UNB Art Centre

The Art of Creation

Art-based Learning to Support a Healthy Start to Life

The UNB Art Centre showcases The Art of Creation opening May 5, 2023, at 5 p.m. The exhibit displays the results of a series of workshops designed to reflect on the importance of the environment and healthy behaviours before and during pregnancy.

Art is much more than just beautiful paintings of landscapes or important people. It can be a powerful vehicle for change, exploring and interpreting important socio-cultural issues and complementing academic pathways of knowledge. The Art of Creation combines storytelling, shadow puppetry, poetry and playwrighting to explore the role of men and non-birthing support partners in creating a healthy start to life.

A team of professional and semi-professional actors, poets, artists, and directors led a series of art and performance-based workshops with people in the Fredericton area over the past year. These workshops supported an experiential dialogue, tapping into an innate human desire to create as a means to reflect upon the science behind pre-natal health. Through art, participants were able to share thoughts, ideas and viewpoints that can be difficult to express in other ways.

The Art of Creation is a joint project of McMaster University and UNB's Faculty of Kinesiology. Learn more about the full project.

The Art of Creation will be on view from May 5 to June 16 in the East and West Galleries of the UNB Art Centre. It can also be viewed online.

The UNB Art Centre is located at Memorial Hall, 9 Bailey Drive, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton. The galleries are open 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. weekdays and during special events.

Artists

Naomi McGowan (Performer)

Naomi McGowan is a Fredericton based performer. She has recently been focusing her energy on becoming an informed and experienced Theatre Educator. In her hometown Miramichi, she co-produced the MRC Theatre Festival where she directed children in an epic save the kingdom tale, while also organizing space for artists of all ages and experience levels. A degree in Fine Arts and English is what landed her in Fredericton. Her studies focused on musical theatre performance, as well as in depth story analysis, theatre pedagogy and producing physical theatre.

Currently, her home is at TNB where she has had the honour of working as a director and music director for all the Junior Theatre programs offered. As a teacher, she strives to bring joy and encourage bravery from her students by pushing the boundaries of their imagination. Her goal is for each student to leave with lifelong memories and a deeper relationship with themselves as creative masterminds.

Jena McLean (Playwright)

Jena McLean (she/they) is a queer playwright with roots in New Brunswick and Alberta. A recent graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada's playwriting program, she also holds a Bachelor's Degree in English and Drama studies from Mount Allison University.

Sharisse LeBrun (Director)

Sharisse LeBrun is a theatre educator, director and actor. Having grown up in New Brunswick, she has long been involved with the local theatre community with companies including Theatre St. Thomas, Theatre UNB, Bard in the Barracks, Theatre New Brunswick, Notable Acts, and Solo Chicken. After completing her MA in drama, theatre, and performance studies at the University of Toronto, she returned home to take on the role of Director of the Theatre School and  Young Company, for Theatre New Brunswick where she gets to spend her days sharing her love of theatre with young people. As an artist, she loves exploring what theatre and storytelling can do outside of traditional theatre spaces.

Patrick Jeffrey (Writer)

Patrick Jeffrey grew up in Epekwitk / PEI and lives in Fredericton. He is a graduate of the Acting program of the National Theatre School of Canada. Patrick's recent stage appearances include: The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley (Theatre New Brunswick), Shadows in the Cove (Mulgrave Road), Lauchie, Liza & Rory (Theatre Baddeck), The Glass Menagerie (Atlantic Repertory Company). Patrick is also a writer. His first play, Oh, Prometheus! appeared in the Island Fringe Festival in 2013. His second play Brûlé premiered in the St. John's Shorts Festival in 2017, and selections from his third play, The Breakthrough, were performed by Montreal's Tableau D'Hôte in a workshop presentation in 2021. Last winter, his interactive theatre installation piece Dream Inquiry was presented as a part of Eastern Front Theatre's Macro Digitals project. Last year, he also worked with his grandfather Vernon Corney to make Shipwright, a performance and exhibit based on the fleet of model ships Vernon built over the past fifty years.

Alex Rioux (Actor)

Alex Rioux is an emerging theatre artist based in Fredericton, NB. A graduate of St. Thomas University, their work primarily focuses on the creation and promotion of queer centred works. Their debut piece, Fruit Machine, premiered at the NotaBle Acts Theatre Festival and was listed amongst Fredericton's Best Theatre of 2019 in Grid City Magazine. Rioux is also the creator and director of the Plain Site Theatre Festival, which provides a platform for New Brunswick's LGBTQ2+ students to have their work workshopped and presented with the mentorship of fellow queer artists. As a writer, Rioux is in the process of developing their new script, The Kelpie, which received a workshopped reading through Theatre New Brunswick's Fall festival of New Plays, and a special presentation at the 2021 Morbid Curiosities Festival.

Please visit this page regularly to stay informed about future events.