Stories in Palliative Care, A Place for Creative Discovery and Self Expression

Posted by, Cheryl McLean, Publisher International Journal of the Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, IJCAIP
Editor, Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice CAIP Research Series

It is well known that the creative arts can be helpful in health and healing in many ways.

How can drama and story help caregivers access and express stories for hope and change? In supportive work with caregivers and healthcare providers drama and story work can help facilitate a deep form of personal self discovery while fostering empathy and understanding. Performing drama influenced activities can also help caregivers and other healthcare providers reach within and access their own stories reflecting on the past while drawing actively on the creative and expressive capabilities of the body.

Through drama and story we be and we be/come, seeking to intimately know and understand, connecting with the sacred places of memory and the many stories that shape our present personal and professional identities. Embodied actions (drama exercises, enactments, performing monologues ) as well as writing personal narratives, may lead to epiphanies or resonating rediscoveries which awaken us deeply to new meanings and purpose. Narratives and stories that spring from this kind of active exploration often reflect a sense of discovery and immediacy and the process can be as rich and evocative for the writer as it is for those who are privileged to learn and witness through the performance experience.

I had a special opportunity on June 9 to present as a keynote speaker at the 16^th Annual Spring Palliative Care Conference presented by The North Simcoe Muskoka Palliative Care network. (NSMPCN) I have presented may times for palliative care professionals and bereavement organizations and I was most pleased to see that the North Simcoe Muskoka Palliative Care network was arranging a conference specifically around the theme,“Stories in Palliative Care”.

This conference, arranged by the Conference Planning Task Group of the NSMPCN Education Standing Committee and supported by the Ontario North Simcoe Muskoka Local Health Integration Network, also featured speakers; Maureen Thornton, Nurse Educator and Practice Leader Geriatric Services, Challenges of Serious Mental Illness combined with Palliative Diagnosis, Kerry Berhalter-Whalen,Client Care Coordinator for the NSMPCN, Overcoming the Challenges, Making a Difference, Jennifer Jilks, (who provided palliative care to her mother at home and her father in long term care) Living and Dying with Dignity: A Daughter's Journey through Long-term Care" and humorist and cartoonist Mike Moore, "Laugh More Live Longer".

<sup>My keynote presentation (l hr. 15) “Living Stories of Hope and Change” is delivered in a narrative style , a collection of “tellings”…made up of illustrative and linked stories that draw on personal experiences as well as true stories of my clients and caregivers as well as other dramatic examples of story used in research and practice by researchers and health professionals. In sharing these authentic accounts and narratives through story with audiences I perform and show how personal stories and lived experiences can be communicated in multi sensory ways, embodied physically in role, performed in monologues and presented in poetry and through ritual. A Power Point Presentation and film clips from the research based performance, “Remember Me for Birds” support the presentation with dramatic examples and offer an intimate glimpse into the real lives of persons living in residential care and their caregivers. I also support the presentation with illustrative research examples drawn from the text, “Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change", (editor, Cheryl McLean, Associate Editor, Robert Kelly, Detselig Temeron Press). The goal is to help audiences directly experience how narratives and stories are shaped within a contextual framework which draws on past and personal history, life changing events and present environment while learning about the importance of accessing, expressing and witnessing personal stories to help illuminate the lives of individuals as whole persons be they patients, caregivers or other healthcare professionals. The talk concludes with time for closure, questions and discussion. This presentation is particularly well suited for healthcare organizations (palliative care, hospice, aging, mental health) and is followed by the workshop “Honouring Life Creating Your Own Stories of Hope and Change”…which is an experiential opportunity for health professionals to take part in “step by step” drama and story based activities while working together within a community of peers to access, create and express their own stories.


Cheryl McLean was recently awarded a Harrison McCain Visiting Professorship at Acadia University, Nova Scotia.  She is editor of the CAIP Research Series, Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Creative Arts for Community and Cultural Change and Creative Arts in Humane Medicine, Brush Education, Edmonton.</sup>

Info: CherylMcLean@ijcaip.com

Presentation Raises Awareness about Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice for Change

Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice

Shaping Change, Transforming Communities

Presenter: Cheryl McLean

Cheryl McLean is an independent scholar, educator and executive editor and publisher of The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice IJCAIP and editor of The CAIP Research Series and books, "Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice Inquiries for Hope and Change" and "Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change" (Associate Editor, Dr. Robert Kelly, University of Calgary, Published by Detselig Temeron Books, Calgary). In her current presentation Cheryl speaks about the vital role of the creative arts in contemporary research and interdisciplinary practice shaping change and transforming communities. Drawing on leading edged research and the creative arts in practice, this compelling talk demonstrates (through topical research examples, stories, narratives, monologues, poetry and film) how the arts applied across disciplines can help foster quality of life while addressing some of the most critical social issues of our modern times.

Cheryl McLean M.A. has a background in academic publishing and journalism,Adult Education and Social Sciences (Social Science, University of Western Ontario, London) mental health and the arts (MA Concordia University, Montreal). In her graduate work and research she studied Creative Arts Therapies and acting (Stanislavski/realism) under the mentorship of Dr. Muriel Gold, formerly the Artistic Director of the Saidye Bronfman Theatre, Montreal and worked as a group therapist with older persons in mental health in residential care with Maimonides Jewish Geriatric Hospital and The Rene Cassin Institute of Social Gerontology. She wrote the “ethnodrama” script “Remember Me for Birds” about aging, mental health and autonomy based on data gathered in research and true stories (a number of her clients were Holocaust survivors) and toured, performed as a solo actor, in keynote solo performances for national conferences, universities and medical schools in Canada and the U.S. (among them The National Association of Drama Therapy,Rhode Island, Canadian Association of Schools of Social Work Educators' National Conference,Congress of the Humanities, McGill Medical School, McGill Division of Geriatric Medicine) She has taught the course "Creative Responses in Death and Bereavement" at The University of Western Ontario, London and has presented about the creative arts in research and interdisciplinary practice for health research and university based creative arts programmes as well as organizations in healthcare, hospice,palliative care and bereavement and recently presented for The Dietitians' of Canada National Conference and The University of British Columbia, UBC, Okanagan. Her research based ethnodrama was produced as an educational film in 2006.

An agent of change and longtime arts advocate, as publisher of IJCAIP and Editor of the CAIP Research Series, Cheryl McLean continues to publish new research in the creative arts in interdisciplinary practice to help shape the emerging international field raising awareness about the vital role the arts have to play for hope and change in communities worldwide.

Information: CherylMcLean@ijcaip.com Booking now for 2011-12

IJCAIP Shaping the Field, Planting the Seeds, Beginnings

(from the introduction to the text, "Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change")


IJCAIP Beginnings.....

The seeds were planted in the spring of 2006. At that time I had envisioned a global community linked around the creative arts and its broader applications in practice, a network that would extend beyond any single modality, methodology or exclusive field of study drawn from across disciplinary borders in health, education and training.

Art by Robert Kelly

To achieve this goal, and to provide the necessary communication channels for research and information, individuals were identified and organizations interested in arts in health, training and education were contacted personally to ask if they might like to access a web based newsletter that featured articles about the creative arts as applied across disciplines. The response to this gentle inquiry was overwhelmingly positive. The Canadian Creative Arts in Health Training and Education e/newsjournal or CCAHTE as it was known, was launched in September 2006 as an open access (OA) internet news/journal, the interdisciplinary journal of the creative arts in health, training and education. The advisory board was established with representation from leading universities and institutions across North America and diverse disciplines in education, healthcare (nursing, public health, medicine) fine arts and design. We operated CCAHTE on a free subscription basis and welcomed articles from contributors worldwide.

Three years later, in consultation with the journal advisory board and to reflect the publication's broadening scope and international status as the open access peer reviewed academic journal in the field, the journal was renamed The International Journal of the Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, IJCAIP.

Today, The International Journal of the Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, IJCAIP, has a large international subscriber base and is accessible to researchers, educators and students in over 15,000 libraries in 60 countries around the world including developing nations.

Publishing activities at IJCAIP have contributed significantly to propagating a new and fertile knowledge base for research and information about the creative arts in interdisciplinary practice. The publication sponsors a number of interconnected IJCAIP websites as well as a monthly newsletter and several creative arts in interdisciplinary practice blogs. This year, IJCAIP with Editor, Cheryl McLean (Publisher of IJCAIP) and Advisory Board member and Associate Editor, Robert Kelly, University of Calgary, will be publishing two new research texts, "Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change" and "Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change" (Detselig Temeron Press). These books will be followed by the third research text in the CAIP series, "Story, Technology and Transformation".

It has been our intention to illustrate the considerable breadth and scope of this field while featuring leaders active in the work in action and practice. We continue to foster and encourage new research as well as carry the message across disciplines sharing news about the many applications of the creative arts in interdisciplinary practice with a growing worldwide readership.

The journey continues,

Cheryl McLean, Publisher IJCAIP

The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice

IJCAIP Advisory Board

George Belliveau, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Faculty of Education, University of British Columbia

Subrata Sankar Bagchi, Ph.D., Visiting Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Ottawa

Lace Marie Brogden, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Faculty of Education, University of Regina

Michael Hutcheon MD, FRCP, Deputy Physician and Chief of Education, Toronto University Health Network

Robert W. Kelly Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Faculty of Fine Art, University of Calgary

Pia C. Kontos Ph.D., Research Scientist, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Assistant Professor, Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Toronto

Patricia McKeever Ph.D., Health Sociologist, Senior Scientist, Bloorview Research Institute, Professor, Faculty of Nursing, University of Toronto

Nick Nissley EdD., Executive Director, Banff Centre for the Arts, Leadership Development

Lubomir Popov Ph.D., Associate Professor of Family and Consumer Sciences, Interior Design, Bowling Green State University, Ohio

Johnny Saldana MFA, Professor of Theatre, Herberger College of the Arts, Arizona State University

subscription to IJCAIP Journal is free with an email to CherylMcLean@ijcaip.com "please subscribe"

Dangerously good design for Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice

I thought our CAIP blog visitors may like to hear straight from the artist designer who has designed our cover for the book "Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change". James Dangerous from Calgary, Alberta, is one of the most knowledgeable designers I have ever worked with in terms of the history of typography and typeface and the art of letterforms. An artist and "interdisciplinarian" James is also a musician, writer, editor and poet as well as an actor... and (soon-to-be) father.

In the post below James Dangerous generously explains his design process:

"The design of the text—being for a book of many parts and visions—is complex yet intended to read simply. The bulk of the book is set in the Adobe Caslon family, as it a classic-style typeface with a plethora of stylistic variations and ornamental options. This allows for a clean, modern look to the text while gesturing towards the weight and trace of historic authority, while allowing a wild amount of creative variation when needed.

Many of the titles and subheads in the book are set in Arno pro, a typeface that has many of the same positive qualities of Adobe Caslon (modern-yet-classic, many variations, etc.) but is much more suitable and adaptable for titling. The sans face used for captions and some subtitles in the book is Bell Gothic, a clear and functional face with small radical flourishes: traditionally associated with the avant-garde, Bell is a wonderfully adaptable and useful sans serif type. Each of the book's major sections are heralded with the use of a font mimicking an old Dymo label-maker. Aside from adding a bold splash of contrast to the opening section, it gestures towards a "hands-on" approach to creativity in interdisciplinary practice, as well as helping the book develop a strong design identity (i.e., utilizing the classical-yet-modern stylings of Arno and Caslon to show erudition and a familiarity with history, Bell to gesture towards avant-garde approaches, and Dymo to gesture towards an idea of bricolage).

Pages are set according to a very tight grid based on the lead: 0.2312", to be precise. Margins are also based on the lead, with the proportions of 3:3:4:5. Using a tight grid allows for a precise uniform sense of layout, enabling good spacing and gutters, and yet it can be manipulated in a very precise way to allow for interesting and dynamic layout of pictures, captions, tables, and more. The margins themselves can be "violated" by having type, text, or image bleed into the margins; as long as the items laid out thusly remain on the grid, they can puncture the margins without offending the eye. There are thirty-four gridlines across the page and forty-two from top to bottom, giving an immense range of space to play in while keeping a strong sense of precision.

With regards to the cover, the "butterfly" theme could easily stray into a thematic design more associated with less important and rigorous works than Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice. Fairly or not, the butterfly could easily be misinterpreted as "frilly" or "flaky", as its importance as a symbol of transformation, rebirth, weightlessness, and beauty have been appropriated many times by less-than-skilled artisans of the visual metaphor.

In the case of Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change a butterfly of living grass grows on dead paper. This has the suggestion of creativity allowing life to bloom where it did not before, as well as gesturing towards creative mediums (paper, canvas, etc.) The grass is also a landscaper's sod, as opposed to wild meadowgrass: this is a cultivated and urban life, rather than one of the wilderness. The cover uses Arno Pro and Bell Gothic Typefaces to present a face that is uniform with the interior of the book.

About James Dangerous

James Dangerous edits and designs non-fiction books of all sorts. He also designs filling Station magazine, and—with his wife, Jocelyn Grossé—edits the non-fiction section of the same magazine. His most radical design work has been seen in posters and packaging for musical acts. Many designers begin as visual artists; James found his way into the field via an enduring love of typography.

As a writer, James has published fiction, poetry, non-fiction and more in Canada and Sweden, and free-lanced as an interviewer and reviewer, most notably in FFWD Weekly. He also loves to draw and read comics, and occasionally releases graphic reviews of graphic novels.

When he's not designing, writing, or drawing, James works as a musician. He leads the nine-piece radical country band, James Dangerous & the CIA; homeless children, animal lovers, political junkies, senior citizens, and death metal enthusiasts have all delighted in the CIA's music as they've brought their boundlessly enthusiastic live show to everything from charities to metal bars. James also plays lead guitar in The Ogden Owls, Bowser's Brood, and with Elise Hall-Meyer's solo work; he frequently sits in with bands Haggard Beat, crime scene inFUNKstigation, and The Pickled Hicks. Much of his live music performance borrows heavily from his days as an actor working in theatre — He hopes to re-engage in film and performance in the future.

His latest adventure is fatherhood.



Visit James Dangerous at www.jamesdangerous.com


About Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice,
Inquiries for Hope and Change

Meet our editors

Available July 2010.

Lights on for the CAIP Blog

We've turned the lights on here at the blog. If you've visited before you may have noticed the change of colours and lighter background. We've had some feedback requesting that we use a lighter background so that the posts would be easier to read. I'm listening. Hope you enjoy the new look.

CM

Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice Travels Across Disciplines with a Message for Hope and Change

The American Society for Clinical Pathology publication "Critical Values" has published an article about the book “ Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change” in the July issue Vol. 3, Issue 3, pg. 36 - 40. of the quarterly magazine “Critical Values”. The society represents 130,000 members across the U.S. working as pathologists, physicians, pathologists’ assistants, laboratory professionals, medical students and laboratory students. The ASCP is based in Chicago and provides education, certification, and advocacy on behalf of patients, pathologists, and laboratory professionals. The society has recently featured a new section called "Arts and Culture" in their official publication of the ASCP, which is yet another important indication of the growing international interest in the arts in practice across disciplines.

To view the article visit the website
go to archives Volume 3, Issue 3, navigate to pg. 36-40

At the Dietitians of Canada national conference On Friday May 28 in Montreal, Quebec, there will be a panel and session titled, "Crafting Our Stories: Art, Leadership and Change in Dietetics" hosted by The Advisory Committee for Professional Affairs.

Among the speakers, Cheryl McLean, Publisher of The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice will be presenting about research and the growing momentum in the creative arts in interdisciplinary practice and significant interdisciplinary connections between the arts and dietetics education and practice. Cheryl McLean will present a story and narrative workshop designed to help dietitians access and express their own personal stories through writing and performance.

June 9, 2010 The 16^th Annual Palliative Care Conference in Orillia, Ontario will be held for palliative and hospice care providers. The theme of the conference will be “Stories In Palliative Care”. Cheryl McLean, will be the keynote speaker at the conference presenting “Living Stories of Hope and Change” featuring dramatic examples of research based performances in stories about aging and end of life as well as new research and accounts about the creative arts in Interdisciplinary practice for hope and change. The presentation will be followed by a workshop, “Honouring Life, Expressing Stories for Hope and Change”.

All of this is encouraging news as we share our work in the creative arts in interdisciplinary practice,

The journey continues,

Cheryl McLean, Publisher, IJCAIP

Harvard Medical School Reference Good News for IJCAIP

Every so often, driven by curiousity, I do a quick IJCAIP search on the internet to see who is citing IJCAIP, (The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice) and what individuals or institutions are referencing our international journal or referring to our books. Since our beginnings in 2006, we have published research and articles from leaders across disciplines active in the creative arts in interdisciplinary practice and we frequently see our journal listed on CV's with researchers' lists of publications.

In a recent article, The Department of Family Practice, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia referenced an article from Issue 8, "Stories and Society Using Literature to Teach Medical Students About Public Health and Social Justice" contributed by Martin Donohoe MD, FACP.

IJCAIP, The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice has been indicated among the medical reference journals listed at The Stanford School of Medicine, Center for Bioethics.

In the March 2010 report by UNESCO prepared by the Council of Ministers of Education and Canadian Commission for UNESCO, article 211, IJCAIP, The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Education, was referenced. "The International Journal of the Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice is a Canadian‐based open access and peer reviewed journal that focuses on research and knowledge about the arts in health and interdisciplinary practice. The March 2007 issue (the journal was then called Canadian Creative Arts in Health, Training and Education Journal) had articles on such issues as teaching opera in medical school to raise awareness about issues of death, loss, and suffering; the use of storytelling in nutritional counselling; and integrating dance and choreography for teaching children with cerebral palsy."

I see Harvard Medical School, considered one of the most prestigious medical schools in The United States, listed the IJCAIP website as one of the references for The Harvard Medical School, 2010 Longwood Seminar.

Ontario Medical Association recently referred to us in their wellness web links.

We are pleased to witness these recent developments. Such high profile references are encouraging news for the creative arts in interdisciplinary practice and IJCAIP as we contribute toward the accessible knowledge in the field.

To some people a reference may be just a reference but as a publisher of academic journals and books I find this all very exciting. In the age of Open Access one never knows where things may lead or how far the story goes...

The journey continues,




Cheryl McLean, Publisher,
International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice IJCAIP

Announcing the 2nd text in the CAIP Research Series, Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change, About the Book

Photo by © C. McLean

Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change

Visit our Blog for News on this book

http://creativecommunitychange.blogspot.com/

Press Release

September 8, 2010

With the successful release of the inaugural text in the CAIP Research Series, Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice for Hope and Change, The International Journal of the Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice is actively engaged in creating the 2nd text in the series, Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change, Editor Cheryl McLean, Publisher, International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, IJCAIP and Associate Editor Dr. Robert Kelly, Associate Professor, Faculty of Fine Art, University of Calgary. This ambitious publishing project has been launched by The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice and is the second text in the groundbreaking Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice (CAIP) Research Series to be published by Detselig Temeron Press.

Building on the fundamentals of Book 1, the inaugural text, Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change, Book 2 in the CAIP Research Series, Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change, features informative and thought provoking articles describing applications of the creative arts in research within neighborhoods, villages and cities integrated in distinctive ways to help investigate, explore, articulate and communicate research findings while working actively within and beyond borders to foster change. In this action oriented collection, creative arts and community based, participatory approaches are featured as well as other methodologies. Taking a global perspective, the book explores creative arts in interdisciplinary practice for cultural and community change through hands on illustrative accounts, for example, the creative arts in research fostering peace and bridging communities, creative arts in research and action in community practice in addiction work, creative arts in research exploring issues of migration and racism, arts for community change addressing environmental issues, creative arts and its role in cultural change as well as discussing applications of the creative arts in many forms in practice in communities addressing critical health issues for improved quality of life.

Articles raise questions and mobilize by example pointing to alternative forms of discovery and resolution through community action that challenges stereotypes of race, gender and identity. At a time of desperate need and ongoing unrest internationally, this important contemporary research text is a valuable source of information as well as a call for creative new approaches in contemporary research leading to meaningful action. Creative Arts for Community and Cultural Change provides first hand insights into evolving processes unique to the creative arts in research and interdisciplinary practice as well as a wealth of information and examples for in class review and highly relevant in-depth dialogue and debate.

Raging Asian Women, Expressing Feelings Through Taiko Drumming

Raging Asian Women will be performing tonight at the OISE Auditorium, University of Toronto at the Social Workers Got Zanmi Lasante a Haitian organization that was founded in 1983 by a group of doctors and community organizers who believe that the poor deserve no less than the best medical treatment and medications available. Understanding that the root causes of poor health lie in the structural violence of poverty, Zanmi Lasante offers comprehensive social and medical support to its patients, providing them not only with health care, but also with access to potable water, adequate food and housing, schooling, and economic opportunities

Info about Raging Asian Women:

http://www.ragingasianwomen.ca/

We hope you enjoy this Youtube video clip by Rick Miller with commentaries from the RAW group members.

Introducing our Editors, CAIP Research Series

Editor
Cheryl McLean MA from London, Ontario is an independent scholar and educator and Founder, Publisher and Executive Editor of The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice IJCAIP and Editor of The CAIP Research Series and books,"Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice Inquiries for Hope and Change" (2010) and "Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change" (2011) Associate Editor, Dr. Robert Kelly, University of Calgary, Published by Detselig Enterprises Inc., Calgary, Alberta).  She is currently editing a third book, "Creative Arts in Humane Medicine" for release 2013, Brush Publishing.

Complete bio  at Cheryl McLean's website  CherylMcLean.com

Associate Editor

Robert Kelly Ph.D., Associate Editor CAIP Research series is an artist and educator as well as an author writing about creativity processes in action. Robert Kelly is an associate professor in the Faculty of Fine Arts, and an adjunct associate professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Calgary where he teaches creativity theory and practice, studio art and curriculum theory and design.  .Visit Robert Kelly's website

I would like to share with you news about the book Cinderella Story by James Haywood Rolling Jr. published by Alta Mira Press.

From a post at Graeme Sullivan's Blog, Art Practice as Research:

"Cinderella Story argues that a poststructural and unexpected identity can be created from the charred embers of self-imagery strewn about an ash heap of stereotypes—reinterpreted atop a pyre of modern identity constructs, authoritative stories, and assigned names. Consequentially, a Cinderella ending is not the end of a story; rather, it is the inauguration of a new ever after. While this new book contributes to the canon of African American Studies literature, it will not present yet another dubious narrative of the pathology of being Black in America. In fact, the story of being Black in America has always been a story of transformation; as such, this book may be considered a Cinderella Story and is so titled. The variations of the story of being Black in America are too profuse to be contained within the oversimplified and fictive contemporary signifier known as race. And that is the point of this writing. African Americans are more than we are expected to be, more than racial definition allows—an ongoing reinterpretation of injurious social constructs. Cinderella Story is an arts-based inquiry—the outcome of a methodology that researches contemporary visual and popular cultural markers in search of a story still under construction—as well as an inquiry that depicts identity as a continuing work of art, and the arts as a continuing work of collective identity."

Both Graeme Sullivan and Norman K. Denzin have endorsed the book.

The superb cover art is also by James Haywood Rolling Jr.

Get the News First, Alert List for CAIP Series

We are compiling a special alert list for educators and others who want to be among the first to know when the text, "Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change" is available for ordering. The text is scheduled for release July 2010. This research text will be of special interest to qualitative researchers, adult educators, nurse educators, physicians, healthcare educators (medical education/nursing/pathology, other) health administrators and those active in health promotion and health policy, aging studies, educators in Social Work and Dietetics, Peace/Cultural Studies, Fine Arts, Drama/Performance based research, Sociology, Women's Studies, Disability Studies, Counselling, Medical Humanities, Art Therapies, Counselling and other related fields...as well as curators, university librarians and the general public and those who have special interest in illustrative stories about the arts in research,action and practice for social change.

For information or to request to be on the new book alert list contact us at CherylMcLean@ijcaip.com with "book" in the subject line.


FYI you can also subscribe free to IJCAIP, The International Journal of the Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice with an email to CherylMclean@ijcaip.com "please subscribe"..
by subscribing to IJCAIP you'll have access to our journal issues and archive at the IJCAIP website and you'll be advised directly by email about our calls for papers for journals and books.

Update New Book, Creative Arts in Research For Community and Cultural Change

A note from Cheryl McLean, Editor, CAIP, Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Research Series


We would like to thank those of you who have sent us abstracts for the second text in the Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice (CAIP) Research Series, “Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change” Editor, C. McLean (Publisher IJCAIP Journal), Associate Editor, R. Kelly (Faculty of Fine Art, University of Calgary), Publisher Detselig/Temeron Press.


The final deadline for abstract submissions for the second text in the CAIP Series, "Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change" is March 20 and, once again, we have had an overwhelming response to our call for abstracts for this groundbreaking contemporary research series. See submission information

When we have had an opportunity to review all abstract submissions we will be in touch with selected authors for full paper submissions by email. We hope to complete this process by the end of April. Detailed information will be provided for those who will be submitting full papers at that time as well as more information about themes and content. Additional feedback or suggestions may also be provided. Prospective contributors should be aware we are seeking research related submissions and our publisher has requested original and previously unpublished articles.

Associate Editor, Robert Kelly and I have been inspired by the incredible scope of the international submissions received over the last several months. Clearly the creative arts in interdisciplinary practice is making an important and meaningful difference for individuals across cultures and communities worldwide. It is an honour to have the opportunity to share these topical research accounts from leaders in the field with a vital and expanding worldwide readership.

The journey continues.



Cheryl McLean, Publisher, International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice IJCAIP

http://www.ijcaip.com

Editor, CAIP Research Series

email: CherylMcLean@ijcaip.com

Copies of the inaugural text in the CAIP Research Series, "Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change" are expected to be available for purchase in May.
Hear featured contributors from the text, "Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change" speak about the creative arts in interdisciplinary practice for hope and change here.


Watch for upcoming news soon about the third text in the CAIP Research Series,
"Story, Technology and Transformation"

Contact the editor for more information CherylMcLean@ijcaip.com.
Inquire about submissions, books, conference presentations...

Transforming Grief Through Dance

Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice,
Contributor Features


"I returned to dance, intuitively, instinctively. The dance of death was now my dance of life. As I danced, like a woman possessed, my conscious mind snuffed out the reality of my loss. While my world as wife and mother had been cruelly wrenched from me, I came to understand that my identity as a dancer had survived, an identity that no outside force could destroy."
Lata Pada





Lata Pada is Artistic Director of Sampradaya Dance creations, an award winning Canadian dance company recognized for its distinctive choreography spanning a dynamic range of classical bharatanatyam and contemporary dance works. Lata has trained with India's distinguished gurus, Kalaimamani K. Kalyanasundaram, Padma Bhushan and Kalanidhi Narayanan. Lata holds a Masters in Dance from York University and is currently an Adjunct Professor in York University's Master's program in Dance. In January 2009, Lata was awarded The Order of Canada. She has the distinction of being the first Indian artist to receive this national honour.

More about Lata Pada and her story here Toronto Star

Empathy Can be Taught Experientially

Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice,
Contributor Features


"The goal (of the inquiry) has a practical outcome; to develop methodologies whereby empathy must be taught experientially as part of the nursing curriculum."

"In the performance....we rehearsed the actions over and over but my initial emotional response to this action resolutely refused to be erased by professional discipline and remained, therefore, as a moment of empathic encounter in performance. We let it remain as it was in the piece...a moment of vulnerability, anger and uncertainty which was awkward and ungainly, charged with fear. As a performer I always approached this moment with trepidation because it made me feel like I was out of control, at risk..which was, of course, precisely as it should be."

April Nunes Tucker, Amanda Price

Graduates from the Performing Arts Degree Course University of Bedfordshire UK

April Nunes Tucker works as a Lecturer in Dance at the University of Bedfordshire in the United Kingdom. She holds an MA in Dance from the Laban Centre, London and a BA in Dance from The University of California Irvine. She is currently completing a practice-based PhD in Dance at Middlesex University, UK. Her research interests include: performance and reflective practice, site-specific choreography, Butoh and the influences of somatic practice such as yoga on contemporary dance techniques.

Dr. Amanda Price works as a Principal Lecturer in Theatre at The University of Bedfordshire in The United Kingdom. She holds an MA in Theatre from The University of Leeds and her PhD offered a comparative analysis of contemporary playwrights in Africa and the UK. She is a founding member of Famous & Divine, a theatre company committed to exploring our contemporary relationship to the "uncanny". Her research interests include performance and reflective practice, energy and transformation in performance.

Inviting the Emotions Into Research

Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice,
Contributor Features



"As educators, as researchers, we are often taught to not pay attention to our emotions, except to control them and keep them out of our teaching and out of our research. I do the opposite. I invite the emotions into teaching and into research. I believe that we need to listen to our emotions, that we need to pay attention to what they are saying to us, what they are showing us, what they are teaching us."

John J. Guiney Yallop Ph.D. from an article (forthcoming) by Day, L. and Guiney Yallop, J.J., "Researching teaching and learning through poetry: A shared journey".




John J. Guiney Yallop, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the School of Education at Acadia University. Dr. Guiney Yallop's research includes poetic inquiry, narrative inquiry, autoethnography and performative social science.

Embodied Learning Through Playbuilding

Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice,
Contributor Features




"Learning is often challenging to capture through text alone. For instance (through playbuilding) the diverse perspectives of the participants were able to physically come to life, and allowed for the intangible and/or unvoiced learning to emerge through embodiment and dialogue. As I read and re-read the pre-service teachers' journals, my field notes on the project...what continued to catch my attention was how their collective play and lived experience seemed to increasingly blend over the course of the playbuilding process...they played out their understandings during improvisations, and, in turn, progressively (and likely subconsciously) wrote themselves into the script."
(excerpt from article Canadian Creative Arts in Health, Training and Education Journal, CCAHTE, June 2006)

Dr. George Belliveau is an Associate Professor and Graduate Academic Advisor in The Department of Language and Literacy Education at the University of British Columbia. His areas of research include theatre/drama education, research based theatre, teacher education, Canadian theatre and drama in second language learning. He is currently the Principal investigator, Co-Investigator on projects su ch as "Becoming Pedagogical through A/r/tography in Teacher Education", "Addressing the Role of the Bystander in Bullying"
and " Assessing Ethnotheatre as a Form of Educational Research."

George Belliveau is also an Advisory board member for The International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, IJCAIP.

Minutia Matters

Robert Kelly, Minutia Exhibit McIntosh Gallery and lecture, King's University College, , University of Western Ontario, September 2009, Photography C. McLean.

New Call for Abstracts for 2nd book in the CAIP Research Series, Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change

CAIP, Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice Research Series

Publisher: Detselig Temeron Press

Editor, Cheryl McLean, Publisher IJCAIP

International Journal of The Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice

Associate Editor, Robert Kelly Ph.D.

Call for Abstracts

Book 2 in the CAIP (Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice ) Research Series

Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change

The CAIP, Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice research text series was launched with the inaugural text “Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change” published by Detselig Temeron Books, Editor Cheryl McLean, Associate Editor Robert Kelly, scheduled for release in April 2010. (http://www.creativeartpractice.blogspot.com )"Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice, Inquiries for Hope and Change" introduced the emerging field with illustrative examples, demonstrating the breadth and depth of the applications of the creative arts in research action and interdisciplinary practice. About the book

New Call for Abstracts:

In the second research text in the CAIP series, "Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change" there will be a particular focus on creative arts and research that transforms and empowers individuals and communities. We are interested in creative arts and research within neighbourhoods and cities, across continents and beyond borders. Currently we are seeking illustrative and accessible research accounts of new work offering hope for change across cultures and communities locally and globally.

These are a just a few of the themes and subjects areas of special interest:

• arts and community based research and participatory methods
• arts in research and practice re-building or bridging communities in conflict (visual arts, dance, performance, narrative/poetry, installation etc.)
• arts in research and interdisciplinary practice across cultures for global change
• ethnographic/oral history field studies leading to arts for social justice, anti-oppression work, empowerment
• arts in research for improved health and quality of life, poverty, homelessness, environment, disability, youth, crime, aging, urban studies

• arts in research and interdisciplinary practice that is used in distinctive and innovative ways, transformative new methods and creative approaches to help investigate, explore, articulate and communicate research findings while working actively within communities and beyond borders to foster change.

Submissions for Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change

Send an abstract (max. l pg.) as a Word attachment, with a short bio and a brief list of academic references to CherylMcLean@ijcaip.com with “submission Creative Arts in Research for Community and Cultural Change" in the subject line.

. Due date for full articles will be July 30, 2010.. Please be aware that we are seeking research related articles.

Arts a Bridge for Access to Good Science and Local Knowledge

photo Olga Davis

Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice,
Contributor Features


“How do arts-based communication channels serve as a “translational bridge” for providing communities the access to good science and researchers the access to important local knowledge? A community-based participatory health communication approach to health literacy highlights the role that art and performance can play in intervention and offers a culturally based model for replication in other marginalized communities."
Olga Ildriss Davis


Olga Davis Ph.D. is an Associate Professor at The Hugh Downs School of Human Communication, Arizona State University (ASU) and co-Principal Investigator of the Community engagement/Community Outreach Core of the SIRC NIH-P20 Centre of Excellence grant for the Study of Health disparities in the Southwest. Her research agenda is in the domain of critical cultural and performance studies in the disciplinary area of human communication. Her work explores the performative struggle of identity within the African Diaspora, the Black body as a site of racialized and sexualized oppression, and the function of memory as ritualized healing among survivors of the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921. Central to the work is the study of narrative—how narrative empowers, creates, and fosters cultural awareness to provide a space for social change.

More Information

Filmmaker Opening Opportunities to Communicate Through Film and Media

photo from Citizenshift website
Six films were made by This Ability Media Club, a group of adults with developmental disabilities who have learned to use video to tell their stories.

Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice,
Contributor Features

"While becoming a director, marginalized individuals learn to actively express themselves in the process of creating new media works, regardless of the commercial potential of the work. In the process of training a novice director, the artist, researcher, or artist-researcher makes the connection between self-expression and self-determination explicit, allowing the novice to apply artistic knowledge to their social relationships."
Lorna R. Boschman

Lorna R. Boschman has been a documentary and media artist for over twenty years; her work has shown at many festivals and venues, including The Museum of Modern Art in New York. Two of her works are part of the collection at The National Gallery of Canada. Currently Boschman is a PhD student and sessional instructor at Simon Fraser University, School of Interactive Arts and Technology. She was the director of the community-led media arts training workshop for self-advocates and their supporters called, this ability media club.

This Ability is an innovative filmmaking project that puts the tools of media creation directly into the hands of adults with developmental disabilities. Formed as a partnership between the National Film Board of Canada and the Burnaby Association for Community Inclusion (BACI), with support from Philia and the United Way, the aim was to move away from videos that merely observe people with disabilities, towards ones that give an inside perspective on the human experience of disability.

Through regular workshops and hands-on training, the filmmakers in the This Ability Media Club developed the skills to tell their own stories in their own way. Filmmaker Lorna Boschman worked over the course of a year with a dedicated group of six to eight people, meeting weekly, building a relationship and helping them become comfortable with the cameras and other technical gear they would need to make their own films.

From the National Film Board of Canada website




see film directed by Michelle McDonald, "Be Kind to Spiders"
Project Director, Lorna Boschman
This Ability Media Club/National Film Board of Canada/Burnaby Association for Community Inclusion
Watch here:
http://citizenshift.org/be-kind-spiders