Laurie Jones, curator for Rails End Gallery, is excited to have Ruth Howard bring her Grounds for Goodness community arts project to Haliburton.
“Ruth will be working with local artists and community members to create and share a distinctive Haliburton version of the project,” she said.
Howard is a Toronto-based artist who has been working on the Grounds for Goodness project since 2018. On May 10, Rails End Gallery hosted a meet-and-greet with the artist to introduce the project, and Howard herself, to the Haliburton community.
Howard said, “I like a project, or an artistic process, that starts with curiosity about something, which might lead to some research or talking, a kind of train of thought, or line of questioning.” She added that was where the idea for the project came from.
Howard comes from a theatre background, designing and producing shows in Canada, and internationally. She has also started various companies and community initiatives with the idea of community engagement and collaboration.
“I worked on big plays that had a really huge impact on people collectively, soulful connectivity,” she said. “But the play would end without building on the momentum.”
That always felt like a missed opportunity, she added. “So, part of my vision for my company, Jumblies Theatre and Arts, was that we do multi-year projects with phases of research and development, creating something, presenting it – sustainability and legacy.”
Being the daughter of a holocaust survivor meant she learned a lot about bad things groups did towards other groups, but got interested in the other side, stories of people doing good things. “Stories of people doing the opposite surprised me because that is not at all what I had learned growing up. That led me to research lesser-known histories of countries that had been occupied by Nazis but rescued and protected Jews.”
Following COVID, a decision was made in 2023 to take the fruits of everyone’s labours on tour. “I didn’t get to go everywhere that was inviting me, so in 2023 I applied for some grants to take Grounds for Goodness on a tour, and here I am, and very happy to be here.”
The six-week exhibition, from May 10 – June 15, invites local artists and other community members to be part of the evolving installation. “You don’t have to feel like you have to do anything when you come, you can just come and see what’s going on,” said Howard.
“There are drop-in facilitated activities throughout the entire six-week period, with a final performance open to the public on June 14,” Jones said. All activities are free, and everyone is invited to participate in any, or all, of the sessions.
For more information, go to: railsendgallery.com, or call the gallery at 705-457-2330.
