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| CillaVee - Global Water Dances video shoot - by Beth Starling Media |
Claire’s newsletter REPORT 2025
Cilla Vee Life Arts
Living Art
Center for Connection + Collaboration
Greetings and warmest wishes!
As I write this, I am spending the winter season “hibernating” in my Southern Appalachian art-house home in Asheville, NC.
The world is getting crazier by the minute, but I hope I can offer some creativity and compassion through my art-life endeavors!
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(all live links are in RED)
Beginning with some announcements …
A NEW CILLAVEE WEBSITE !
Way way waaay overdue …
Digital representation of my work has been housed kind of hotchpotch on various blogs and platforms for many years and it was high time to look like a professional with a proper website!
I worked with Peter McDowell and Ari Solomon of PerformSites (based out of Los Angeles) who specialize in creating sites for artists and performers - and I’m very happy with the results.
A NEW PATREON PAGE !
https://www.patreon.com/posts/greetings-and-147121255
Also way overdue …
A strong, on-going fundraising platform to support Cilla Vee Life Arts, The Center for Connection + Collaboration and Living Art (my performance research method) all in one place.
Please check out this super fun five minute video …
Be My Hero!
Music:
"Bonaparte's Retreat" from Deviant Shakti
by LaDonna Smith and Michael Evans
Transmuseq Records
A GRANT !
https://artsavl.org/arts-avl-awards-over-100000-to-support-artists-across-six-wnc-counties/
I could say that this is “way overdue” as well …
Finally! … An Artist Support Grant from the North Carolina Arts Council - distributed via the regional Asheville Area Arts Council and funded by Bank of America.
This particular grant will cover one hundred hours of administration towards creating a CVLA Project Archive in time for our 25th Anniversary next year …
…. YES … TWENTY-FIFTH !
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2025 PROJECTS
United Kingdom
Nottinghamshire
The first half of my year was based in the little village of Farnsfield in the Nottinghamshire countryside of England (Robin Hood Country!) Where my Dad lives and seems to be a local village celebrity!
Here I worked on cillavee website development - as well as my practice and project development at Tozer dance studios - an absolutely charming location for a dance school on a very busy family-run farm ‘Hockerwood’. With cows moo-ing in the background and the best fresh eggs and produce for sale!
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| Tozer - small dance studio |
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| Tozer - large dance studio |
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| Tozer - music studio |
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| Hockerwood Farm - Eggs |
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| Hockerwood Farm - Cows |
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| Road to Hockerwood Farm |
Website Design:
Tozer Studios:
https://tozerstudios.co.uk/about/
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LIVING ART / SACRED DANCE
Elements & Chakras
Some overlapping and intertwining threads of research / practice / teaching / performing.
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| Chakras - performance meditation with Linda Mary Montano |
Elements
Through my ‘Living Art’ method I draw on nature’s Raw Materials as a source of practice-as-research investigation. The elements of Air, Earth, Fire, Water are at the core of our physical being and our archetypal psyche.
Chakras
Although I have been aware of the chakra energy centers of the body for a long time, it is only recently that they have been introduced in modes that feel relevant to me.
Much of this awareness has been due to my art mentor Linda Montano’s intensive Art-Life chakra work.
During my studio practice this year I have been approaching both the elements and the chakras as movement and vocal meditations.
The opportunity to focus in on both of these threads has come from invitations to present sacred and religious work specifically.
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| Linda Mary Montano |
Elements / Chakras - London
RELIGION & ART
While in the UK I was invited to present something for the “Religion & Art” conference produced by Goldsmiths College University of London Art Department.
This connection came through Linda Montano - dear friend and art mentor.
We were asked to collaborate remotely - with myself physically in situ, while Linda Zoomed in from her home in upstate NY as a large projection on the wall!
The location was Holy Trinity church in South Kensington - a beautiful, historic Anglican church.
R&A is an annual series produced by Nina Danino (Goldsmiths) and Mark Dean (Chaplaincy Arts) and embraces a diverse approach to the theme - from academic interrogations to performances, workshops and film screenings.
Our presentation for the R&A conference was entitled:
‘Living Art, Raw Material - Self As Sacred Place’
I guided participants in a workshop of meditations on the Elements, followed by a collaborative Chakra Meditation performance with Linda.
We were accompanied by majestic live improvised organ music by Paul B Davis.
R&A - Elements workshop:
R&A - Chakra performance:
RELIGION & ART conference - Collab Sessions
‘Living Art, Raw Material and Self-as-Sacred-Place’
- Claire Elizabeth Barratt & Linda Mary Montano -
Organ music by Paul B Davis
May 2025
Holy Trinity, South Kensington London
https://religionandart.org/Colab-Session-1
A CHASE funded research initiative of Goldsmiths University of London.
Produced by Nina Danino and Mark Dean.
Chakras - Kingston NY
Later, in August, Linda and I performed an adapted version of the chakras together in-person at The Lace Mill in Kingston, NY.
Performance Art Chakra Meditation:
Performers:
Linda Mary Montano - chakra nurse - chanting
CillaVee - chakra dancer - movement
Alanna Medlock - chakra doctor - signs
Jeff Economy - chakra timer - whistle and scarves
With musical accompaniment by Al Margolis and Lucas Borde
Producer - Daniel Rhinier
August 2025
Lace Mill, Kingston NY
SACRED DANCE GUILD
My work with the international Sacred Dance Guild continues.
As an Accredited Facilitator with the guild, I sometimes lead the monthly online ‘Sacred Sundays’ workshop.
This year has been a wonderful opportunity to share my meditations on the Elements and Chakras and conducive to their development in my studio practice.
Elements Meditation Guide:
https://livingartelements.blogspot.com/2025/09/elements-air-earth-fire-water.html
I created this simple blog page to share my prompts, as well as the vocal sound scores I made for each Element meditation.
Dancing The Chakras:
Sacred Dance Guild ‘Sacred Sunday’ workshop
October 2025
Online via Zoom
There is also an article about my Dreamcatcher project in the recent SDG Journal (an online publication) with images of our Dreamcatcher workshop and performances with the Ottawa branch of the guild in 2024.
SDG Journal article - Dreamcatcher:
https://sdgjournal.wordpress.com/2025/04/01/the-rhizomatic-collective-unconscious-dreamcatcher/
Sacred Dance Guild website:
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DREAMCATCHER
USA
… Speaking of the Dreamcatcher ….
Back in the USA in June - and time to get the Dreamcatcher out of its’ mothballs for two very different iterations of the project.
The Rhizomatic Collective Unconscious DREAMCATCHER
Dreamcatcher - New York City
The 20th annual Chashama Gala (Bizarre Bazaar) - and celebrating 30 years since the founding of Chashama by Anita Durst to provide space for artists in NYC.
What’s amazing is that I was one of the original artists invited to participate in the very first gala back in 2005!
It has changed locations over the years as it has expanded to include hundreds of artists in an extravaganza billed as “New York’s Wildest Art Party!”
The Bizarre Bazaar commandeered two floors of a Midtown Manhattan city office block near Grand Central Station.
With a maze of almost a hundred different art installations and roaming performances based on the theme of ‘Dreams’.
I gathered together my NYC ‘dream team’ of performers from 2023’s Re-Wilding project at Port Authority Bus Terminal and Fred Hatt created video projections for the installation.
Dreamcatcher at Chashama Gala - photos:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/114531261@N02/albums/72177720328854408
Performers:
CillaVee, Stewart Hoyt, Sarah Pope, Lauren Vrogindewey
Video light projections - Fred Hatt
Photos: Fred Hatt
June 2025
Durst Building NYC
Chashama website:
Dreamcatcher - Asheville
The other Dreamcatcher performance was for the annual Black Mountain College conference at UNCA in September - presented in an outdoor courtyard on the campus.
For this I recruited Butoh dancer Sara Baird to perform with me - and I added a new artistic component of a vocal sound score.
Dreamcatcher at BMC conference- photos:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/114531261@N02/albums/72177720331179106
Performers:
CillaVee, Sara Baird
Sound score - CillaVee
Photos: Eric Baden, Jeff Davis
September 2025
UNC Asheville
Dreamcatcher sound score by CillaVee:
https://on.soundcloud.com/XQ9S3Y4nNZcryjRzrF
Black Mountain College Museum website:
https://www.blackmountaincollege.org/
The Dreamcatcher enjoyed some moments of mega-fame this year!
This image, taken by David Gwaltney of the debut performance at the Black Mountain College {Re} Happening 2024 …
Was used for the {Re} Happening 2025 poster …
AND …
Appeared on a Times Square billboard continuous loop video advertising the Chashama Gala for a couple of weeks leading up to the event!
https://youtube.com/shorts/Qy9Qi8BMUlg
Dreamcatcher Blog site:
https://collective-unconscious-dreamcatcher.blogspot.com/
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GLOBAL WATER DANCES
Asheville Botanical Gardens
I was delighted to discover the Global Water Dances project last year!
Affiliated with the Sacred Dance Guild (via two GWD founding directors Vannia Ibarguen and Marylee Hardenberg) this biennial international project has been taking place since 2011.
Dancers all over the world each choose a site in their locale - a body of water where the dance takes place (eg. by the ocean in Tanzania, a river in Ontario etc.) all on the same day.
Here in Asheville I collaborated with my long-time partner-in-art, musician Elisa Faires, to produce a whimsical, mystical water ritual at Reeds Creek in the Asheville Botanical Gardens.
Videos of all the dances are available for viewing on the GWD website and a short compilation piece is edited together.
The project seeks to bring public awareness to our precious sources of water - to protect them from pollution so they can continue to provide life.
Global Water Dances - Asheville - Reeds Creek:
Featuring CillaVee and Elisa Faires
Video: Bethany C Starling. Beth Starling Media
June 2025
Asheville Botanical Gardens, Asheville NC
GWD 2025 compilation video:
https://youtu.be/eZBVGThPmwo?si=tsD0nlTc02Rk
Global Water Dances website:
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SUMMER FESTIVALS
Of course, the summer would not be complete without participating in two of my favorite grass-roots, experimental, avant-garde, riot-of-a-good-time arts festivals:
AfterMAF (Marginal Arts Festival)
at Art Rat studios in Roanoke VA
Real-deal unadulterated DaDa - sound poetry, mail art, zines, performance art.
https://www.facebook.com/ABnormalRoanoke/
And
X-Fest
at “Chez Paul” in Haverhill MA
A festival of improvised collaborations. It has seen various locations over the years. - but now has a very scenic home by a lake in Haverhill MA.
I participated in three sets over the weekend:
CillaVee / Walter Wright / Ryan Tombs
CillaVee / Scott Plato / Anthony Bease
Dance Jam
Dancers:
CillaVee, Paul Kafka Gibbons, Joe Burgio, Ophra Wolf and ?
Musicians:
Bonnie Kane, Walter Wright, Craig Chin
X-Fest 2025 at Chez Paul
Video - Steve Albert
August 2025
Haverhill MA
My contribution to the festival also included a protest dance for a beautiful, large, lakeside tree on the site, doomed to be cut down.
… Apparently to no avail!
“Save The Tree”
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OTHER
Asheville Butoh Festival 2025
A weekend of workshops and performances with Japanese Butoh Master
Atsushi Takenouchi
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| Butoh workshop participants in rehearsal |
Asheville Butoh website:
https://www.ashevillebutoh.com/asheville-butoh-festival/
Atsushi Takenouchi website:
Wire Factory
A performance collaboration at the studio of Greg Kowalski in the Wire Factory - Lowell MA.
Movement:
CillaVee, Paul Kafka-Gibbons
Sound:
Walter Wright, Al Margolis
Poetry:
Rick Breault reading poetry by Jim Leftwich
August 2025
Wire Factory, Lowell MA
Elisa Faires - ‘Golden Spider Reality’
Artist residency at Revolve gallery, Asheville NC.
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| CillaVee in Golden Spider installation performance |
Including Collaborative performance with Elisa, movement guide for workshop and member of Elisa’s Drone Choir.
Drone Choir
Site-specific public intervention at Beaucatcher Tunnel - Asheville:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gHU_0iES40
Arachnid Doom (but hopefully not for the Golden Spider!)
Improvised music project with Al Margolis, Mike Pride and Tom Law.
Performance at The Lace Mill - Kingston NY
Arachnid Doom - Lace Mill:
Featuring:
CillaVee - cello, voice etc.
Mike Pride - percussion
Al Margolis - stuff
August 2025
Lace Mill, Kingston NY
Album Release - The Hermit of Serignan
Available on CD or download:
https://bigsphinx.bandcamp.com/album/the-hermit-of-serignan
The Encarne Trilogy
Surrealist short film by SI Reasoning.
I am featured in this film by fellow ‘Fresh Dirt’ surrealist collective member SI Reasoning in two different fantasy character roles - along with Fresh Dirt founding member LaDonna Smith.
After the film’s debut at the Maison Andre Breton, it has been sweeping through the international film festival circuit and winning awards!
Including a ‘Silver’ award at London’s Sur-REEL & Uncanny FILM FEST 2025 for my Hair, Make Up, Costume design.
The Encarne Trilogy - about:
https://www.fresh-dirt.us/the-encarne-trilogy/
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THE CENTER FOR CONNECTION + COLLABORATION
The Center for Connection + Collaboration (or CCC) is the name I give to my art-house home as a creative community space.
This past Autumn 2025, we have resumed programming again for the first time since Hurricane Helene the previous year.
The WHYBUT? Sessions
WHYBUT? stands for “What Have You Been Up To?”
An interview series focusing on how the past year has been for Asheville area artists in the wake of Hurricane Helene and what they have been working on.
We met live in-person with a small audience – the sessions were also available for audience to attend via Zoom and recorded as a community archive.
WHYBUT? Sessions - 4 VIDEO PLAY LIST:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvEUZffbfh0&list=PLiUXIsTAvzOhyv_q67dYFlU0lWphv8tDh
WHYBUT? Artists:
Julie Becton Gillum / https://www.ashevillebutoh.com/
Martha Skinner / https://marthaskinner.com/
Richard Brewster / https://pugix.com/
Curt Cloninger / https://www.lab404.com/
Molly Sawyer / https://www.mlsawyer.com/
Roger Munch / http://rogermunch.com/
Robert Winkler / https://www.robertwinklersculpture.com/
Mark Hosler / https://negativland.com/
Jen Murphy / http://www.jmurphyarts.com/
JoLeigh Bowden / https://mooncaravanrecords.com/
October / November 2025
CCC-AVL, Asheville NC
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Guy Fawkes British Bonfire Night
A community favorite!
As a true Brit, I feel it is my duty to keep up this cultural ritual.
November 5th is the night to celebrate the foiled attempts of Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder plot of 1605 to blow up London’s Houses of Parliament.
This year the CCC provided a bonfire with fireworks, a Guy Fawkes effigy burning and some live improv-jazz music by none other than
Jack Wright / Evan Lipson / Jake Smith trio.
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| Guy Fawkes effigy |
Guy Fawkes Trio:
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Year In Review:
Europe
January - May
Nottinghamshire UK
CillaVee website development
Practice and Studio work at Tozer dance studios
Project development for Elements and Chakras
April
SDG Sacred Sunday workshop (Zoom) Elements
SDG Journal article
May
London - R&A conference
Visit to the LADA reading room (Live Art Development Agency)
https://www.thisisliveart.co.uk/resources/visit-the-study-room/
Arts & Culture trips:
France
Sarrebourg - Chapelle des Cordeliers - Chagall stained glass windows
Germany
Potsdam - Sanssouci - Rococo palace
Nottinghamshire
Wellow - Traditional village May Day festival with maypole
USA
June
AVL - Global Water Dances
NYC - Dreamcatcher at Chashama Gala
Roanoke VA - AfterMAF
Cherokee NC - Unto These Hills outdoor drama 75th reunion
August
Haverhill MA - X-Fest
Lowell MA - Wire Factory
Kingston NY - Lace Mill - Chakras with Linda / Arachnid Doom
September
AVL UNCA - Dreamcatcher at Black Mountain College conference
AVL - Surreal Sirkus ‘Aquanox’
October
SDG Sacred Sunday workshop (zoom) Chakras
AVL - Elisa Faires Golden Spider residency at Revolve
November
AVL Butoh Festival
CCC - WHYBUT? Sessions
CCC - Guy Fawkes British bonfire night
December
Street Creature Puppet Collective
Light The Night Asheville
I will close with the very special, very heartwarming, very Asheville
Winter Solstice ‘Light The Night Asheville’
Street Creature Puppet Collective lantern parade.
Especially poignant for Asheville’s recovering River Arts District a year after the storm.
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THANK YOU so much for spending time catching up with me!
Please take care and spread art, life and love in 2026.
Blessings!
C
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Claire Elizabeth Barratt / CillaVee
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