CANJE in Peoria: Reflections from a 2-day event

September 7, 2023

A look at two CANJE events this summer through the photography of Alexa Cary with reflections from the organizers.

Image: Autumn Angelize sits and writes notes/feedback for the participating artists of at CANJE Session 1: The Art of Critique. Photo by Alexa Cary.

This summer, Peoria Guild of Black Artists (PGOBA) reimagined Sixty’s CANJE project by looking at it through the lens of collaboration through art-making, exhibition-making, and self-reflection in community with others. The result was two incredible events on June 10 and 17th at the Sunbeam Building (923 N. Sheridan Road) in Peoria, Illinois. These experimental events challenged and reshaped how audiences can interact with exhibitions, fused together different art genres (sound and visual art), an created opportunities for both artist and community member to be in direct dialogue.

In the spirit of last year’s CANJE, we would like to share with you some of thoughts from PGOBA members about this meaningful experience as well as a look at these two dynamic events through the lens of photographer and PGOBA member Alexa Cary.

Congratulations to PGOBA on these incredible events–and thank you to everyone who joined us!

The Art of Critique

June 10th, 1-4pm
An open studio night and public critique session where visual artists, writers, and musicians presented work for discussion and written response. This day featured artists Autumn Angelize, Hannah Offutt, Ezra Collom, Rose Feral, Alexander Martin, Alexa Cary, and Fatema Salem.

Image: Two people stand in a gallery viewing the collaborative exhibition The Art of Critique on the wall. We can see two artworks on display with little pockets underneath them for folks to place their written feedback. Photo by Alexa Cary. — Left Image: Two people stand in a gallery viewing the collaborative exhibition *The Art of Critique*, organized by PGOBA as part of CANJE. The person on the right is holding a piece of paper with instructions on how to provide feedback to the artists on display. Right Image: Two people stand in a gallery viewing the collaborative exhibition *The Art of Critique*. We can see two artwork on display with little pockets underneath them for folks to place their written feedback. Photos by Alexa Cary.

Image: Brenda Gentry writes her feedback for works in the exhibition The Art of Critique. Photo by Alexa Cary. — Image: Brenda Pagan writes her feedback for works in the exhibition *The Art of Critique*. Photo by Alexa Cary.

Thoughts from PGOBA artist, poet, and organizer Brenda Pagan…

“As someone who has always struggled with expressing myself verbally, ‘critique’ was always scary to me. Not because of a fear of feedback from others—but when it comes to presenting, I am already slow to find and piece together my words, even when I’m not standing in front of room of people with all eyes on me. Also, receiving and responding to even the best of feedback while standing in front of everyone is is nerve-wracking, and trying to compose meaningful verbal feedback for others on the spot? I’m not even going to attempt.

I was excited by the idea of creating events that invited us to rethink the format of critique. It was extremely important to me that we created events that recognize and accommodate different communication styles and struggles. For instance, having the visual exhibition along with verbal presentations and spoken word. We also invited thoughtful conversation through questions and answers after each presentation and then had quiet time to compose written critique for each artist after they returned to their seats.

Also, a lot of us in the guild don’t have a bachelors or masters degree in art, so in an effort to build confidence as far as composing critique for others, we created a handout of prompts and questions to aid in giving supportive feedback. I know for me personally, the process of trying to focus my attention and compose feedback for others in a social setting—of just quietly standing in front of each piece and asking the questions (that I helped to write)—definitely stretched me and made me rethink the way I normally visit exhibitions (and how much time I don’t normally give myself to just be still and quiet and reflect on a piece).

Getting home and reading my envelope of feedback from others allowed me to just smile and appreciate the words without the nervousness of how to respond. Though I also received some very meaningful and full feedback through personal conversations during the event!”

“Having an exhibition that explored collaboration as critique was also really important to me, because collaboration can be such an effective active, informal, and connected form of critique. It allows for technical, conceptual, casual, active, and visual feedback to meet in a very candid and laid-back process. We had a such a thoughtful, fantastic group of artists involved and participating in this project, and I’m so proud to have been a part of it!”

Brenda Pagan

Images: Ezra Collom presents their artwork to an audience as part of a public critique session. They wear a colorful outfit while standing on a stage talking into a mic. Photo by Alexa Cary.

Image: Autumn Angelize speaks into a mic in front of an audience at CANJE Session 1: The Art of Critique.

Image: A person writes notes/feedback for the participating artists. Photo by Alexa Cary.

Image: Tempestt Hazel sits in the audience of the event and writes her feedback for the participating artists. Photo by Alexa Cary.

Image: Hannah Offutt stands in front of an audience while reading their work. Photo by Alexa Cary. — (clockwise from top left corner) Image 1: A person writes notes/feedback for the participating artists. Image 2: Tempestt Hazel sits in the audience of the event and writes her feedback for the participating artists. Image 3: Three members of the Peoria Guild of Black Artists sit at a long table while listening to one of the participating artists present their work. Image 4: Hannah Offutt stands in front of an audience while reading their work. Photos by Alexa Cary.

Image: Three members of the Peoria Guild of Black Artists sit at a long table while listening to one of the participating artists present their work. Photo by Alexa Cary. — (clockwise from top left corner) Image 1: A person writes notes/feedback for the participating artists. Image 2: Tempestt Hazel sits in the audience of the event and writes her feedback for the participating artists. Image 3: Three members of the Peoria Guild of Black Artists sit at a long table while listening to one of the participating artists present their work. Image 4: Hannah Offutt stands in front of an audience while reading their work. Photos by Alexa Cary.

Collaboration as Critique

June 17th, 4:30-9:30pm
New works created between PGOBA and other Peoria-based artists and musicians were revealed through an interactive exhibition, titled Collaboration as Critique: An Exhibition, and open mic (hosted by Cami Proctor). This night feature dartists Ezra Collom, David Jennings, Tafi Brown, Camryn Proctor, Maria Lavender, Brenda Pagan, Knyame Maison, Krystopher Dudley-Brown, and Alexa Cary.

Collaboration as Critique: An Exhibition featured the work of seven audio and visual artists. All pieces were created with the theme of “self-reflection based on others’ perspectives,” and explored the idea of collaboration as a form of active critique. To listen to these collaborations, click here.

Image: Maria Lavender is smiling toward a crowd of people while standing in front of a collaborative painting. The painting depicts a distinct and impressionistic world made up of various shades of blues, violets, and yellows within large circles surrounded by natural environments. The work on display is part of a collaborative exhibition put on by PGOBA as part of CANJE. Photo by Alexa Cary. — Image: Maria Lavender is smiling toward a crowd of people while standing in front of a collaborative painting. The work on display is part of *Collaboration as Critique: An Exhibition*, organized by PGOBA as part of CANJE. Photo by Alexa Cary.

Image: Two people are listening to new sound collaborations created by Peoria-based musicians in collaboration with the visual artists for this exhibition. Photo by Alexa Cary. — Left image: Two people are listening to new sound collaborations created by Peoria-based musicians in collaboration with the visual artists for this exhibition. Right image: Two audience members discuss the painting in front of them. The painting depicts a burning sword and is by PGOBA artist Brenda Pagan. Photos by Alexa Cary.

Image: Two audience members discuss the painting in front of them. The painting depicts a burning sword and is by PGOBA artist Brenda Pagan. Photo by Alexa Cary. — Left image: Two people are listening to new sound collaborations created by Peoria-based musicians in collaboration with the visual artists for this exhibition. Right image: Two audience members discuss the painting in front of them. The painting depicts a burning sword and is by PGOBA artist Brenda Pagan. Photos by Alexa Cary.

Image: Maria Lavender stands with an audience member in front of a series of three colorful collaborative paintings. Each painting depicts distinct and impressionistic worlds made up of various shades of blues, violets, and yellows within large circles surrounded by natural environments. Photo by Alexa Cary. — Image: Maria Lavender stands with an audience member in front of a series of three colorful collaborative paintings. Photo by Alexa Cary.

“The CANJE sessions allowed me to explore a different side of my creativity through close collaboration with other artists. We each shared a bit of our heART and the feedback from the community was genuinely uplifting and helpful. It was a fun challenge to cultivate such a supportive and inspiring environment for myself and other artists!”
PGOBA Artist Maria Lavender

Image: Cami Proctor performs (sings and plays guitar) at the open mic they hosted as part of the second session of CANJE. Photo by Alexa Cary.

Image: Ezra Collom sings while wearing a dark velvet shirt. Their hand is gesturing to the left. Photo by Alexa Cary.

Image: A person participates in CANJE's open mic by singing and playing ukulele. Photo by Alexa Cary.

Image: A crowd of people are clapping. Photo by Alexa Cary. — (Clockwise from top left corner) Image 1: Ezra Collom sings while wearing a dark velvet shirt. Their hand is gesturing to the left. Image 2: A person participates in CANJE’s open mic by singing and playing ukulele. Image 3: Cami Proctor can be seen on the right speaking into a microphone right before the person on the left performs. Image 4: A crowd of people are clapping. All photos were taken during the CANJE open mic in Peoria, hosted by Cami Proctor. Photos by Alexa Cary.

Image: Cami Proctor can be seen on the right speaking into a microphone right before the person on the left performs. Photo by Alexa Cary. — (Clockwise from top left corner) Image 1: Ezra Collom sings while wearing a dark velvet shirt. Their hand is gesturing to the left. Image 2: A person participates in CANJE’s open mic by singing and playing ukulele. Image 3: Cami Proctor can be seen on the right speaking into a microphone right before the person on the left performs. Image 4: A crowd of people are clapping. All photos were taken during the CANJE open mic in Peoria, hosted by Cami Proctor. Photos by Alexa Cary.

Thoughts from guitar player, songwriter, and producer Cami Proctor…

“I absolutely loved working on the CANJE committee. It was such a special and novel experience creating a song with two artists who i’d never collaborated with before. It was amazing to see their unique skillsets shine through, and I learned a lot by studying their strengths and listening to their critiques.

Hosting the open mic was very special as well. Despite having attended many open mics over the years, I have never been the host of one, and it was very wonderful to help platform so many phenomenal community artists and hear their pieces. I also loved how intimate and communal it felt out there on the patio.”

I had many friends of mine who were in attendance tell me how special it was for them as well, and I do believe the experience left a positive impact on the artists and listeners alike.
Cami Proctor

Image: Ezra Collom hugs a member of the crowd after singing as part of the CANJE open mic. Photo by Alexa Cary.

Images: A close up of one of CANJE's open mic participants performing at the event. Photos by Alexa Cary.

Images: A close up of Brenda Pagan reading her poetry at the CANJE open mic event. Photo by Alexa Cary. — Images: A grid of four photos showing close ups of various participants of the CANJE open mic. Photos by Alexa Cary.

Image: A close up of two hands: one holding a pencil and the other holding a piece of paper for writing their feedback to the performances. The piece of paper says, "Brenda! Thank you for sharing with us! Your talent is limitless. Keep being yourself & making art." Photo by Alexa Cary. — Image: A close up of two hands: one holding a pencil and the other holding a piece of paper for writing their feedback to the performances. The piece of paper says, “Brenda! Thank you for sharing with us! Your talent is limitless. Keep being yourself & making art.” Photo by Alexa Cary.

CANJE is an exploration in cultural criticism with the intention to apply Sixty’s values and ethos to an in-person dialogue, engaging artists directly to form a deeper relationship.

Logo by Kiki Lechuga-Dupont.

Peoria Guild of Black Artists (PGOBA) is a group of Black creatives from within the Peoria, IL community. Their mission is to bring the Black creative community together, uplift one another, advocate and provide a platform for Black folks in the Peoria arts community. They strive to provide resources and educational materials to our community in an accessible manner. You can learn more about them and read their manifesto here.

Support PGOBA’s work by donating here.

This iteration of CANJE was created by the Peoria Guild of Black Artists (PGOBA) with support from the Arts Midwest GIG Fund, a program of Arts Midwest that is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts.