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Voices from Down Home: Dialogues on Community Connections in Black Canadian Art

Justin Augustine, The Faith Catchers, 2000. Collection of Dalhousie Art Gallery.

February 27 @ 6:00 pm 8:00 pm

Join us at Paul O’Regan Hall in celebrating African Heritage Month with a thought-provoking panel discussion featuring artists from Down Home, an exhibition at the Dalhousie Art Gallery curated by Fabiyino Germain-Bajowa. Through their unique works, these artists share layered stories that illuminate the strength and vibrancy of African Nova Scotian and Black Canadian life and identity. Drawing on their distinct cultural backgrounds and personal experiences, the artists will engage in a conversation exploring themes of diverse representation and cultural continuity through art and creative expression.  

ASL interpretation will be provided.

Presenters include: 

  • Chantal Gibson – African Canadian author, poet, artist, and educator
  • Kayza DeGraff-Ford – African Canadian visual artist 
  • Rebecca Fisk – African Nova Scotia visual artist and educator 
  • Preston Pavlis – African American visual artist 
  • Vanessa Thomas – African Nova Scotian digital artist/muralist 

This event is offered in recognition of African Heritage Month and is presented in partnership with Dalhousie Art Gallery, Dalhousie African Nova Scotian Strategy Advisory Council, and Halifax Public Libraries.

Location: Paul O’Regan Hall, Halifax Public Library, 5440 Spring Garden Road

This event is free to the public.

Image: Justin Augustine, The Faith Catchers (detail), 2000. Collection of Dalhousie Art Gallery.

About the presenters:

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Chantal Gibson is a poet-artist-educator living on the lands of the Coast Salish Peoples.

As a visual artist, she works in the overlap between literary and visual art. Grounded in material exploration and research creation, her work imagines the voices silenced by cultural and institutional omission and erasure. Her work has been exhibited widely across Canada and the US.

Gibson is the author of two poetry collections. In 2019, she published How She Read (Caitlin Press), a decolonial critique of the Canadian classroom centering Black womanhood. Currently on academic reading lists, the collection was nominated for nine literary awards in 2020, most notably, shortlisted for the prestigious Griffin Poetry Prize, and winning the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize (BC) and the Pat Lowther Poetry Award (Can).

Gibson is a university lecturer in the School of Interactive Arts & Technology at Simon Fraser University and the inaugural Advisor, Equity, Community & Care for the Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology 2022-2024.

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Kayza DeGraff-Ford is a visual artist born on Treaty 6 farm lands (Alberta) and based in Kjipuktuk (Nova Scotia). With a Visual Arts Certificate from Yukon School of Visual Arts (2017) and a BFA from NSCAD University (2021), they have received recognition through awards like the BMO 1st Art! Award for Yukon Territory (2017) and the grand prize at the NSCAD Student Art Awards (2020). Their paintings, held in collections such as the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and the Nova Scotia Art Bank, have been supported by grants from Arts Nova Scotia and the Canada Council for the Arts. Kayza’s most recent work merges sewing techniques for hand-crafted borders with vibrant colour palettes in an evolving exploration of storytelling. Most recently, their solo exhibition with The Blue Building Gallery was featured at Art/Toronto 2024.

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Rebecca Fisk explores issues of identity in painting and multi-disciplinary work. She is a graduate of Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (BFA) and Mt. St. Vincent Art Gallery (MA Ed.). Her work has been exhibited in galleries across Canada. Her most recent solo exhibition Not Every Black Girl’s Story Is The Same was presented at the Chester Arts Centre Gallery, Chester NS in Sept-Oct 2022.

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Preston Pavlis’ work on canvas and fabric represents his interest in the fusion of painting and textiles as a means to explore narrative, form, and colour. Focused on poetic association and metaphor, the resulting works in oil, embroidery, and collage are personal charts for time and memory. The works situate solitary figures on often non-descript grounds, their gazes shifting between the viewer and somewhere beyond their space. Whether their expressions are pensive, ebullient, or intentional– they possess a palpable interiority. Pavlis’ figures convey a subtle energy and a deep sense of presence that is enhanced by their imposing scale.

Preston currently lives in Halifax, NS and holds a BFA from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. He has presented his work in solo and group exhibitions at MOCA (Toronto), the Robert McLaughlin Gallery (Oshawa), Stridge Gallery (Calgary), Bradley Ertaskiran (Montreal), Half Gallery (New York), Guts Gallery (London), the Winnipeg Art Gallery (Winnipeg), and Spurs Gallery (Beijing), among others. His work is part of the permanent collection of the Art Gallery of Ontario (Toronto), the X Museum (Beijing), and is held in private collections throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.

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Vanessa “Nessy” Thomas is an African Nova Scotian artist from Preston, Nova Scotia, one of Canada’s historic Black communities. Her work explores themes of culture, identity, and belonging, often reflecting her lived experiences. At the same time, Nessy creates art for the sheer joy of self-expression, balancing thoughtful narratives with the freedom of creation.

Art has been a constant presence in Nessy’s life. Inspired by her mother’s work with acrylics and crafts, she began sketching at 14 and has since expanded her practice to include acrylic painting and digital art.

Nessy’s work has been featured in cafés, shops, and festivals, with her reach extending both locally and internationally. She has participated in the Halifax Mural Festival annually, bringing vibrant energy and creativity to public spaces. Alongside these projects, she has completed community art initiatives, private commissions, and public art installations. Venturing into the digital realm, Nessy released a limited-edition NFT collection that sold out, connecting her with collectors worldwide.

Through her art, Nessy invites viewers to engage with cultural themes while sparking curiosity and connection. Always experimenting with new techniques and approaches, she continues to expand her portfolio and push the boundaries of her creative practice.

5440 Spring Garden Road
Halifax, B3J 1E9 Canada
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