Grant Helps Artist Explore Aging and the Anthropocene Through an Afrofuturist Lens

Tanya Evanson-Arsiray has been called Canada’s rising star in poetry and musical performance and one of Canada’s best-kept secrets. Her next fascinating project will juxtapose middle age and geological age.

Addressing the future through the personal and the political

The Anthropocene, the current geological age, is a period in which human activity has been the dominant influence on the environment. Evanson-Arsiray is spending a year researching ideas connected to the Anthropocene to develop a project that would be ready for performance near the end of 2021. She will ponder questions like: Do we really face the extinction of half of all plants and animals? What are the signs of distress in our own backyards? How do we manage what’s left?

A deep, sonic exploration of Black identity, aging, and the environment

At the same time, she will ask herself several personal questions, like: What are the stories around my own Black body as it enters middle age? How do family dynamics change when a child must care for an aging parent? How can one live responsibly to ensure energy and long life? Her twin investigation of aging and the environment will culminate in a series of live performances featuring composed music, original digital art, projection mapping, and theatrical lighting to create an immersive Afrofuturist space.