Tag Archives: Ice Follies

Ice Follies 2025 Recap

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Last month we wrapped up another amazing edition of Ice Follies. For this year’s festival, we developed three installation structures in collaboration with our artists and community members: a wigwam, an A-frame tent, and an ice shack. Textile pieces and stories developed through our fall and winter community-engaged workshops and Elders’ Storytelling Luncheons were incorporated into the installation structures and each was activated with performances and presentations during the opening night ceremonies on February 7th. Christine Friday of Friday Creeations and JP Longboat of Circadia Indigena, travelled to Big Medicine Studio to participate in the festival’s opening with us, and JP also presented his Spirit Canoes. Opening night performers in addition to Christine Friday and JP Longboat included Penny Couchie, Sid Bobb, Sherry Guppy, Animikiikwe Couchie-Waukey, Katie Couchie, Megan Paulin, Bonnie Couchie, Darren Nakogee, Gerry McComb, Liam Culhane, Ouske Couchie-Bobb, William McGrath, Doreen Bellaire, and Cindy Spence.

The day after the festival opening, lead artist Sherry Guppy and youth artist William McGrath presented an artist talk at the Capitol Centre on behalf of Aanmitaagzi. They provided information and insights into the All My R(el)ations project and shared their experiences working with Aanmitaagzi over the years. Additional presentations and activations took place on Lake Nipissing on Family Day (February 17th), including drumming and dancing.

Aanmitaagzi wishes to thank the other artists and support staff that helped us with Ice Follies this year: Michaela Washburn, Suzanna Rice, Kelsey Ruhl, Clayton Windatt, Olivia Shortt, Jennifer Kelly, Kayos Jones, Prism Arcobaleno, Chris Couchie, Daniel Couchie, Ulysses Trudeau, Nathan Pamajewon, Gayle Weston, and Tara Windatt. We also want to thank everyone that came out to our weekly workshops over the last few months and the amazing group of storytelling Elders that come to have lunch with us each week.

Many thanks also go out to the staff of the Near North Mobile Media Lab and the White Water Gallery for co-coordinating Ice Follies with us; the artists and arts orgs that participated this year; and the businesses, funders, and sponsors that supported Ice Follies 2025. And we would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council and the Government of Ontario, as well as the Canada Council for the Arts, for this project and our ongoing operations.

Photo Documentation by Stephanie McGinn.

New Weekly Workshop Schedule leading up to Ice Follies

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Winter workshop schedule
January 21 – February 6, 2025

Aanmitaagzi is continuing to host weekly drop-in workshops in the weeks leading up to the opening of Ice Follies on February 7, 2025. Through these workshops, Aanmitaagzi’s artists and community participants will develop stories and pieces that explore the themes of All My R(el)ations and Ice Follies’ theme of “Ozhaashikwaa” (The Ice is Slippery). The workshops will take place at Big Medicine Studio – 161 Couchie Memorial Drive. They are free to attend and newcomers are welcome.

NEW WORKSHOP SCHEDULE

Tuesdays

All Ages Multi-Arts with Sherry Guppy & Sid Bobb
3:30 – 5:30 pm  
A multi-arts drop-in class for artists of all ages. Activities will include drawing, painting, storytelling, crafts, dance, textile work, and more as we develop installation pieces for Ice Follies! Materials will be provided.

Choreographic Exploration & Story Creation with Penny Couchie
6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Contemporary dance and movement explorations, and guided written and visual activities to explore the stories and themes of All My R(el)ations to develop performance pieces for Ice Follies.

Wednesdays

Choreographic Exploration & Story Creation with Penny Couchie
6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Contemporary dance and movement explorations, and guided written and visual activities to explore the stories and themes of All My R(el)ations to develop performance pieces for Ice Follies.

Thursdays

Community Dinner
5:15 pm – 6:00 pm
A time to gather and share a meal with our artists, workshop participants, and community members each week.

Pow Wow Making & Jam Night with Sid Bobb & invited guest artists
6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Weekly drop-in making & jam sessions for all things pow wow. Bring your regalia, beadwork, or other unfinished projects to work on or bring your voice and/or an instrument for singing, drumming, and dancing! Sid Bobb and other invited guest artists will be on hand to help out and join in the fun.

For more information, please call Sid or Penny at 705-474-2227 or email aanmitaagzi@gmail.com.

Ice Follies 2025

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Ice Follies Celebrates Local Creativity in Honor of North Bay’s Centennial | February 7 – 21, 2025

For Immediate Release:

[North Bay, ON, January 8, 2025] – Ice Follies, Northern Ontario’s premier biennial festival of contemporary and community-engaged art, returns to the frozen expanse of Lake Nipissing from February 7 to 21, 2025. This 11th edition of the festival highlights local artists as part of a special celebration of North Bay’s Centennial, showcasing the area’s deep cultural roots and artistic talent.

In addition to its signature on-ice installations at Shabogesic Beach, this year’s festival expands its footprint to include Olmstead Beach on Trout Lake, with special events designed to bring the festival closer to more of the city’s residents.

Under the theme “Ozhaashikwaa” (The Ice is Slippery), Ice Follies 2025 reflects on the resilience and adaptability required to navigate the shifting landscapes of our community and environment. This year’s installations explore themes of connection, collaboration, and history, offering a uniquely Northern perspective.

Reflecting on the origins of Ice Follies and its enduring legacy, festival founder and participating artist Dermot Wilson remarked: “In 2003, when I first stepped out onto the ice of Lake Nipissing, I thought ‘this is like a blank canvas…white cloud-filled sky and equally white plain of snow stretching out to an almost invisible horizon’. Over 20 years later, this icy site still helps artists and audiences alike to discover the freedom and expansive embrace of the Canadian winter.”

Not-to-Be-Missed Festival Highlights:

  • Opening Night Performance by Aanmitaagzi (February 7): A powerful community event to kick off the festival at Shabogesic Beach.
  • Family Day Activities on Shabogesic Beach (February 17): Free community engagement for all ages.
  • Listening Party Events (February 15 & 16): Hosted at Olmstead Beach on Trout Lake, these intimate evening gatherings will feature sound-based art and storytelling, creating a unique and immersive festival experience.

As always, Ice Follies is free to attend and open 24/7, offering visitors the opportunity to experience the installations in the unique interplay of light and ice, whether during the day or under the stars.

About Ice Follies:

Founded in 2004, Ice Follies transforms the frozen shores of Lake Nipissing into a dynamic gallery of contemporary art every two years. Co-presented by local arts organizations Aanmitaagzi, Near North Mobile Media Lab and White Water Gallery, the festival creates space for audiences to engage with contemporary works that reflect upon Northern Ontario’s unique cultural and environmental identity.

For more information on Ice Follies 2025, visit: icefollies.ca.

Ice Follies is made possible thanks to the generous support of our funders, sponsors and community partners. We gratefully acknowledge our 2025 funders: Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, Canadian Heritage, NOHFC, FedNor, City of North Bay and Tourism North Bay.

Media Contact:

Jameson Toye
Ice Follies Communication Officer
705-476-6402
medialabnorthbay@gmail.com

ALL MY R(el)ATIONS opens Ice Follies 2023

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A poster for Aanmitaagzi's presentation of ALL MY R(el)ATIONS, a spontaneaous performance and celebration of community on the ice. The performance will take place on February 10, 2023 at 7 pm at Shabogesic Beach (formerly known as Marathon Beach) in North Bay, ON as part of Ice Follies' Opening Night celebrations.

Aanmitaagzi is pleased to present ALL MY R(el)ATIONS, a large-scale multi-structure installation and performance on February 10, 2023 at 7 pm. The performance will take place as part of the Opening Night festivities of Ice Follies 2023. ALL MY R(el)ATIONS is part of our multi-year project, All My R(el)ations, a multi-disciplinary project of gathering, reflecting, and dreaming that explores the themes of relationality and resource capacity.

When developing this work we looked at stories around the abundance that was present when the first person arrived at this world, contemplating this abundance and our role within it. We explored stories of the rationing of our culture, language, traditional territory, and ourselves. The installation and performances were created collaboratively with our artists and community members through our ongoing weekly winter workshops series.

We are also excited to co-present Paper Canoe Projects’ Prophecy Fog, created and performed by award winning theatre artist Jani Lauzon. The performance will take place over two nights at Big Medicine Studio on February 16 & 17 at 7 pm.

Ice Follies is a site-specific biennial festival that takes place on frozen Lake Nipissing (Nbisiing) near Shabogesic Beach (Shaabgiizhig Jiigbiik). The 2023 theme “Thin Ice” (Nbagzi Mkwam) looks at our shifting landscapes and communities, including our changing relationships with our environment and each other. This is Ice Follies’ 10th Edition, and they are celebrating this year with free performances, large-scale art installations, community engaged artworks and activities, and a curated look-back at the history of this one-of-a-kind festival.

For more information, please visit www.icefollies.ca or contact Aanmitaagzi at aanmitaagzi@gmail.com or (705) 474-2227.

*Note: Shabogesic Beach was formerly known as Marathon Beach.