Plain Language in Arts Writing

***DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES, THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED. STAY TUNED FOR UPDATES.***

Plain Language in Arts Writing

Workshop led by Victoria Anne Warner and Tamyka Bullen

Much has been said about the art world’s reliance on obscure or difficult language. But language complexity also opens up questions of access. This workshop explores the role of plain language in arts writing. Working with plain language creates an opportunity to widen the reach of your writing to include folks whose first language is not English (which includes ASL speakers) and folks with learning disabilities, processing disabilities, and Neurodiverse brains. How can we—as artists, arts writers, and arts publishers—make better use of plain language? What challenges does plain language produce? How can plain language best convey complex thought?

Join Victoria Anne Warner of Tangled Art + Disability and artist/performer Tamyka Bullen in this participatory workshop, introducing plain language strategies for arts writing of all kinds.

Workshop readings and requirements to be announced shortly.

This event is part of Public Displays of Affection (PDA): an expanded series of events on creative possibilities in accessible arts publishing, hosted by Critical Distance. PDA will work within disability arts communities and beyond, building on Kelly Fritsch’s notion that “to crip is to open up with desire to the ways that disability disrupts.” Over the next several months, PDA will produce a collective learning opportunity that considers the pleasures, desires, and disruptions of making arts publishing initiatives more accessible. Read more about the program here.

This event will take place on Zoom, and have ASL and captioning. Images will be described and presenters will describe themselves. If you have any other access requests or questions please contact emily@criticaldistance.ca

This program is made possible through the generous support of the Toronto Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts.

Speaker Info:

Victoria Anne Warner​ has been working in Disability Advocacy and Justice for over a decade. She discovered her passion for analysing, taking apart, and rebuilding access policies in the sci-fi convention world, and hasn’t stopped since. She has worked with CUPE Ontario as the first Equity Representative for Workers with Disabilities, and her research led to the creation of new courses for union members across Canada on disability and ableism. She is currently interested in how to disrupt traditional power structures, and how she can implement those values in her work while making sure that previously unheard voices are not only brought to the table but valued.

Tamyka Bullen​ is a Deaf artist and performer. As a social justice advocate, she has volunteered and worked with youth, deaf women, immigrant and LGBTQ communities. In 2015, she performed her poetry for the first time at a Toronto subway station — an experience which gave her the confidence to perform in RARE Theatre’s latest production After the Blackout. Created by Judith Thompson — winner of the Governor General’s Award, Order of Canada and Amnesty International Freedom of Expression Award — the play brings together a cast of artists who are deaf, blind or living with brain injury or lost limbs.

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Upon registration, you will be sent a confirmation email and a link for the Zoom event closer to the date.

For more information on PDA and Critical Distance, visit:

https://www.criticaldistance.ca/