Becka Barker and Stacey Cornelius Lead Professional Development Workshops for Visual Arts Nova Scotia

Becka Barker and Stacey Cornelius lead professional development workshops at Visual Arts Nova Scotia (VANS) in October and November.

Becka Barker leads VANS grant writing
workshop October 17 & 20

Becka Barker’s Grant Writing workshop focuses on improving grant and proposal writing skills. 

Participants will learn how to write convincing project descriptions for Arts Nova Scotia and Canada Council creation grants as well as other applications. 

There will be two sessions: October 17 in Halifax, and October 20 in Sydney.

Becka received Talent Trust scholarships for film studies. Her work has been supported by the National Film Board of Canada, Canada Council for the Arts, Arts Nova Scotia, and the Halifax Regional Municipality. 

Becka’s films have been shown at the Ottawa International Animation Festival, Seoul’s EXiS (winner 2007, Best International Film), Images Festival (Toronto), Festival du Nouveau Cinéma (Montreal), KunstDoc Art Gallery (Seoul), Echo Park Film Centre (Los Angeles), Toronto Animated Images Society, WNDX (Winnipeg), and Struts Gallery (Sackville, NB). 

She's been on the faculty at NSCAD University since 2005 and was visiting foreign faculty in the Film and Animation Department at SoonChunHyang University in South Korea from 2008-2012. To learn more about Becka, visit her website at beckabarker.info.

Grant Writing workshop

Wednesday, October 17, 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.

VANS boardroom
1113 Marginal Road
, Halifax
Registration Deadline: October 11



Saturday, October 20, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Cape Breton Centre for Craft & Design
322 Charlotte Street
, Sydney
Registration Deadline: October 13

For a full workshop description and to register, visit the VANS website.

Stacey Cornelius teaches technology & social
media workshop for VANS Oct 20 and Nov 3

Stacey Cornelius’s Websites, Social Media & Technology: Creating your Brand workshop takes a no-nonsense look at website building tools, email marketing and newsletter services, search engines, and social media. 

The three-hour session focuses on building a professional brand using the tools that work best for you, and knowing how to use those tools well. Participants will learn concepts and skills they can use with multiple tools and across platforms so they can work smarter, not harder.

Stacey received a Talent Trust scholarship to support her studies in visual arts. Her work has been in shows at the AGNS, Mary Black Gallery, and Mount Saint Vincent University Art Gallery. Stacey’s used her experience as a jewellery designer and maker to help other artists build their own professional creative practices. 

She currently works at the Talent Trust as Communications Coordinator, Scholarship Program Coordinator, and Events Coordinator for our 75th anniversary celebrations in 2019. To learn more about Stacey, visit agencyofwords.com.

Websites, Social Media & Technology: Creating your Brand
Saturday, October 20, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. 

Halifax: Visual Arts Nova Scotia
1113 Marginal Road

Registration Deadline: October 22



Saturday, November 3, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Parrsboro: Main & Station
168 Main Street

Registration Deadline: October 29

For a full workshop description and to register, visit the VANS website.

Becka Barker's Animated Short BOUY at the 2018 FIN Atlantic International Film Festival

Becka Barker is one of the filmmakers at the 2018 FIN Atlantic International Film Festival, which runs from September 13 - 20. 

Her “crowd-sourced” hand-drawn animated short Buoy is in the Atlantic Shorts Program 2 lineup that screens September 15 and 17. 

The Atlantic Filmmakers Cooperative commissioned Becka to make a short animated film about the Halifax explosion to mark the 100th anniversary in 2017. 

As she dug into her research, she found footage posted online by the Nova Scotia Archives that was shot just two days after the disaster. She was astounded to see so many ordinary Haligonians assisting in rescue efforts and helping where they could.

From Becka: “This is what hit me hardest. Not just because of their grit in the face of such devastation, but because this felt like the Halifax I know. We rely on each other so much to get things done around here. Often, it feels to me like that's the only way. After all, when you live in a depressed economy on the edge of a continent, you simply can't go it alone. This footage and this thought gave me a spark for my project.”

Becka Barker. Photo: CFAT

Becka is known for her use of hand-crafted processes in her film and video work, and Buoy is no exception. She invited members of the public to trace frames she printed from the film footage, and used those to illustrate the tactile way people interacted with the explosion and the century-old images of the aftermath. Buoy is the result of that exploration.

In addition to her Talent Trust scholarships for film studies, Becka's work has been supported by the National Film Board of Canada, Canada Council for the Arts, Arts Nova Scotia, and the Halifax Regional Municipality. 

She’s been regular part-time faculty at NSCAD University since 2005, and was visiting foreign faculty in the Film and Animation Department at SoonChunHyang University in South Korea from 2008-2012.

Buoy screening details 
Atlantic Shorts Program 2

September 15, 2018
Begins at 1:00 p.m.

September 17, 2018
Begins at 9:10 p.m.

To learn more about Becka and her work, visit beckabarker.info.

And When Alone Repeat - Short Film by Becka Barker Screens in Halifax

Becka Barker's local short film And When Alone Repeat screens at the Museum of Natural History Auditorium in Halifax on Friday, April 27, at 7:00 p.m. 

Becka’s work has been shown at the Ottawa International Animation Festival, Seoul’s EXiS (winner 2007, Best International Film), Images Festival (Toronto), Festival du Nouveau Cinéma (Montreal), KunstDoc Art Gallery (Seoul), Echo Park Film Centre (Los Angeles), Toronto Animated Images Society, WNDX (Winnipeg), and Struts Gallery (Sackville, NB). She's been on the faculty at NSCAD University since 2005 and was visiting foreign faculty in the Film and Animation Department at SoonChunHyang University in South Korea from 2008-2012.

And When Alone Repeat precedes the feature The Last Family, which documents 28 years of the life of Polish painter Zdzislaw Beksinski and his family, as seen through the eye of his camcorder. 

The screening of these two films is presented by Carbon Arc Cinema. Tickets can be purchased through their website.