Calgary Animated Objects Society (CAOS) is a non-profit charitable arts organization based in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada. Founded in 2003, CAOS is dedicated to the arts of mask, puppetry and animated objects, and to building community through different art. CAOS's major projects include the biennial

International Festival of Animated Objects The International Festival of Animated Objects is a biennial festival sponsored by the non-profit group '' Calgary Animated Objects Society'' that promotes the arts of puppetry, mask, and animated objects. It takes place in downtown Calgary, Alber ...

, and "Spirit of White Buffalo": a large-scale animated puppet and arts residency.

Origins and Goals

CAOS provides artistic opportunities through its activities, and initiates youth and community activities such as Young Spirit Voices, an aboriginal youth drama project, the Ramsay "Halloween Scream" and "The Great Ramsay Kinetic Sculpture Race". CAOS is led by founder Xstine Cook, a

mask A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment and often they have been employed for rituals and rights. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and pra ...

and

puppet A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or Legendary creature, mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. The puppeteer uses movements of their hands, arms, or control devices such as rods ...

artist, who ran the Green Fools Theatre for 13 years prior to founding CAOS. Xstine trained at the

Dell'Arte International School of Physical Theatre The Dell'Arte International School of Physical Theatre is a private school in Blue Lake, California. It offers a NAST-accredited three-year MFA in Ensemble-Based Physical Theatre, a one-year professional training program, summer workshops, and a st ...

Blue Lake, California Blue Lake (formerly, Scottsville) is a city in Humboldt County, California, United States. Blue Lake is located on the Mad River in a deep valley, northeast of Eureka, at an elevation of 131 feet (40 m). Its population is 1,208 as of the 2020 ...

. CAOS and the festival propel a very active local mask and puppetry tradition into an international arena, all the while bringing international attention to the city of Calgary. Extensive coverage for the organization can be found in FFWD magazine-Calgary's weekly arts & culture publication: "Calgary is a hotbed of original, unorthodox puppet work" (quote from an article written to cover CAOS's festival).

Spirit Of White Buffalo

CAOS also produces original art works, such as ''Spirit of White Buffalo''. Guided by Cook, this giant kinetic sculpture was built by incarcerated men in

Drumheller Institution The Drumheller Institution is a medium-security prison operated in Drumheller, Alberta by the Correctional Service of Canada. It was opened in 1967, and also includes a 72-bed minimum-security facility. As of 6 April 2004, the medium security ...

, in collaboration with local artists, Jeff De Boer, and youth. "Spirit of White Buffalo" appeared at the 2007

Calgary Stampede Parade The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year and featu ...

, and was awarded first place in "Best Western Theme".

Media coverage and recognition

The organization has received coverage from news outlets including but not limited to the CBC,

Calgary Herald The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network. History ''The Ca ...

CTV CTV may refer to: Television * Connected TV, or Smart TV, a TV set with integrated internet North America and South America * CTV Television Network, a Canadian television network owned by Bell Media ** CTV 2, a secondary Canadian televisio ...

and The Guantlet, and numerous community-level publications. Calgary Animated Objects Society has received national coverage for its activities consistently since 2005. '' The Globe and Mail'' credited CAOS with "putting Calgary in the pop-culture vanguard" in recognition of the International Festival of Animated Objects' programming, and the same article also drew attention to how "Calgary...has become one of the most fertile spots in North America for ground-breaking puppetry".The Globe and Mail
/ref> CAOS was awarded the "Innovative Business Practices Award" from the Rozsa Foundation for Arts Management.

Notes

External links

CAOS website

AMMSA

FFWD 2009 Festival Preview

FFWD 2009 Crawdaddy Review

Calgary Herald 2009 Alice Nelson Review
{{Authority control Theatre companies in Alberta Theatre in Calgary Puppet festivals Organizations based in Calgary Organizations established in 2003 Art festivals in Canada 2003 establishments in Alberta Puppetry in Canada