Henry did not talk the whole time.

Not a word.

We played Glenn Gould and he set to work immediately.

He gathered every paint and drawing material available.

Then, with no hesitation, Henry started applying medium to the wall.

It was a beautiful and rare thing to witness someone unabashedly experimenting.

The way Henry applied and moved paint around was something extraordinary to behold.

He would run back to the material room and come back holding something to my face with a questioning glance.

He had found the liquid ink stash.

Using brushes, rollers, metal chunks, fingers, crayons, felt pens and chalk he worked at a relentless pace.

Often his whole body moved with repetitive gestures, mimicking the pace of Goulds music.

Henry is also an accomplished pianist.

He is diagnosed autistic.

I re-diagnose him as total genius!

Play, Fall, Rest, Dance is an exhibition project by Valerie Salez. The artist works with children with disabilities to help them explore the creative process of installation making. The exhibition runs from June 3 to July 5, 2014. The public is welcome to visit grunt gallery to see the installations that will continuously change and evolve over the course of the project.

Read more here.

About the Project

Artist Valerie Salez invites children to art-making sessions to re-imagine their environment. Every child is encouraged to use fabrics, paint and repurposed materials from Salez’ previous projects. The children respond to the imaginative spaces they create through movement, dance, sound and play. The artist thoughtfully guides the children to explore their creative processes.

Looking For Youth

We’re partnering with KickStart Disability Arts and Culture to find youth with disabilities to participate in this exciting incarnation of Play, Fall, Rest, Dance. We are looking for four to six children between the ages 6–12 years old. The artist will work one on one with the child (with attendant or parent in attendance if needed).

Email Meagan Kus meagan@grunt.ca at grunt gallery if you have any questions or would like to register your child for this project, this is a free project and there is no associated cost to register. You can also reach grunt gallery by phone at 604-875-9516.

Where & When

The project will take place at grunt gallery. We’re located at 116-350 East 2nd street, Vancouver BC. We’re a few blocks from Main Street and a short walk away from the Main Street Skytrain station.

Sessions will happen one to two times per week, the artist will schedule sessions with the children based on their availability. The sessions will be 2-3 hours in length. Transportation support can be provided on request.

DOWNLOAD “Play, Fall, Rest, Dance” Information Booklet.

DOWNLOAD Poster.

About the Artist

Valerie Salez brings Play, Fall, Rest, Dance to Vancouver following a successful residency with Open Space (Victoria, BC) last year. At Open Space she worked one on one with over 20 children, guiding children to produce countless installations and performances.

Her experience with working with children and the arts includes:

>> Arts Reach (instructor: special large scale art projects in underfunded public schools- Vancouver Island)
>> Selkirk Montessori (artist in residence: work on art projects with kids with special needs and disabilities- Victoria, BC)
>> Victoria West Community center (artist in residence: working on art projects with small children- Victoria, BC)
>> Robert Service School, Dawson City, Yukon (artist in residence as special guest art teacher: two years working with at-risk and special needs First Nations children and youth)
>> Artist in the schools Victoria, BC and Yukon (special art projects in public schools in Victoria and all over the Yukon territory)
>> Canada Winter Games- National Artist Program – Whitehorse, Yukon (mentored youth in producing art works for large scale exhibition)
>> This Town is Small – Charlottetown, PEI (mentored youth artists to make work for outdoor art festival)

Learn more about Valerie and her art practice on her website.

grunt gallery

grunt.ca

grunt is an artist-run centre founded in 1984 in Vancouver, BC. We have a long history of supporting creative, challenging, and innovative projects and exhibitions. grunt hosts youth-based projects on an annual basis. In 2013, we worked with artist Desiree Palmen and 7 Aboriginal youth on the project MAMOOK IPSOOT (To Hide or Make Hidden). Learn all about it here: grunt.ca/projects/mamook-ipsoot. We are incredibly excited to host Salez and her incredible project Play, Fall, Rest, Dance.

Kickstart Disability Arts and Culture

kickstart-arts.ca

KickStart Disability Arts & Culture (formerly the Society for Disability Arts and Culture) was incorporated in November 1998 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Kickstart’s mission is to produce and present works by artists with disabilities and to promote artistic excellence among artists with disabilities working in a variety of disciplines.

Read more about Play, Fall, Rest, Dance on Open Space’s website:

“When a child arrives inside Salez’s studio, shouts of delight mingle with the occasional flute melody echo throughout the building, further enticing an audience to observe the young artist at work. Instead of a planned activity, Salez allows the children the freedom to select their own medium and materials. The child is left with limitless possibilities, encouraged to use their boundless imagination.”

http://www.openspace.ca/ReganShrummValerieSalezEssay