It’s All Mental. It’s All Physical – Jane O’Connor
It’s All Mental. It’s All Physical – Jane O’Connor
Everything that happens in your brain including emotion has a physical mechanism. Working with clay I reflect on the permanence of damage. When I was a child, and got highly frustrated I would smash something, and when I broke a ceramic figure and there was no way to repair it to its previous state, I was devastated. As we perceive the world around us we have to sometimes accept that some damage is irreversible. In my personal mental health journey I am working on the concept of radical acceptance. Accepting the world around me, listing the facts and removing my perceptions and then dealing with my experience. The breaking of the brains represents the physical damage as well as the requirement for radical acceptance because once broken, fired ceramic can not be repaired to its original state. The bright colors represent the intensity of my emotional experience and my physical pain. Highlighting both the colors I see when experiencing a migraine attack, aura, and the colors I feel when I am experiencing extreme emotions. Every color has a feeling and every feeling has a color. All of my struggles (mental health, migraine and concussion) contribute to my external expression of pain. All the mental symptoms correlate to physical experiences. It’s all mental and it’s all physical.
Jane O’Connor is an artist born and based in southern Alberta. In her art practice, Jane bridges her emotional and cognitive experiences with her physical sensations. In the last 10 years Jane has struggled with migraine and concussions resulting in headache pain and other debilitating symptoms. In her early twenties Jane was diagnosed with a personality disorder that has altered her perception of relationships and the world. Struggling with a myriad of symptoms, Jane uses art as an outlet and a way to externalize her emotions and pain. Clay is one of her favorite mediums because it is recyclable, and can be remolded, bent, stretched and more but after a certain process(firing) it becomes an irreparable object and if broken, despite repair efforts, ceramic cracks remain, and it will likely never serve as a functional ware again. This has so many parallels to cognitive and behavioral neuroscience which is a favorite topic of Jane’s to explore.
Date:June 15th, 2024 – August 24th, 2024
Location:Casa – Project Space
Organizer
The Allied Arts Council of Lethbridge (AAC) was established on March 20, 1958 with the intent of encouraging, coordinating, and promoting the arts in Lethbridge and area. The AAC continues this mission to this day.
The original 16 Allied Members of the AAC were the: Alberta Association of Architects, Alberta Teacher’s Association, Beta Sigma Phi Sorority, Black & White Photography Club, Classical Record Club, Colour Camera Club, Lethbridge Ballet Auxiliary, Lethbridge Handicraft Guild, Lethbridge Jazz Society, Lethbridge Philosophical Society, Lethbridge Public Library Board, Lethbridge Registered Music Teachers Association, Lethbridge Women’s Music Club, Playgoers of Lethbridge, Quota Club, and University Women’s Club.
In 1964, the City of Lethbridge tasked the AAC with the management of the Bowman Arts Centre. AAC staff provided support to local arts organizations, created multi-disciplinary arts education programming, coordinated the gallery program, and provided a central hub for the arts community.
Throughout the years, the AAC has provided input and advocacy on arts issues including civic arts and culture facilities, the formation of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery, the City of Lethbridge Public Art Policy, the City of Lethbridge Municipal Development Plan, and the City of Lethbridge Recreation and Culture Plan. The organization also programs community events like Arts Days and the Mayor’s Luncheon for Business and the Arts.
In 2009 the administrative staff moved out of the Bowman and into the current administrative offices on 7th Street in downtown Lethbridge. In 2013, the programming staff moved out of the Bowman and into the newly built Casa community arts centre. This purpose-built facility was part of the AAC’s Arts Re: Building Together Campaign, which included advocacy for the renovation of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery facility and a new performing arts centre.
The Allied Arts Council continues to work to advance and enhance the arts at all levels of government and brings support to Lethbridge’s incredibly vibrant arts community.
Casa opened in May of 2013 and has embraced core concepts of experimentation, incubation, learning, and growing. Serving a multi-generational community, with varying art skill sets and interests in all disciplines of the arts, Casa is a busy space. The building far surpasses the original vision for expansion and sets a new standard for interdisciplinary arts centres.
Designing the building was a comprehensive and collaborative process led by Pendergast Nyhoff Collaborative Architecture (PNCA) working in conjunction with the local architectural firm of Ferrari Westwood Babits. The architectural team visited numerous arts education institutions and also met with members of the local arts community to define requirements for a truly functional 42,000 square foot art centre. The resulting building design is truly impressive. Funding for the project were provided by the Federal Build Canada Fund ($6,000,000.), the Provincial MSI Fund ($14,900,000.), and the City of Lethbridge ($200,000).
The Allied Arts Council of Lethbridge manages Casa on behalf of the City of Lethbridge. Learn more about visitor numbers, events and programs in the previous year by reading the Allied Arts Council’s Annual Report.
