Keywords: short film, spoken word soundscape, audio
A spoken word soundscape, 25 minutes in length. This audio work was three years in the making. A great deal of learning, a shift in my art practice, an affirmative process.
Rheumatoid Disease arrived in March of 2014, significantly altering my ability to continue to work in media I had cultivated: painting, sculpture, photography, mixed media – always with an emphasis on the environment surrounding us here in Northern Ontario. The severity of the disease took hold and for the following three years, I was bedridden, now using a wheelchair for outings.
During this time, a dear friend who visited often gifted me a handheld audio recorder and encouraged me to record my daily insights and to capture sounds of my environment. It was meant as a way for me to stay engaged creatively through an extremely difficult time.
In 2017, a new treatment began to show promise. Now able to function in an altered state with limited capacity, I applied to the Ontario Arts Council aimed at a mentorship year with Darren Copeland, an accomplished soundscape artist.
In 2019 with the skill and support of Benjamin Hermann, sound technician and confidant, this work was ready for publication. I encourage you to listen with headphones as the work has been configured to be an intimate, mindful listening experience.
In 2020 the final piece of this project was produced: a translation video with both American Sign Language and close captioning.
About the Artist
As settler Kim resides on the Territory of Nipissing First Nation, meaning "place of little waters’s. It is the past, present and future of the Anishinaabe, covered by the Robinson-Huron & Upper Canada Treaties of 1850. Kim is deeply grateful to call this home and committed to individual and collective efforts towards Indigenous self determination, justice and equity.
Through the art of shaping sound and weaving varied components of production
and design to facilitate a compelling story, Kim Kitchen shares her process and
insights of these life changing years. Tracing the moments from the debilitating
arrival of Rheumatoid Disease, Able Body to Disabled: New Means of Production
conveys insurmountable moments of grief, loss and transformation amid testable
adaptability and embrace.
Anchored in her reality, the narrative emerges, depicting a vivid story and
complexity within the composition. At it’s core, Able Body to Disabled: New Means
of Production recounts a personal process of transformation, re-configuration of
identity and the work of letting go to let in.
A feature short doc was produced by CBC Canada.
https://www.cbc.ca/arts/bedridden-for-years-kim-kitchen-made-hundreds-of-vulnerable-recordings-now-she-wants-you-to-hear-1.5651358
Media
Project Details
- Currently based in North Bay, Ontario
- Access rider available
- Budget available
- Contact Kim for additional information and/or booking
