By: Jayleen Wilke, Production Coordinator.

My favourite part of being on the production team (for 3 years now) will always be the random, but vital, tasks that are required for the success of the festival. This year for Emmanuel Osahor’s exhibit, In Search of Eden, we needed to collect hundreds of native plants to Edmonton to create a giant living wall. In order to do so, Emmanuel got into contact with Cherry Dodd, the president of the Edmonton Native Plant Group, to help gather so many plants. I was lucky enough to go along on the field trip to meet her and I was blown away by her knowledge of plants and her overwhelming generosity.

With my limited knowledge of plants, I was able to learn the basics of transplanting from Cherry and can *almost* remember the names of a few native plants to Edmonton. It’s amazing how hardy our native plants are and how beautiful the root systems are too. But plant knowledge was not the only thing I took away from my interactions with Cherry. By inviting us to her house to do the transplanting, I was able to observe her lifestyle, and it was evident how considerate she was towards our planet. Which was incredibly inspiring and heart-warming to see. Consistently offering tea and cookies, she is easily one of the most down to Earth individuals I have ever met. Pun intended.

I am forever grateful for these opportunities I get to experience with The Works. I hope you will check out Emmanuel’s exhibit on Capital Plaza this year and see all the wonderful native plants!

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About the author: Jayleen Wilke is a multidisciplinary artist and designer from Edmonton, Alberta. She recently graduated from the Industrial Design program at the University of Alberta. Her work focuses on incorporating locally found materials into designs and artwork to increase attachment to works through the story behind the materials. Combining her love of adventure and new-found love of geology, she hopes to inspire others to love the Earth as she does, through a mixture of art and design. To contact or check out her work, please visit www.jayleenwilke.com

By: Iris Baguinon, Marketing and Communications Assistant.

When I was looking for a field placement for my program at MacEwan University, I came across an ad about the Works to Work Summer Internship. At that time, I had a very little knowledge about The Works, so I did my research about the internship and read some articles about the organization. 

There was something about the mission and vision of The Works that drew me to apply for the marketing and communications assistant position. However, it
took me about two weeks to finally send my application. And why? Because I did not feel equipped enough to be accepted since I have minimal experience with visual arts and design. Fast forward months later, here I am at The Works writing media releases, planning social media posts, flipping through local newspapers, calling media outlets – and having so much fun!

My six weeks working at The Works has been such a rewarding experience. I am learning a lot from my amazing supervisors and most notably, from other interns. Through this excellent program, I have gotten to know all of these inspiring and interesting people. Coming from all different age groups, cultures, beliefs, backgrounds, and walks of life, I get to hear about many
different experiences and life stories. It is an honour to be part of this year’s Works to Work Program. Still, like any other job experience, I hit roadblocks, but the team or I’d rather say my Works family continually reminds me that we are all in this together – Hakuna Matata!
 

Allow me to invite you to come and visit The Works Festival on the Capital Plaza on the beautiful leg (legislature) grounds. All our staff, interns, and volunteers poured our blood, sweat, and tears to make North America’s largest free outdoor art and design festival happen!

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About the author: Iris Baguinon is honoured to be part of the Works to Work Program as the communications assistant. Coming from a theatre background, Iris has been expanding her knowledge of the arts through visual arts and design. Before joining The Works team, she coordinated volunteers and designed marketing and sponsorship materials for other arts organizations in Edmonton including Edmonton Heritage Festival and Ice on Whyte. Born and raised in the Philippines, Iris is a mental health advocate; she promotes self-care in her social media channels. She’s passionate about theatre, the Edmonton local arts scene, photography and making her Instagram feed as aesthetic as possible. Iris is excited to receive her Arts and Cultural Management Diploma from MacEwan University in November this year. Find her on Instagram and Twitter, @irislb_ .

by: Cat Jones, Production Assistant.

 “There is only one way out of here: piece by piece” - Slayer 

I overheard a coworker the other day (as one often does in such a buzzing workplace) say, “Some people learn by throwing all the balls in the air, then running around trying to catch them”. Though I don’t think this is a perfect comparison to working on the Production crew at the Works, I can laugh at the imagery. Every time our crew turns around, another technical problem is waiting to be solved. If we manage to find solutions to all these problems, if we manage to catch all the balls, the accumulation of our movements becomes the grand movement that is the festival. 

We are doing a piece-by-piece assembly of something much larger than ourselves, and it starts with one problem solving process at a time. Problems are first introduced as “what are we trying to accomplish? What will be the function of this structure we are trying to build?” The experience of supervisors helps in figuring out the initial approach to building something and drawing up a plan or a blueprint. Then comes another specific set of questions. “What resources are at our disposal to achieve this?” For example, cutting the wood so that the most is utilized, or using our stock of wood before purchasing more, are taken into account with materials. Other considerations such as , “Does this meet the artist’s desires?” are ever-present. It was easier to build a large plinth slightly off from our initial measurements, but we had to find a way to conform to an exact size that would match Jean-René Leblanc’s augmented reality software. 

A process begins to happen that transforms our initial question of “What are we doing?” to something manifested. This becomes “How are we going to make this happen?” For Production assistants, adjustments and improvements can take place on a very small scale such as, “Is this the best way to clutch this tool?” or, “If we have to build ten of these ‘A’ Frames, what parts of this process can we simplify to make it the most efficient?”. When working on a large team one must always ask, “Is the whole team on board with this method (of transporting walls, etc.)?” One problem after another, all the details start to take form as solutions. 

Production at the Works is the right environment to try to catch all the balls falling in the air, and to discover better ways of doing so. Any task can be broken down into small components, and Works Production has come to resemble both an industrial process and an artistic process. Instead of ending as a final product, the Works continues to grow organically day after day, year after year as new questions emerge and new balls fall from the sky.

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About the author: Cat Jones is an emerging artist pursuing her BFA at NSCAD University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where she will begin studies in the interdisciplinary Fine Arts program this fall. Cat was awarded the Heidi Jahnke Memorial scholarship upon entrance to NSCAD. Cat recently completed the Fine Arts diploma at MacEwan University, where a large-scale drawing of hers is currently being installed in the library, as a recent addition to their collection. Cat’s aim is to stimulate and fascinate the viewer, playing with the grey space between poles of perception. To find out more or to contact Cat, visit heshnut.com.

By: Tasana Clarke, Volunteer administration.

This summer I was recruited into the volunteer coordinating team at The Works. I remember leaving my interview being unsure if I got the position but confident that I had been incredibly honest and open about my skill set and just had to be patient while waiting to hear back. I knew that if I didn’t get the position I simply wasn’t ready and would find something I was ready for. 

However that wasn’t the case. When I found out that I got the job, I quickly realized that I’d have to continue practicing that same patience, to trust that things will come together. For example, during the internship we had a collaborative art-making project where we were put into randomly selected groups of four and asked to create a visual art piece. With very few parameters set for the project we decided to continue along the free flow path and in doing so the project created itself. We collected recycled materials (which we had little control over) and then collectively started gluing and cutting cardboard all while trusting it would simply come together. At first I was wary, but after a few short hours we created something we could present and were very proud of.

What I learned during that project has translated into the everyday work I do in the volunteer department. Every shift I’ve worked has gently implored me to continue this patience and trust exercise with myself. There are a lot of things to learn working in the volunteer department. There are also a lot of things that are out of my control. Being patient and trusting my judgement has allowed me to see the magic in things coming together. Now that we’re less than 2 weeks away from festival I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous, but my nerves are also overcome with a turbulent excitement to watch all of our hard work fall into place. Being patient in a time of anxiety is by no means reinventing the wheel, but this practice has seeped into all aspects of my creative and personal life and my internship with The Works has really helped to solidify this mindset.

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About the author: After graduating from high school in 2013, Tasana Clarke travelled to multiple music festivals and arts-based events. In 2017 she decided to take this interest to the next level by pursuing a diploma in Arts & Cultural Management at MacEwan University. This program fostered a deeper appreciation of the arts sector and volunteering, which has brought Tasana to many incredible opportunities, the most notable being her current role in Volunteer Administration for The Works Art & Design Festival. Beyond work and school, she enjoys hosting friends, cooking and experimenting with DIY craft projects. After completing her diploma in 2019 and completing a subsequent degree, Tasana plans on utilizing her education and experience to continue travelling as a means to gain a deeper understanding of the work that goes into festivals, galleries and cultural events.

by: Angus Bryan, Production Assistant.

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About the author: Angus Bryan is a freelance graphic designer living in Edmonton, Alberta. He graduated with honours from NAIT’s Digital Media and IT program in 2017 and is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Alberta. His studio art projects emphasize practicality, simplicity, and objective-focused designs. When he’s not working on his craft, Angus likes to spend his summers working with local art festivals such as The Works, The Freewill Shakespeare Festival, and The Edmonton Folk Music Festival. To contact Angus or see more of his work, visit www.angusbryan.com