We Don’t Even Know What We Don’t Know
Prophecy Fog is only a solo performance if you don’t consider the rocks to be performers. Jani Lauzon does.
Arts and Entertainment
Yukon arts magazine, What’s Up Yukon encourages you to discover Yukon’s true gold – the arts! We love covering Yukon’s arts and culture, who wouldn’t. Without delay, make sure to take the time to enjoy Yukon’s art galleries, dance, theatre, culture, music and more.
An Invitation To The Party
It’s not going to be easy to go into the solo showroom to see The Party, by Whitehorse-based artist Nicole Bauberger…
Don’t throw Out The Baby …
For some odd reason, this idiom has popped into my head several times in the past weeks: “Don’t throw out the ‘baby’ with the bathwater.”
Wyrd: A Musical UnFairytale
The idea for Wyrd first came about after playwrights Katherine McCallum and Angela Drainville met for the first time in 2017.
Sam McGee Connects The Yukon to B.C.
“Memorizing poetry is my daily training and therapy,” B.C. storyteller Andre Sutherland Begin said, adding he will be coming to the Yukon…
Over The Water
I submit this poem as part of my own journey here in the Yukon. Thankful for living on the traditional territories…
The Wolves At The Guild
The play itself is written for female-identifying characters which was a huge draw for Pritchard, Clark and Sinclair…
Concert Showcases Top Harpist
Get ready Whitehorse for a spectacular concert with visiting Pedal Harpist Meta Epstein, along with Ben Johnson and Barry Kitchen.
How The Birds Got Their Colours
At first all the birds were white, And Eagle was their Chief. All the birds had a meeting. They decided to paint each other.
2023 Yukon Rendezvous
After two years of the pandemic, Rendezvous will be back to form and celebrating its 59th festival this February.
The Alchemy of ALFF
ALFF has evolved into a two-week, 100-plus film event. There are 45 feature- and mid-length films, over 50 short films, live concerts…
Rat-a-tat-tat … I Smell A Rat
What does a rat even smell like? Well, I have no idea … even though I’ve seen a rat or two in my lifetime…
The Simple Joys Of Yukon Count
This past Christmas season, Yukoners were introduced to a new children’s book created by local illustrator Tedd Tucker.
This Year’s Yukon Prize for Visual Arts
Following the success of the inaugural Yukon Prize for Visual Arts, in 2021, the Yukon Prize committee has launched a 2023 edition…
Whitehorse Photo Club Q4 Showcase
The Whitehorse Photo Club has submitted its final showcase submissions for 2022! Check back in 2023 for even more amazing images!
Come To The Fire
In 2023, the Yukon Arts Centre (YAC) will invite visitors in by asking them to gather outside. That’s the idea behind a new firepit…
Puppet Show In The Window
Small audiences will delight in “Found in a Blizzard,” a short, family-friendly holiday puppet show performed in the window…
The Gift Of Community
The Boys and Girls Club Yukon has announced that they are renewing the Gift of Community program for the eighth year this Holiday Season.
Didee Didoo
You will see Dumbo the elephant You will hear Porky the pig You will touch Bambi You will see Woody the Woodpecker You will hear Kermit the Frog You will touch Snoopy You will see Mickey Mouse You will hear Curious George You will touch Garfield the cat You will see Skipper the penguin You …
Seeking The Sasquatch
If ever you should find yourself alone in the vast woodlands of the North and you happen upon large, humanoid footprints in the mud…
Gwich’in Moccasins
In 1995, the Yukon Arts Centre began acquiring works of art by Indigenous and northern artists—art significant to First Nations…
Christmas Comes But Once A Year
So, remember that Christmas comes but once a year … and embrace that thought and whatever meaning this humble idiom holds for you.
25 Years of Radio Rob
It’s been 25 years since Rob Hopkins, often known as Radio Rob, started up his first radio station, CFET-FM, in his home of Tagish.
A Yukon Mosaic
Eleanor Millard’s story is a familiar one. She came to the Yukon in 1965 and got captured. She has mostly been here since…
Didee Didoo: Underground
Allan Benjamin is a poet, a cartoonist, a fiddle player and a snowshoe racer from Old Crow, Yukon.
The Purolator Artist
Purolator has unveiled this year’s limited-edition holiday art boxes representing all provinces and territories including a Yukon artist.
Major Funk – New Tunes En Route
On Halloween weekend, the 202 opened its doors once again to Yukoners (in costume). Major Funk took the stage as the cast from Mario Kart.
River Meets Wolf
Yukon authors Kay Deborah Linley and Kathryn Couture wrote books about a kayaking tour, as well as a fantasy series about wolves.
The Choir Is Back
The Whitehorse Community Choir’s annual Christmas shows are happening Dec. 2-3, and won’t be scaled down due to pandemic restrictions.
When the Mountains Call, Bring Your Sketchbook
When opportunity knocked for Kluane National Park and Reserve to host an Artist in Residence program this past summer, enthusiasm was high.
At Home With Art
Lemker is at home with art and calls Whitehorse his home, as well as an endless source of inspiration to create.
A Celebration Of Words: Writer’s Festival
Writing is a lonely task: sitting at home and putting words on paper is the main part of an author’s life.
YAC Permanent Art Collection: Carl Beam
The Yukon Arts Centre began acquiring works of art by Indigenous and northern artists significant to First Nations and northern Canadians.
Artists Creating A Zine
Yukon Conversation Society (not to be confused with the Yukon Conservation Society) is a group of artists, a creative collective.
Silent Film Night Alive To the Sounds of the Roaring 20s
The Old Fire Hall will be roaring on November 19, as The Open Pit Theatre launches its Silent Film Night fundraiser.
On Thin Ice
I have fond memories of strapping on skates to glide over the deep-blue, almost-black pond ice on our Saskatchewan farm.
Sass Is Coming Back
Sass Jordan, the multi-Platinum-selling, award-winning songstress has been constantly busy since her career began 40 years ago.
The Art Of Japan
On Saturday, November 5, the Japanese Canadian Association of Yukon (JCAY) has teamed up with the City of Whitehorse to bring you Japan Fest.
What’s Going on at KIAC This Fall?
It seems things are finally back in full spring, or fall, after a long two years with limited opportunities for arts and culture events.
A Movie Fit For A Woman King
The Woman King centers around the victories and losses of the Agojie in 1823 when slave trading had reached its peak in West Africa.
Yukon Dogs – A Children’s Book
Phil Finds a Friend is a children’s book for youngsters. It tells the story of Phil, who goes adventures around the Yukon, to find a friend.
Young Frankenstein At The Guild
Young Frankenstein, based on the book by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan, with music and lyrics by Mel Brooks, is coming to Whitehorse.
Bite The Bullet
The first mention of “bite the bullet” was, according to Wikipedia, in Rudyard Kipling’s late-1800s novel The Light That Failed.
My Piggy Bank
My Piggy Bank I wonder if I have enough to buy a teddy bearI wonder if I have enough to buy a bubble gumI wonder if I have enough to buy a lolly popI wonder if I have enough to buy jelly beansI wonder if I have enough to buy lemonadeI wonder if I have …
Whitehorse Photo Club’s Amazing Q3 Submissions
What’s Up Yukon and The Whitehorse Photo Club is pleased to showcase local photographers’ incredible work with these Q3 submissions.
Ritual and Ceremony
In my world, ceremonies are a regular thing. I have the honour of leading the people of Whitehorse United Church in worship.
Hecate Press, a stepping stone for northern comic artists
Hecate Press, founded a few years ago by artist Kimberly Edgar, is creating new opportunities for the Yukon’s established and emerging comic artists.
In A Moment … ‘In The Twinkling of An Eye’
In the blink of an eye. That is how quickly this idiom of biblical origin (from 1 Cor. 15: 51–52) has been changed, as it describes a mysterious and wonderful moment, at the trumpet sound, when everything will change.
Berry Song, A Story For Us All
Berry-picking season is an amazing time of year. Sweet wild strawberries, Soapberries and Saskatoons are all summer-time treats.
Unleashed! Joey O’Neil On Tour
Joey O’Neil is on tour with her dog, Oblio, playing songs from her album Ever Ahead, in dog parks across Canada.
Looking Inside the Insider
Christopher Ross writes about his journalism experiences at the Dawson City Insider from 1997-1999 and what happened after.
Arctic Highways Breaks Down Borders
Tomas Colbengston, who takes a lot of inspiration from the Nordic Scandinavian landscape prefers to show his work outdoors.
Thor: Love and Thunder Gives Us Much To Love
“Thor: God of Thunder” is a very-impressive title, indeed. In Norse mythology this hammer-wielding god was also associated with storms, lightning, strength, fertility and sacred groves.
The Bookshelf: When Dawson Made Hockey History
The Dawson Challengers had a dream to contest for the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup (better known as the Stanley Cup.
Fly Straight Like a Honeybee
The idiom make a beeline for is a bit of a mystery as we watch the erratic dance of bees – So, what’s with bees and beelines?
Augusto! Children’s Festival: A Fun-filled Family Weekend
Augusto! Children’s Festival will offer three days of dance, parties, crafts, music and more from August 12–14 in Haines Junction.
From Paris, With Love
After nearly a decade in the Yukon, Paris Pick is moving away to pursue music school and then her career as an music artist.
Yukon Artists Spotlighted at Vancouver Art Fair
Yukon Artists Spotlighted at Art Vancouver, a 4-day event where artists and gallery owners can show and sell high-quality art.
Voices Across The Water
Voices Across the Water follows two master boat builders as they practice their art and find a way back to balance and healing.
Graphic Novel: Journey to Makalu
Artist Esther Bordet visits the same Himalayan summit as her great-uncle, to create a graphic novel based on his travels.
Yukon Arts Centre Permanent Art Collection: Bella Simo
In 1995, the Yukon Arts Centre began acquiring works by Indigenous and northern art significant to First Nations and northern Canadians.
A ‘fish’ called (insert your name here)
Living in your comfort zone feels better than feeling like “a fish out of water.” Do you know the idiomatic origins of the phrase?
Dawson’s Fridays Are A Time For Music!
Fridays are live music days in Dawson, this summer, with concerts at Riverside Park Gazebo and at the KIAC (Dënäkär Zho) Ballroom.
Whitehorse Photography Club Showcase
Welcome to the Q2 submissions from the Whitehorse Photography Club featuring three outstanding images by Gerry Steer, Walter Gutowski and Geoff Muldoon. The photo composition by Gutowski was one of the group’s submissions to the North Shore Photography Competition where the Whitehorse Photography club placed 12th out of 29 clubs. Check out the Q3 submission …
Adäka Cultural Festival Comes Back Into The Light—Renewed and International
The Adäka Cultural Festival returns with the light of many suns, in full swing and in person this year! June 29 to July 5 2022
Nathalie Parenteau: The Accidental Artist
It was never Nathalie Parenteau’s intention to be an artist. She still views her vocation as something she stumbled upon.
Spring Reflections in Dawson City
In a previous edition of the KK, I commented on the amount of snow we received here this winter, how it narrowed and raised the street levels. This column is about the flip side of the equation, when the white stuff becomes wet stuff. Except for Front Street, which is part of the Klondike Highway, …
Guided to an Imperfect Light
Rick Massie’s songs are often long, complex and multi-stylistic, they usually start with one riff or idea and grow from there.
Mary Caesar: An International Artist Continues to Shine
Splashes of lavish roses, bared teeth of an outraged woman, portraits of people stick gambling—all appear in the paintings of Mary Caesar.
The Music Festival on the Top of the World
Chickenstock Music Festival will take place in Chicken, Alaska. The bad news—it’s already sold out. The good news—there’s a waiting list.
Didee Didoo: If I Build an Airplane
If I Build an Airplane: I’m going to use rope Instead of seatbelts. I’m going to use snowshoes Instead of airplane skis
Didee Didoo: Construction Site
Construction Site: I always pick up nail and screws I always pick up boards I always pick up plywood I always pick up insulation
I’m not even an animal yet …
I’m not even an animal yet …‘Cause I’m not as strong as a grizzly bear ‘Cause I’m not as big as a moose ‘Cause I’m not as fast as a fox‘
Monsters Parade Through an Imagined Garden
Nicole Bauberger’s final exhibition as emerging curator at the Yukon Arts Centre Youth Gallery, monsters and flowers created by children.
A look at the fate of Earth’s other inhabitants, should humanity disappear?
If humanity for some reason disappears, what will become of Earth’s other inhabitants? David Curtis: Shall Inherit at Yukon Arts Centre.
She Mooned the Poor Bear
The lady mooned the poor bear And he bit her in the rear The bear bit the poor spouse When she went to the outhouse
Discovering the origin of the poop emoji
most emojis are straightforward, but there seems to be a lot of speculation surrounding the poop emoji. Is it actually poop?
Idiomatic Origins: Bye-bye, birdie!
Never would a canary be seen in a coal mine, unless under duress. Find out what canaries under duress have to do with “bye-bye, birdie”
YAC SHOWCASE Spirit: Alice Park-Spurr
Alice Park-Spurr explores the interplay of line and shape through the gestural application of paint on canvas
Drop Off Your Recycling, Pick Up Some New Idea
Raven Recycling’s Diversions Art Show. Five undertake projects that make use of materials that are abundant at Raven.
There’s a new festival in town
A weekend festival in multiple locations. The inaugural Yukon Music Festival, by the YRMTA, runs from April 21 to 23.
Preparing for the Apocalypse (and being misunderstood): the Guild Hall’s ‘WROL’
WROL (Without Rule of Law) at the Guild is an all youth cast with no adult characters in this play about 7 girls preparing for the apocalypse
Yukon Harpists Society: A New Sound in The Yukon
Yukon Harpists Society (YHS) has raised almost enough money to buy a stand-up concert pedal harp for the Yukon
Whitehorse’s Japanese Taiko Drumming Ensemble
“We were practicing with garbage bins,” said Yoko Oda of Whitehorse’s Japanese Taiko Drumming. “Finally, we got the funding,”
A Review of Death on the Nile: When Glamour and Murder Collide
British director/actor Kenneth Branagh brings the grisly Agatha Christie novel Death on the Nile to life. Released in North America Feb 11
The Extraordinary First Year of Mésdzįh Eskiye Designs
Cohen Quash is 12, which may make him the youngest fashion designer the Yukon. His Watson Lake business is Mésdzįh Eskiye Designs.
Didee & Didoo: Ronald’s Liquor Cabinet
Allen Benjamin’s Didee & Didoo: Ronald’s Liquor Cabinet…I think he has a big bottle of…
This Spring at the Jenni House
Jenni house welcomed Paris Pick, working on new songs; & Martha Ritchie, printing on repurposed textiles, as resident artists.
Dawson City is getting ready to host its annual Thaw di Gras Spring Carnival
Dawson City is getting ready to host its annual Thaw di Gras Spring Carnival. Get Ready for Some Outrageous Winter Fun!
Yukon Arts Centre 2022 Live Shows
You can tell the Yukon Arts Centre loves you because on Valentine’s Day, it announced ticket sales for eight new live shows. Those shows, all taking place in March and April, will mark the first time YAC has been open for performances since pandemic measures forced a closure on Dec. 21. After the three-month hiatus, …
Whitehorse Photography Club: Wildlife photos
Whitehorse Photography Club’s entries for “Celebration of Nature” photo contest. Whitehorse finished 5th of 20 clubs with147 points.
New Yukon Media Funds
Media funding for filmmakers has four new funding programs: Predevelopment, Development Fund, Media Production Fund and Training Fund.
Artists inspiring artists
Yukon artists & Yukon Prize for Visual Arts finalists, Krystle Silverfox & Veronica Verkley, talk about who inspires them in art and in life.
ALFF 2022 goes online
A few of the the diverse offerings at the 2022 Available Light Film Festival (ALFF) happening online, and maybe a bit in-person.
KDFN Citizen Kiri Geen builds a career in Hollywood North
From background extra to the big screen. KDFN Citizen Kiri Geen builds a career. Kwanlin Dün First Nation Citizen success stories.
Erica Mah is trying something different
Erica Dee Mah’s new album isn’t exactly a new album. “On this project, I feel like I’m leaning into my classical training a bit more,”
Celebrate the great outdoors!
Yukon Rendezvous Festival has planned four possible versions of the festival this year, to quickly adapt to changing health regulations.
Showcase at The Yukon Arts Centre
Softcore, at the Yukon Arts Centre, is the first exhibition by the Whitehorse-based North Node Collective, featuring Courtney Holmes, Rebecca Manias, Katie Newman and Heather Von Steinhagen. According to the artists, the medium of soft sculpture, humour and discomfort, are employed as a challenge to tired, stubborn body standards and harmful social constructs. “Connecting the …
Dreamland underground
Yukon Illustration Coalition (YILCO) Dreamland: Demystifying Digital Illustration reveals the digital illustration processes.
Music From the Edges of Canada
A new live-streamed concert series features artists from rural parts of Canada, including Yukon musicians.
Danger Pay: Uncertain times have not stopped Whitehorse’s Speed Control from pushing on, with a new EP due this winter
Speed Control released “Danger Pay,” with an accompanying music video best described as over-the-top. It BLEW UP!
Collective Memory: Forty years of the Yukon Permanent Art Collection
Collective Memory exhibition: Marking the 40th anniversary of the Yukon Permanent Art Collection. Part of Yukon’s dynamic collective memory.
YAC launches first emerging curators program
Janet Patterson didn’t realize how applicable her journalistic skillset was to art until she co-curated a show at Yukon Artists @ Work (YAAW)
Didee Didoo: When It’s 46 Below
When It’s 46 Below: Your ice cream won’t thaw out. Mosquitos won’t bite you. You won’t suffer from heat stroke.
Abstractions underground: Two artists turn inward with new shows
2 exhibitions at Arts Underground. Focus Gallery, Tedd Tucker’s Winter Sketches. Edge Gallery, Heather Von Steinhagen’s Hidden Details.
Didee Didoo: Due To Covid 19
Didee Didoo: Due To Covid 19. Walmart will be closed in Old Crow Canadian Tire will be closed in Old Crow McDonald’s will be closed…
The Yukon Theatre opens its doors after a two-year shutdown
Folks are excited that the Yukon Film Society has re-opened the Yukon Theatre on Wood Street after its former owners shut it down.
Nakai Theatre’s Pivot Festival 2022
Sometimes, you have to pivot! Nakai Theatre’s Pivot Festival 2022 will still take place this January, albeit with some modified programming
Didee & didoo:
Didee & Didoo: The caribou wades the creek in silence. Through the river, rocks and barely a ripple mark the caribou passage.
Every January we’re Pivoting
Pivot Festival brings laughs sunshine, & much-needed break from the winter blues. 14th year of bringing the unexpected to Whitehorse.
Nourished by Nature
Their practices may seem different – Waters is a watercolour artist, Geary is a potter – their materials are drawn from the same elements.
The Fiddler in the North
Simon Crelli is a Yukon musician with quite an impressive resume, and a mentor to many of the territory’s young musicians.
Art in the Yukon, art in Montreal: Maybe not so different?
Clarence Epstein argued there are common threads between the situations of artists in the Yukon and artists in Montreal.
Meanderings: The Steeles wandered at random around the world
Peter Steele begins by defining his terms: “’Meander’ reads ’To wander at random’” This is very definitely what happens in this book,
The recipient of the second annual Yukon Prize for Visual Arts is Joseph Tisiga
The winner of the 2021 Yukon Prize for Visual Arts, selected from 107 entries, is multidisciplinary artist Joseph Tisiga
Fantasy in Miniature
Fantasy in Miniature, brings a little magic. Sharing the Planet features butterflies & moths. Both are at Arts Underground.
Exploring fading memories at the ODD Gallery
The opening of the recent exhibit at the KIAC ODD Gallery was unique with a mixed live & virtual talk for the Gathering/Tethering exhibit.
Whitehorse stars Soda Pony are back with a new album and a short film to go with it
Soda Pony’s Senior Year is an album & a movie. Aiden Tentrees and Patrick Hamilton cooked up this visual album in “post-gig glory chats,”
Santa Claus is Coming to Town! Winterval Santa Parade December 4
Santa Claus is Coming to Town! Winterval Festival Santa parade pivots to a parade through multiple Whitehorse neighbourhoods for a 2nd year.
Searching for the Yukon at the Frankfurt Book Fair
This year some Canadian writers finally made it to Frankfurt, but where is the Yukon? No Yukon writers made it to the Frankfurt Book Fair.
Community Connection: Arts arts arts!
The return to emergency COVID measures took some people by surprise, but it certainly hasn’t got the community down! Performers, artists and presenters alike found safe ways to present a multitude of events at the Yukon Arts Center over the last fews weeks.
Watercolour wild roses
Learn & explore drawing and painting in a “wet on wet” watercolour technique. Today’s art is inspired by wild roses.
Christmas with the Choir: COVID-19 restrictions mean an online (but still joyful!) holiday concert this year
The Whitehorse Community Choir, “Tidings and Tinsel,” for 2021. COVID-19 restrictions mean an online (but still joyful!) holiday concert.
Walking the Elements: The Chu Niikwän Artist Residency is back at Arts Underground in Whitehorse
Rebecca Manias, Kim Roberts and Sheelah Tolton: Elemental Transformations. Works from Chu Niikwän Artist Residency
Memories of the Yukon’s only psychiatrist: Still a Yukoner in his heart
From 1995 to 2001 Dr. Jaime Smith was the territory’s only psychiatrist. Jim Robb devotes page 38 in The Colourful 5% V:III to this Yukoner.
A dinner party: The Guild brings a new play to town for its first show this year
A Dinner Party at The Guild. “I love Whitehorse audiences, there’s an eagerness & openness to absurdity … and this play gets really weird.”
The Bookshelf: Seeking Redemption on the Yukon Quest Trail
Journey of 1000 Miles chronicles Hank DeBruin and Tanya McCready-DeBruin’s attempts at the Iditarod and the Yukon Quest.
And the winner is … Commissioner of Yukon Award Joanna Lilley
Whitehorse author Joanna Lilley has won this year’s Borealis Prize: The Commissioner of Yukon Award for Literary Contribution.
Through a Dark Wood
Jenifer Davidson, Yukon artist, has been creating art for as long as she can remember. More than a hobby, It’s benefitted her mental health.
Love your local library!
October is national library month! Libraries across the territory are celebrating Yukon Public Libraries Week October 18-23.
Wonders Underground: Edge Gallery
Using traditional and contemporary influences, Peter’s modern clothing sewn from granny hanky fabric, which brings childhood memories.
Wonders Underground: Focus Gallery
The Eleventy-Leven postcards are years of original artwork postcards exchanged every Friday between artists Joyce Majiski and Zea Morvitz.
The Wonders of our territory
Though never in the Yukon, a fascination with its aura—the “nature, wilderness and rugged beauty”— led to the name Wonders of the Yukon
Robert Service’s great-granddaughter honours her ancestor
Robert Service’s great-granddaughter honours her ancestor. Charlotte Service-Longépé wrote Robert W. Service La Piste de l’Imaginaire.
Yukon Prize for Visual Arts: And the winner is …
The Yukon Prize for Visual Arts provides one prize of $20K to help one Yukon artist focus full-time on creating art.
The Resurrectionists
Larrikin Entertainment artistic executive producer Katherine McCallum is excited to be spearheading the dark comedy’s world premiere.
A Yukon Horror Story, So Far
Graphic novels are Gallagher’s favourite art form. This exhibit is an artistic journey to produce a horror graphic novel set in the Yukon.
Christopher Tse: Unraveling roots on the page
Slam Poetry allows the creative license that he found journalism lacked. At Jenni House Tse will interrogate being a Yukon settler of colour.
Scenes from the Street Eats and Beats Cultural Festival
A feast for the senses: Scenes from the 2021 Festival. Entertainers, Attendees and Food service providers.
Theatre in the Bush 2021
Ramshackle Theatre in the Bush “I’m already out in the yard,” Fidler says. “I’ve got my chainsaw out and I’m clearing the paths.”
Comedians
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Homecoming for Brandon Isaak
“We wanted to do a record and we didn’t have long to do it,” says Isaak. “So we just did it live in a day, basically.”
Mean Old World: Gordie Tentrees album release
Of everything he’s recorded, Tentrees is confident that his upcoming studio effort contains his best work to date.
Hot Eats Cool Beats: new family fun street eats festival
An expansion of the Street Eats Festival this year’s festival offers food trucks, live music, art installations and a historical tasting tour.
At the drive-in – Yukon style & Pandemic safe
Two nights of drive-in movies in Whitehorse and Carcross. Soul, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, You Are Here: A Come From Away Story and Beans.
Klondike Korner: DCMF 2021 is reborn in a smaller, later version this COVID year
September 10 to 12. DCMF is a bite sized three day event spending days in the Waterfront Park Gazebo and nights in the Palace Grand Theatre.
The Bookshelf: A poetic memoir of northern travels
Poetry with a bit of a difference, it has a strong ecological bias. Goodbye, Ice: Arctic Poems by Lawrence Millman
Vanessa Ægirsdóttir’s magical place
Meeting Bahm set her on a new personal journey, and professional path informed by his Tlingit heritage and traditional approach to trapping.
Under the Yukon sky: The nature of joy
Natasha Henderson’s brooding skies, dense, lush forests and dark city streets in the appropriately-titled Under the Yukon Sky.
Janet Patterson: Walking together
Janet Patterson, recipient of the Jenni House Residency is a multimedia artist whose work is focused on the history of the land we travel on.
What’s on for Yukon Riverside Arts Festival 2021?
Yukon Riverside Arts Festival will take place this year in Dawson City August 13-15
Idioms that irk me (and I’m not easily irked)
There are two idioms that have been bothering me for weeks, months even. But let’s talk about something more pleasant—cookies.
Welcome back… to the Round Back
With an improved ‘Round Back venue in place, the Guild Hall unveils a new series of performances. Music, theatre, comedy and more.
Mush Rush 2016
I like the people. I like the dogs, I like the camaraderie – being part of something that is bigger than yourself.
Paris Pick – A Star is born
Whitehorse musician Paris Pick’s most recent video, the title track from her album I Can’t Help It , is blowing up on YouTube
Timelapse scenery at the ODD Gallery
Dan Starling’s exhibit “Unsettled histories: the transformation of a print” imagines the landscape of a Rembrandt evolving over centuries
Cypherfest 2021 is happening!
This year’s edition of Cypherfest will take place from July 23 to 25, with COVID-sensitive programming.
Come out and see your friends
Drawn Together: embroidered portraits and Doortraits: Intimate Pandemic Images. Meaningful to a Yukon audience. Look for faces you recognize.
Drea Naysayer is still rocking
A new incarnation of The Naysayers will be releasing a self-titled album on June 25 via Coax Records
Friday is Concert time at the Gazebo
Most Fridays this summer, whether there is rain or shine, it will be concert time at noon at the Front Street Gazebo, in Dawson City.
Karen Thomas’s 2020 Landscape series
Karen Thomas takes a light-hearted approach to art-making. This makes for a joyful experience for folks who take in her exhibit 2020 Landscape Series: A Path Forward which is currently showing at Arts Underground in Whitehorse.
Jesse Devost’s Superposition
In Superposition, Jesse Devost’s new exhibition at Arts Underground, Devost defines superposition as “the physical paradox of two distinct states, when added together equal a new valid state.
Arts in the Park is back on the air
For the second year in a row, Arts in the Park will be presenting an adapted season to fit with pandemic protocols.
Learning how to cope with fear in overdrive
By the time you’re reading this column, the paperback version of Eva Holland’s fascinating study of fear will be out from Penguin Canada.
Summer Music Camp
This year’s Yukon Summer Music Camp is going ahead, with a new producer and administrative officer at the helm. Yukon Music Camp Society has opened registration for the second year of Yukon Summer Music Camp, pandemic edition.
A new arrival
The August Arrival’s first new music in a decade. “ it’s nice to be putting out something a little more public.”
A decade of Created at the Canyon
Yukon Conservation Society’s “Created at the Canyon,” a live multi-media art event celebrating the creative process of local artists.
Alone Together at Wood Street Centre
With COVID consuming a year of everyone’s lives, it seems almost for creatives to produce work that reflects the strangeness of these times
Regulars and Rooms for Rent
Compared to the Klondike-era poems we’re familiar with, it seems that Tara Borin’s poetry breaks ground by presenting a post-gold rush, post-Robert Service perspective of Dawson.
Artist Annie Johnsgaard showcases the power of transiency
Annie Johnsgaard’s lovely (inventive, often amusing) ever-changing chalk murals brighten the walls of Yukonstruct Cospace, where she works.
The power of art
Victoria, Tlingit from the Gaanaxtei.di Clan and drum carrier for the Dakhká Khwáan, discusses what collecting art means to her.
Travels with a sketchbook
Virginia Wilson, whose exhibit Travels with a Sketchbook is currently showing at Yukon Artists @ Work ([email protected]), approaches landscapes with a background in geography.
Dreary and Izzy at the Guild
This May, Whitehorse’s Guild Hall is presenting Dreary and Izzy, a play by Tara Beagan which centres on a pair of sisters who have lost their parents in a car accident.
Music for a cause
Local musicians Keitha Clark and Graeme Poile donated the proceeds from their new EP to Whitehorse’s Community Outreach Van.
The pandemic creates the space to share stories in a new way
As the Ice Melts is a project that takes the form of two videos which present stories and poetry on the theme of our changing environment. The work has been put together by Bielawski, Lilley and Champagne and Aishihik First Nations storyteller, Ron Chambers.
Live music returns to Dënäkär Zho
COVID-19 pretty much shut down live music in Dawson in 2020. This year the Klondike Institute of Art and Culture (Dënäkär Zho), in partnership with the Dawson City Music Festival, has been trying hard to bring some of it back over the last few months.
The Masked Singers
It’s been a complicated year for Whitehorse Community Choir. Around a year ago, they went from regularly scheduled full rehearsals to absolutely nothing, and had no idea when or how they’d be able to return.It’s been a complicated year for Whitehorse Community Choir.
Life as a Yukon artist, past and present
The Friends of the Yukon Archives Society has organized a wonderful exhibit at Arts Underground on how visual arts have evolved in the Yukon over the years. It documents the lively traditions of art-making among First Nations people and, more recently, among settlers. Seeing this exhibit made us wonder what it was like to be …
Fragments in the Dust
Whitehorse artist Scott Price is the ultimate scavenger. His favourite source for materials is the nearest dump. He’s been to dumps in Whitehorse, Dawson and, more recently, Wells, B.C. Whatever he discovers will partially determine what his art will be. Price’s practice involves bringing together the “junk” he collects to make assemblages, which are sculptures …
Learning to be a good person through fishing
In 2017 Paul Rath attended the North Words Symposium in Skagway. He joined an early morning session in the library hosted by Deb Vanasse, an experience that led to the birth of his first book, Fishing with My Fathers, earlier this year. “Deb started off the session by challenging us to write out a list …
The show must go on
The All-City Band’s March concerts take place the evenings of March 30 and 31. They will be presented through the Yukon Arts Centre.
Spring Cleaning
I shovel dog poop. I shovel moose poop. I shovel caribou poop. I shovel rabbit poop. I shovel wolf poop. I shovel squirrel poop. I shovel ptarmigan poop. I shovel marten poop. I shovel lynx poop. I shovel sheep poop. I shovel crow poop. I shovel weasel poop. I shovel wolverine poop. I shovel mink …
For our children tomorrow
Closeup of Velma Olson’s beadwork on Sidney Anderson’s 2015 graduation dress [one_half] To my mind, Honouring Our Future: Yukon First Nations Graduation Regalia is among the most important art exhibits to take place in the Yukon over the past 10 years. I invite you to consider the effects the art processes displayed have on the …
Out of Nowhere
Yukon artist Ambrose has been challenging herself to grow as a singer and songwriter for years, and she’s just released her second full-length album.
An indigenous fable for all ages
Teiakwanahstahsontéhrha’ (We Extend the Rafters) is the latest exhibition at Dawson City’s ODD Gallery. The machina animation style movie is projected on the east wall at the far end of a metal frame structure which mimics the look of an Iroquois (Haudenosaunee) style longhouse.
Didoo survived without these things
Didoo survived without an electric knife. Didoo survived without an electric kettle. Didoo survived without a microwave. Didoo survived without a toaster. Didoo survived without a dryer. Didoo survived without a washer. Didoo survived without a vacuum cleaner. Didoo survived without an electric toothbrush. Didoo survived without an electric egg beater. Didoo survived without an …
We Will Rendezvous
Rendezvous weekend takes place Feb. 26 to Feb. 28, with a mix of in-person and outdoor action.
Enjoy Dawson City films from the cozy comfort of your couch
Ever since Available Light Film Festival launched 19 years ago, it has brought to its audiences stories of different ways of life and different perspectives. This year, four films from Dawson City will be featured for online streaming across Canada.
Fall in love…
Love reading? Your local public library would like to make you a proposal – more free access to ebooks, audiobooks and online learning tools.
Throughout the month of February, the Yukon Public Library (YPL) system will be highlighting these new resources, along with ways for Yukoners to access them, with the New Reasons To Love You Library Campaign.
Think About The Wild
Rodden has created albums for adults but he says his niche is really children’s music. His recently released Think About the Wild.
Goodbye, Smith House
Music Yukon has been forced to seriously rethink its future and make plans to stay afloat in a changing industry and economy. One of those changes includes moving out of the Smith House, the little blue house in Lepage Park that Music Yukon has called home for nearly a decade.
A house you can finally afford
Artists Jared Klok and Bennie Allain collaborated on their sculpture “A House You Can Finally Afford.” It was displayed as part of the Riverside Arts Festival.
Silver Linings
Artists and Parks Canada heritage interpreters, Justin Apperley (left) and Miriam Behman, with their field camera Photography played a key role in the history and mythology of the Klondike Gold Rush. The photographer’s lens bore witness to the thrum and commotion of the stampede, along with the turmoil it wrought. The impacts of this era …
What’s new in your art practice?
We’re starting a new column that will ask a different visual artist each month the question that I got on the sidewalk: what’s new in your art practice and what are you working on right now?
How to pivot the Pivot Festival
As with every year, the 2021 Pivot Festival will bring Yukoners surprising work from both national and local performers. Due to COVID-19, the national talent – a comic duo called Folk Lordz – will participate online from wherever they are in Canada.
Honouring a whale
“I’ve been thinking about water for about five or six years,” said artist Joyce Majiski. While walking the beach in Spain she was struck by the large amount of garbage that was getting washed in with the tide. And then, one day, she was struck with a vision of building a whale out of garbage.
It’s raining, it’s pouring (but it’s still all right)
If it’s right as rain, it’s as it should be; it’s normal and expected; it’s right on track, exactly as anticipated. It also refers to a congenial frame of mind, or even a state of physical comfort.
The fine art of drawing with fire
Drawing with fire is one of humankind’s most ancient arts. This is what I was told by Ricardo Espada Horsfall when I visited him at his recent show, Smoke, Feelings and Wood at the Free-Space gallery in Northern Front Studio.
Dublin Gulch
The present book, one of several projects Michael Gates has had on the go since he retired, is one he was commissioned to write by Victoria Gold, the owners of the Eagle Gold Mine.
A Parade of Dreams
Christopher Wheeler has had a long-standing dream to become an author. When COVID-19 arrived, it brought with it the opportunity for him to pursue this dream. The result is his first collection of poetry, A Parade of Dreams. “I’ve put the collection together over COVID,” Wheeler said. “I thought, why not? It’s been something I’ve …
The Stairs
Thirteen year old Isaiah Silas has had a love for comic books from a young age. This admiration inspired him to teach himself to draw, and has since grown into a talent that he hopes to expand into a successful business, making and selling comic books.
The Christmas elves of [email protected]
Last-minute shoppers are sure to find something for a friend or family member at Yukon Artists @ Work. There are also lots of small treasures for topping up stocking, or add some sparkle to what has been a very strange and difficult year.
Culture meets couture
Robyn McLeod’s dresses from her fashion collection, Dene Futurisms, are featured in this story, which is part of a series about the three Chu Niikwän residency artists and their work.
The appeal of terrible Christmas movies
December brings three things; colder weather, drier skin and the inevitable onslaught of terrible Christmas movies.
What’s in a name?
Chishti’s Then and Now: Water and a Name is the second in a series of stories featuring the Chu Niikwän artists and their work.
I Always Get High
I get high when I snowshoe. I get high when I canoe. I get high when I mush dogs. I get high when I bike. I get high when I run. I get high when I skate. I get high when I ski. I get high when I fiddle. I get high when I cut …
The N.U.E. kids in town
Northern Underground Expressions (N.U.E.) is a Whitehorse-based independent record label focused on giving a bigger platform to underground hip-hop artists from the Yukon.
How to be an artist
Last March, just before the pandemic became real in Canada, we went to hear Jerry Saltz speak before a large crowd in Toronto about How to Be an Artist. This entertaining talk provided an advance peek at some of the ideas in his new book of the same title.
They outlived their husbands
Mary Kay outlived Big Joe. Sarah Baalam outlived Baalam. Eliza Steamboat outlived Robert. Annie Fredson outlived Daniel. Sarah Abel outlived Abel. Mary Thomas outlived John. Mary Charlie outlived Peter. Myra Moses outlived Peter. Persis Kendi outlived Julius. Clara Frost outlived Jack. Martha Charlie outlived John. Effie Linklater outlived Archie. Ellen Bruce outlived Robert. Joanne Njootli …
Melia Hudgin
The second artist featured in our “Musicians in Isolation Series,” multi-stylist Melia Hudgin is currently working on her debut EP and preparing to move to Toronto in the fall.
From the vaults
After 17 years, late Yukon musician Aylie Sparkes’ album has finally gotten a digital release.
Shining Lights
Shine Your Light is a weekly radio show featuring live music, poetry, comedy and conversation, spearheaded by Matthew “Toots” Toothill.
The new string on Erica Mah’s bow
For Erica Mah, after roughly 10 years of dabbling with a traditional Chinese instrument called the guzheng, she’s now playing it for Whitehorse audiences.
Every Brilliant Thing
Every Brilliant Thing is a delightfully funny play about depression, but it’s not depressing. It’s also no surprise that the Guild theatre’s first indoor play of the season is about connection.
Lesson learned?
Allan Code directed Pandemic at the End of the World in order to bring a historical perspective to the current global reality.
The owl that beckons
If you have lived in Canada for any time, you will likely recognize her work, even if you weren’t sure how to say her name. Kenojuak Ashevak’s image, “Owl’s Bouquet,” is featured on Canada’s $10 bill.
Jack London imagined a virus
What’s of particular interest to readers in this year of the COVID-19 pandemic, is that London managed to predict the spread of a virulent disease three years before the so-called Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918.
Pulling at your harp strings
the Yukon Harpists Society wants to buy a concert pedal harp that both senior harp students and visiting musicians can use. Something beautiful and lasting can come out of this pandemic.
A politically-minded family drama
It’s easy to see why Ben Lerner’s The Topeka School (McLelland and Steward, 2019) was among Barack Obama’s favourite reads in 2019. At once a coming-of-age bildungsroman and a subdued political drama, this novel is as much about the nature of language and reason in American culture as it is about the power of memory …
A storm is brewing
Last time What’s Up Yukon spoke with Whitehorse-based prog metal artist Rick Massie, he had just released his debut solo album, Eclipse. Now, only five months on, Massie is already working on new music.
My Bucket List
I have to pack a bucket of water for Eliza Steamboat I have to pack a bucket of water for Robert Steamboat I have to pack a bucket of water for Sarh Baalam I have to pack a bucket of water for Old Baalam I have to pack a bucket of water for Myra Kay …
All in the family
The Jennifer Scott Quintet will bring an electric jazz program to the Yukon this weekend In one sense, Jennifer Scott’s newest CD, due to be released sometime in the next few months, is a fitting tribute to the Vancouver singer/pianist’s own musical upbringing. Titled Music for Bigs & Smalls, the album consists of what Scott calls …
Beast of the Boreal
“It’s not an art form you often see featured in traditional gallery” We wanted to create space for illustration artists to have work seen.
A conversation with Ron and Kip Veale
As people who love Yukon art, we have often wondered how a good artist becomes a well-known artist whose work sells for a fair price?
Seven
Dawn Robinson is primarily a dancer, but is also a visual artist. She incorporated both these disciplines into her Chu Niikwän Artist Residency piece, entitled Seven.
Take the tentacle
In this time, when we cannot easily travel, Shuvinai Ashoona’s exhibit at the Yukon Arts Centre offers to take you to imagined worlds you never knew existed.
Making a mark in the art world
Nicole Favron’s performance-based work is being recognized as the Yukon winner of the 2020 BMO 1st Art! Competition.
An interview with Naomi Mark
Meet Yukon filmmaker Naomi Marks: I write budgets, develop content and scripts, direct documentary, fiction and commercial content, and edit.
Gwaandak Theatre’s The Born-Again Crow
Crow and Wolf, accustomed to several roles.“That’s how we’re used to working”.Indie theatre partners on Yukon production.
The Klondike Gold Rush Steamers
In these days of highways and 1000-year level flood dikes, it’s easy to forget that the best way to get to Dawson used to be by sternwheelers. While most of the stampeders made their way here in small boats and rafts in 1898, a sizeable number cruised to the fledgling town from St. Michael’s, Alaska, in riverboats and steamers and, once the White Pass chugged into Whitehorse, still more hopped on boats from there.
Running is rocket science
I have to know about gravitational torque I have to know about stride frequency I have to know about running tangents I have to know about dynamic stretching I have to know about static stretching I have to know about drafting I have to know about carbo loading I have to know about cadence I …
Beauty Through Decay
Beauty Through Decay is Jennfer Jay’s first exhibit, although she has been making art all her life. Yukoners may not know her name. As she notes in her bio, Jay has spent a lot of time being put into boxes that she never felt like she belonged in.
Thanksgiving meets Mid-Autumn Festival
Mid-Autumn Festival is China’s version of Thanksgiving (or Zhōng qiū jié, as it is pronounced in Mandarin Chinese), which traditionally falls on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar, always during the full moon. It became a public holiday in 2008, but has been celebrated for centuries.
Bringing live performance back to the Yukon
The Guild Hall is getting creative. Of course, that’s pretty standard for the Whitehorse theatre, but COVID-19 is forcing a different kind of creativity.
Yukon Visual Artists
Yukon’s creative side is alive and well with Painters, Sculptors, Musicians, Carvers, Mixed Media Artists, Illustrators, Jewellers, Beaders, Weavers, and more.
A delayed Short Film Festival will happen in October
After a few months of working at home, Dan Sokolowski is finally back in his southeast corner space at the KIAC (or Dënäkär Zho) Building. There, he’s busy downloading videos for this year’s late version of the 2020 Dawson City International Short Film Festival, which will take place over two weekends in October.
Musicians
To call Yukon’s music scene vibrant is an understatement. Hardly a night goes by without live music, from folk to hip-hop and all styles in between.
Filmmakers
Yukon has an incredibly active film community. From the Available Light Film Festival, to small independent films, Yukon is home to fantastic talent that reaches out far and wide.
Photographers
It is no secret that the Yukon is highly photogenic. It brings out the best in image makers. But there is more to it than mere landscape as our lens experts can show.
Writers
Yukoners are seldom at a loss for words, and the setting is totally conducive to finding just the right ones. Meet our incredible authors, writers, poets, and storytellers.
The shows must go on!
Yukon theatre companies are finding creative ways to present work. Adapting shows and developing unique formats to fit with our new reality.
Isolation, underwear fights and hanging around the house
How Isolation, underwear fights and hanging around the house inspiration for Theatre in the Bush. ‘That would make a great spot for a show.’”
Another Silly Poem
If I were a turtle, I wouldn’t need a bulletproof vest. If I were a kangaroo, I wouldn’t need a pocket. If I were a giraffe, I wouldn’t need a ladder. If I were a bear, I wouldn’t need a fur coat. If I were an elephant, I wouldn’t need a forklift. If I were …
Diyet and the Love Soldiers
This July, Diyet and the Love Soldiers released a video project to accompany their song, “Brave Face.” The track was the third single and opener from the multi-stylistic group’s recent studio album, 2018’s Diyet and the Love Soldiers. The album had already received recent accolades including winning the Canadian Folk Music Award for Indigenous Songwriter …
Conservation Photography
I have a confession. I work for CPAWS Yukon and I’ve never been into the Peel Watershed. (The small exception is the time I canoed the Blackstone River when I was a kid). Still, I’ve never hiked the jagged ridgelines of the Mackenzie Mountains, or admired the crimson-speckled stones on the shore of the Snake …
Whitehorse Community Choir Goes Virtual
In these uncertain and unusual times, the “new normal” doesn’t always look like the old one! The Whitehorse Community Choir has come up with a way to permit members to sing while still respecting their health and safety – a virtual choir. The choir will be holding virtual practices on Zoom starting on Monday, September …
A Look Back at Arts in the Park 2020
I didn’t expect Arts in the Park to happen at all this year. Everything was getting cancelled, from big festivals like Atlin Arts and Music Festival and Dawson City Music Festival, to smaller bar shows with local acts. It just seemed like live music wasn’t going to be something that was happening at all, and …
Of Beasts and Branches
Of Beasts and Branches: an interpretation of nature is Jenifer Davidson’s first solo show. Just as her materials are drawn from nature, so is her subject matter.
The Artist in the Window series concludes and continues
Yukon Artists @ Work([email protected]) continues to host the Artists in the Window series until the first week of September for paid demonstrations and artist talks. This way of working will continue, altering the way artists work their shifts. Two more artists are still to come – Jackie Dowell-Irvine and Jeanine Baker. [email protected] hosted two major art events this …
The Artist in the Window series concludes and continues Read More »
Nature fusing light and air to create art
Anne Hoerber’s new exhibition, Waking Dreams, shows at Arts Underground this month Different artists are often drawn to different media in part because of what they are able to express with their chosen supplies. For Anne Hoerber, this chosen media is encaustic (working with melted wax), which allows her to bring the feelings and impressions …
The Artist in the Window: Still more to come!
Yukon Artists @ Work ([email protected]) continues to host the Artists in the Window series through to the first week of September.
Stephen Gallant
Stephen Gallant is a classically trained, multi-instrumentalist director and performer who has held the role of Musical Director at Diamond Tooth Gerties in Dawson City, Yukon, for 7 consecutive seasons.
Authors on Eighth overcome COVID-19
Each year there is a writing contest called Authors on Eighth connected to an annual walk along the Writers’ Block along Eighth Avenue in Dawson City.
Musicians in Isolation: Fawn Fritzen
Fawn Fritzen had originally planned on releasing her new album, How to Say Sorry and Other Lessons, in the spring and touring in support of it. But like so many other artists, she had her summer derailed by COVID-19 and had to completely reimagine her album release and promotional plan.
John Fogerty
I went down to the Victoria Marathon And I got to see John Fogerty in concert John doesn’t need a cane to walk Because he can still rock I heard CCR songs way back when Songs like “Up Around The Bend” John moves in fast motion When he sings “Commotion” John Fogerty was rockin on …
A Painting a Day
The Coronavirus lockdown and physical distancing has led us to trying to find activities to keep ourselves busy. The stress and uncertainty have played havoc with the mental health of most of us. A friend, who is a professional artist, attacked this problem and challenged herself to paint a small (4×6 or 5×7) watercolour each …