My performances have seen me use my body as a container, a canvas. The resulting medium is, at times, a persona, a being crossbred and torn between self and all the currents, rites, emotions and values it encounters. My being presents itself as seized by itself which is extended in the space and duration in an active silent dialogue with the audience, a crossbreed of the subjective felt and the objective seized. My perspective from within plays out in the movement of the action which unfolds. Inhabited by a desire for flow in movement and acuteness of the gesture presented, the suspension favours the decision which is taken. The intention and motivation of my actions are anchored in the context, and the aesthetic choices are aligned with space-time and with the identity of the subject. This is all presented as a process of accumulation, susceptible to creating a resonance and of pushing further the limits of one’s relation with the Other. The human being as an integral part of my quest for identity, and the need to renew myself trough other cultures and communities favour a distancing in line with my pursued questioning that fosters discovery. During the pandemic lockdowns 2020-2023 my outdoor sensorial experience brought me to the more profound understanding of the phenomenon I was sharing with the audience in these thick and perceived surreal times. Thus, I reverted to a thorough exploration of the Other whether being another human, nature an object or place.

While at Gibraltar Point Art Centre, I would like to explore performance/ video, creating in the public sphere. Inclusivity in the way she comes walking, the Other beings are the surrounding elements; including light, water, maybe the shoreline or forest floor. I will attend to how I will relate, embody, experience and discover this unfamiliar site; the rhythm of my body resonating with place more than acting. Inhabited by environmental sounds of water, of birds, of wind, of insects, of faraway air traffic and human activity. The outdoor/studio would be my initial creative space. My bare deepest intimacy exposes what shame discovers of the being who uncovers herself. Where mimetic movement thus taken to be a process producing a reference to the Other revealing our differences, our resistance, our strength. I will confront my physical aging limitations, working at the service of gravity, negotiating at its edges in search of transformative findings to create new work. The work begins with the body moving and conceiving in its studio space. Time, space, embodied movement and co-presence are of essence. Here I would reconceive the outdoor experience as if memory, embodied trace could explore further and share new beginnings aspiring to building blocks towards a scenario for performance, which I would want to document on site. I would also do a performance as part of the closing exhibition.

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Hélène Lefebvre‘s practice expresses itself as an inquiry into identity and alterity, all the while weaving links between visual art, culture and society. The body in movement and sensorial active listening (epicentre of performance action) have been a sustained interest of mine for now approaching 20 years. Recently, Lefebvre’s work has taken the form of performance, installation and video. Their practice in corporeality takes inspiration from studies in visual art, contemporary dance and authentic movement, a form in which improvisation is central. Lefebvre’s work has been presented at a number of exhibitions, performance festivals and residencies in Canada (Ontario, Québec and Nova Scotia), Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific. Based in Ottawa, Lefebvre received grants from the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, FADO Performance Art Centre (Toronto) and the City of Ottawa. One of the works, Open Water, can be viewed at vimeo.com/358903192.

Hélène Lefebvre would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council and the Government of Ontario for their support.