Evann Siebens is a Canadian media artist with a background in dancing based in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...

, Canada. Her current practice cross-references dance performance and media. Siebens' film works have been shown both nationally and internationally and have won awards. She recently exhibited a geodesic dome and 360 projection at the Belkin Gallery in Vancouver and also screened a commissioned work on the exterior of the Vancouver Art Gallery. Her moving billboard ''Orange Magpies Triptych'' was part of Capture’s Photography Festival. She has also performed live with her media at New Media Gallery and the Western Front, Vancouver. Siebens writes about dance films and techniques for applying filmmaking to dance, and has been praised for her practical insights into the filming of dance and the creative interactions between dance and film technique which she credits for expanding the cinematic experience: “I’m interested in breaking the frame, in moving beyond the traditional two-dimensional space of film, in questioning the status quo. The visual transgressions of dance media, that on the surface seem so simple and pleasing, are an entry point for feminists and activists to have their say, an allowance for the complexity of politics, enabled by the moving body through time and space.” Siebens is represented by Wil Aballe Art Projects in Vancouver.

Education

Evann Siebens studied dance at the

National Ballet School of Canada Canada's National Ballet School, also commonly known as the National Ballet School of Canada, is a classical ballet school located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Along with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, it is a provider of professional ballet tr ...

and the

Royal Ballet School The Royal Ballet School is a British school of classical ballet training founded in 1926 by the Anglo-Irish ballerina and choreographer Ninette de Valois. The school's aim is to train and educate outstanding classical ballet dancers, especial ...

in London, England. She danced with the

National Ballet of Canada The National Ballet of Canada is a Canadian ballet company that was founded in 1951 in Toronto, Ontario, with Celia Franca as the first artistic director. A company of 70 dancers with its own orchestra, the National Ballet has been led since 2022 ...

and the

Bonn Ballet The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-R ...

in Germany. Siebens graduated from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, ...

in 1996, with a Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude. She participated in residencies at the

Banff Centre Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, formerly known as The Banff Centre (and previously The Banff Centre for Continuing Education), located in Banff, Alberta, was established in 1933 as the Banff School of Drama. It was granted full autonomy as ...

, Banff, Calgary, UNIT/PITT, Vancouver, ACME, London UK, with Keith Doyle and TRII Art Hub Residency in Athens, Greece.

Work

Film

Siebens has filmed dancers such as

Mikhail Baryshnikov Mikhail Nikolayevich Baryshnikov ( rus, Михаил Николаевич Барышников, p=mʲɪxɐˈil bɐ'rɨʂnʲɪkəf; lv, Mihails Barišņikovs; born January 28, 1948) is a Soviet Latvian-born Russian-American dancer, choreograp ...

Peter Boal Peter Boal is artistic director of Pacific Northwest Ballet and director of its affiliated school in Seattle, Washington. He was born in Bedford, New York, in 1965 and began studies at the School of American Ballet (SAB) at age nine. Boal assumed ...

Viola Farber Viola Farber (February 25, 1931 – December 24, 1998) was an American choreographer and dancer. Biography Viola Farber was born on February 25, 1931, in Heidelberg, Germany. In Germany, Farber began dancing. However, at the age of six she was ...

Bill T. Jones William Tass Jones, known as Bill T. Jones, (born February 15, 1952) is an American choreographer, director, author and dancer. He is the co-founder of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company. Jones is Artistic Director of New York Live Art ...

Jose Navas Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods. *Jose ben Abin *Jose ben Akabya * Jose the G ...

, and

Sara Rudner Sara Rudner (born 16 February 1944) is an American dancer, choreographer and dance educator. Life and career Sara Rudner was born in Brooklyn, New York, and studied dance at a neighborhood music school and ballet with Bella Malinka. She graduate ...

. Siebens' documentaries have been screened at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, ...

(MOMA) in New York and on PBS. Her documentary film ''American Aloha'', with

Lisette Marie Flanary Lisette may refer to: People: *Jean Lisette Aroeste (1932-2020), ''Star Trek'' fan who sold scripts to the program *Lisette de Brinon (1896–1982), the Jewish wife of the pro-Nazi French collaborator, Fernand de Brinon *Lisette Burrows, New Zeala ...

, focuses on the history and rebirth of hula dancing. It was produced for the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of ed ...

POV series. The film was made on a budget of $300,000. Filmed over period of five years, it focuses on three

kumu hula Hula () is a Hawaiian dance form accompanied by chant (oli) or song ( mele). It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Native Hawaiians who originally settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visu ...

or hula masters teaching in California: Sissy Kaio of Hula Halau O Lilinoʻe,

Mark Kealiʻi Hoʻomalu Mark Kealiʻi Hoʻomalu (born August 10, 1959) is a contemporary Hawaiian chanter, who was born and raised in ʻAiea, Oʻahu. He is best known for his contributions to the soundtrack of the 2002 Disney animated film, ''Lilo & Stitch'', providin ...

of Na Mele Hula ‘Ohana and Patrick Makuakāne of

Na Lei Hulu I Ka Wekiu Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu is a Hawaiian dance company or ''hālau hula'' led by ''kumu hula'' (hula master) Patrick Makuakāne. Makuakāne founded Nā Lei Hulu in San Francisco in 1985. As a young dancer in Hawai'i, he trained under kumu hula Robert ...

. The film breaks down stereotypes about hula, in part by focusing on male dancers as well as females. To successfully complete the film, it was necessary to spend time with the Hawaiian hula community and win their trust. The film won a

CINE Golden Eagle Award Ciné film or cine film is the term commonly used in the UK and historically in the US to refer to the 8 mm, Super 8, 9.5 mm, and 16 mm motion picture film formats used for home movies. It is not normally used to refer ...

in 2003, a Silver Hugo Award at the Chicago International Television Festival, and the Bronze Award in Cultural Documentary at WorldFest Houston. The film also screened at the

Hawai‘i International Film Festival The Hawai'i International Film Festival (HIFF) is an annual film festival held in the United States state of Hawaii. HIFF has a focus on Asian-Pacific cinema, education, and the work of new and emerging filmmakers. HIFF’s primary festival is ...

, and the

Native American Film and Video Festival The Native American Film and Video Festival was a noncompetitive showcase of film, video and audio productions. It was held biennially in New York City from 1997 to 2011. Each festival screened between 50 and 80 documentaries, short features and ani ...

at the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

. Siebens' 2018 short film ''time reversal symmetry'' was part of a collaboration between artists and scientists at TRIUMF: Canada’s national laboratory for particle and nuclear physics. It screened at the Dance on Camera Festival in New York City, the Seyr Festival in Tehran, Iran, the Dublin Dance Festival and the Light Moves Festival of Screendance in Limerick, Ireland, where it won the ''Light Moves Prize for Outstanding Overall Work''. She has collaborated with dancer/choreographer

Justine A. Chambers Justine A. Chambers is a dancer, choreographer and artist currently living and working in Vancouver, British Columbia. Interested in social choreographies of the everyday, she engages dance in site-specific, experimental and collaborative creation ...

Cross Disciplinary Projects

Siebens has exhibited at Eyebeam,

Centre Georges Pompidou The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the Centre national d'art et de culture Georges-Pompidou ( en, National Georges Pompidou Centre of Art and Culture), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English, is a complex building in the Beaubourg area of ...

Vancouver Art Gallery The Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) is an art museum in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The museum occupies a adjacent to Robson Square in downtown Vancouver, making it the largest art museum in Western Canada by building size. Designed by Fran ...

, Vancouver, British Columbia, Hotshoe Gallery, London, UK, G++ Media Gallery,

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, Canada and Wil Abelle Art Projects in Vancouver. Siebens' performance piece ''Orange Magpies'' was commissioned by Vancouver's Burrard Arts Foundation and

in 2017. This work was subsequently exhibited as a large-scale projection on the facade of the

as part of the Facade Festival that same year. Siebens' video documented a six minute, choreographed piece performed by dancers James Gnam and Vanessa Goodman. They are featured in locations from across the Lower Mainland of Vancouver, many of them unceded traditional territories of

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: ** First Nat ...

peoples such as the

Coast Salish The Coast Salish is a group of ethnically and linguistically related Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast, living in the Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. states of Washington and Oregon. They speak one of the C ...

, the Squamish, the

Tsleil-Waututh The Tsleil-Waututh Nation ( hur, səlilwətaɬ ), formerly known as the Burrard Indian Band or Burrard Inlet Indian Band, is a First Nations band government in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The Tsleil-Waututh Nation ("TWN") are Coa ...

and the

Musqueam The Musqueam Indian Band ( ; hur, xʷməθkʷəy̓əm ) is a First Nations band government in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is the only First Nations band whose reserve community lies within the boundaries of the City of Vancouv ...

. Siebens' intent as a non-Indigenous artist was "to use the mediums of dance and film to explore issues of colonialism and her role in reconciliation."

Awards

She has received notable awards in her career as an artist, such as; MIMMiC Commission from On Main Gallery + Paul Wong Projects,

, Canada. Gesture, 2015, ID / Identities Istanbul 2012; Best Video Prize for Chromatic Revelry, 2012. Her work has been supported by The National Endowment for the Arts, The New York State Council for the Arts, and The Corporation for Public Broadcasting amongst others.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siebens, Evann Living people Canadian documentary film directors Canadian women film directors Film directors from Calgary New York University alumni National Ballet of Canada dancers People educated at the Royal Ballet School Year of birth missing (living people) Canadian women documentary filmmakers