahsipekuk: Au-delà des montagnes. Thus, her work as a whole produced during the residency was characterized by an interlacing of traditional knowledge with her practice, both relational and corporeal. In addition, as the fall at Est-Nord-Est was replete with workshops and exchanges of expertise, Ivanie was actively involved in each moment of learning, sharing with the others the experience of deepening her ties with her culture.

Although movement is omnipresent in Ivanie’s work, my conversation with her revealed the centrality of community in her approach. Already evident in her founding of the MAQAHATINE – which means “let’s get together” – collective, the stimulation of encounters and the care for relationships constantly returns in her initiatives. And the residency provided strong evidence of this. In my discussions with the artists, I was struck by her commitment and her ability to hold the space so that everyone felt comfortable contributing; first for her community, and then for other Indigenous artists, and finally for non-Indigenous people. In my view, it’s this holding of the space that made possible the wealth and spontaneity of exchanges, such as those initiated by Marie-Ève Soulard, an artist from the region, on production of ceramics, applied to the fabrication of smudge bowls. So, if it is said that pine needles represent the different cultures and nations within the Wabanaki confederation, Ivanie began to gather them together here. It is no doubt the beginning of growing meaningful collective roots.