Jojo Chooi-Harley, Hamilton
Illustrator / Project Design
JoJo Chooi-Harley is a self-taught artist currently residing in Hamilton, Ontario. As a first generation Canadian that is Chinese-Malay, her work investigates how immigration causes diaspora in familial relationships in Pan-Asian migrant families. She examines how Pan-Asian migrant families navigate familial values, culture, and identity in Canada.
JoJo weaves storytelling, photo-voice photography, and printmaking techniques to share personal autobiographical stories of her family that challenge western dominant singular narratives. She is committed to decolonizing stereotypical narratives of Canadian Born Chinese by promoting dialogue on family identities shaped by hope, resiliency, sacrifice, labour, and unity in the face of adversity.
Her work has been supported by the Ontario Arts Council, and in recent years has been shown at Centre3 (Sayang, solo exhibit), the AGH (My Back Pages: The Art of Zines, group), WAHC (Personal Narratives, group), and DVSA (juried art show).
Jonathan Harley, Hamilton
Composer / Musician
Jonathan Harley is multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter based in Hamilton, where he is co-founder and member of rock band CODA FACTO.
Jon trained in the Suzuki method for violin from the age of six. His influences include Andrew Bird, Owen Pallett, and Warren Ellis. Like these musicians, Jon relies on violin as his primary instrument while also learning to play a wide range of other stringed instruments; including guitar, cello, mandolin, and sitar.
In 2015, Jon started to perform professionally as a member of CODA FACTO (formerly known as ALEXR/Strathcona) at various iconic music venues in Hamilton; including Baltimore House, This Ain’t Hollywood, The Casbah, The Pearl Company, and The Mule Spinner. Coda Facto is releasing its debut single in Summer 2021 as lead up to an EP release in the fall.
Jon continues to collaborate with numerous artists for live performances and recordings as a session violinist.
Robert Motum
Series Editor / Project Manager
Robert Motum is a playwright, director, and researcher. With a background in site-specific performance, Robert has staged work on an active city bus, in a dorm room, in a Queen West gallery, in a castle, in a vacant Target store, and occasionally even in a theatre space. His work has been supported by the Stratford Festival Playwright's Retreat, Why Not Theatre, Theatre Aquarius, the Ontario Arts Council, and others. He is the playwright of A Community Target (Outside the March / Convergence) - a verbatim look into Canada's precarious retail climate.
Recent directing credits include: King Charles III* (Mirvish/Studio 180, *assistant) and Ballet Train (Theatre Gargantua).
Robert is in the process of launching a large project with Hamilton's Tottering Biped Theatre: PLAY THIS - a series of site-specific immersive audio guides to the city. He holds an MA in Performance from Aberystwyth University (Wales) and is a SSHRC-funded PhD Candidate in Theatre at the University of Toronto. His work has appeared in Theatre Research in Canada, Canadian Theatre Review, and in forthcoming collections from Palgrave and Routledge.
Amanda Baker, Kingston
Project Lead, Kingston
Amanda is a producer, theatre artist, and technologist based in Kingston and Toronto specializing in immersive and interactive theatre. She holds a BAH in Computing and the Creative Arts from Queen’s, and a Master’s in Drama, Theatre & Performance Studies from the University of Toronto. She is currently the Festival Administrator for The Kick & PushFestival, Bookkeeper for Generator, and Treasurer for
Kingston Arts Council, with recent work including Quality Assurance for Cohort, Production Manager for Single Thread’s “Virtual Ambrose,” UX Designer for “The Social Within the City”, and Testing Lead for adelheid’s “You Are Swimming Here” AR experience.
Grace Dixon, Kingston
Illustrator / Project Design
Grace (she/her) is an illustrator and musician based in Katarowki Kingston whose love of storytelling and connection is often woven into her work. Through the use of textures, nostalgic references and sound she explores the avenues of emotive design in visual art making as well as musical composition. Her work has appeared in partnership with entities such as the Kingston Canadian Film Festival, the City of Kingston, the film Queer’s Guide to Spiritual Living and the Canadian Theatre Review. She seeks collaborative opportunities often and appreciates art as an important catalyst for growth, change and healthy community.
Madeline Samms, Waterloo
Illustrator / Project Design
Madeline is a lifelong resident of Kitchener-Waterloo. She graduated with a BA in Theatre and Performance and Studio Art from the University of Waterloo. Madeline's recent theatre experience includes: head of properties (Lighthouse Theatre), set design (Unity 1918, UW), and associate set design for The Importance of Being Earnest at UW. Her fine art work has been exhibited in the Y.E.S. exhibition at UWag and the Small Acts of Repair curation at UW.
Bailey Laing, Kingston
Curator, Guidebook Installation
Bailey is a recent graduate from the Department of Cultural Studies at Queen’s, where she explored the positive impacts of community-engaged arts on well-being. She earned her undergraduate degree from Carleton University in Art History and Psychology before returning to her hometown of Kingston. Recently she has had the privilege of working with The Kick & Push Festival, Union Gallery and Kingston School of Art. Her main interests revolve around collaborative art-making, fostering community engagement, and developing intentional resources for artists. She is dedicated to supporting creative programming that champions inclusivity, diversity, and accessibility in the arts.