DAYLIGHT

The Project

Once an hour, on the hour, Cree performance artist Archer Pechawis will perform an action where he attempts to uncover or "daylight" a small, unnamed stream buried beneath downtown Toronto. This performance will be undertaken using a spoon against the hard surface of the city. This futile gesture highlights the hopelessness many feel in relation to taking action against climate change and related environmental catastrophes. These actions will be underlined by a live improvised ambient score performed by Toronto Bandleader Ian Goodtimes, in conjunction with a revolving host of Toronto best musicians. At the end of the spoken word part of this performance, Archer will drum and sing a traditional or neo-traditional song, which will be improvised to by the musicians, and will in turn inspire the rhythm, melody, harmony and the dynamics for the next round of improvisations. The juxtaposition of this futile action with a powerful spoken word piece, combined with traditional drumming, singing and haunting improvised music is intended to create a sense of terrible beauty among audiences.

The Artists

• Archer Pechawis, Toronto, Canada

• Ian Goodtimes , Toronto, Ontario 

Archer Pechawis works at the intersection of Plains Cree culture and digital technology, merging traditional objects such as hand drums with video and audio sampling. He is an Assistant Professor of Performance Art at York University and a member of Mistawasis Nêhiyawak, Saskatchewan. Ian Goodtimes is a bandleader, multi-instrumentalist, singer & composer who has been creating, playing and recording music for over 40 years with a veritable who’s-who of the Canadian music industry.