Waking Death prepares to kick off exhibit of deadly good art

By Theodora MacLeod - Lethbridge Herald Local Journalism Initiative Reporter on September 9, 2023.

Herald photo by Theodora MacLeod Waking Death Collective members Annie Martin, Mia van Leeuwen, and Shanell Papp, along with Casa curator Darcy Logan, are helping to put on the Waking Death Arts & Culture events at venues around the city running until the end of October.

It’s an old cliché that the only things guaranteed in life are death and taxes, and while much is said about taxes, the topic of death is far less approachable for many North Americans. But Casa and the members of the Waking Death Collective are daring to challenge the awkward silence through art.

“We invited artists to respond to the themes of death, dying, and grief,” says Annie Martin, an associate professor of Art at the University of Lethbridge and one of the organizers of the exhibit that opens today and runs until Saturday, October 28 – just in time for Halloween.

With eight artists participating in the exhibit at the Casa gallery, there are a variety of mediums and perspectives presented. From painting to performance art, and even part of an ossuary made of crochet skulls, the exhibit is abundant with creativity and rich with diversity.

With benches placed throughout the gallery, guests are invited to sit and spend time contemplating the topic. “We hope that it gives people the opportunity to become more comfortable sitting with the idea that we are all mortal and finding their own way to make some kind of relationship with death,” says Martin.

But the exploration into death and dying goes beyond the exhibit displayed at Casa and includes well over a dozen events throughout the city.

Some of the events, such as the September 20 screening of Wrought: a short film about decay, are curated and presented by the Waking Death Collective and Casa, while others, such as the Day of the Dead Creative Community Program on Oct. 11 are put on by partners like the Galt Museum, as well as other organizations throughout the city. Overall, though, the collection of events is a group effort and approach to opening dialogue around one of nature’s most dependable processes.

For a full list of events, visit: https://wakingdeath.ca/events