LOH x BAM / 7th Gen Character Design

In this iteration of the SKINS 7th Gen Character Design workshop, the team worked with Landscapes of Hope x Bennett Centre – Argylll Centre – Metro Continuing Education, Edmonton Public Schools (LoHxBAM). Eleven Black and Indigenous high school students from Edmonton visited Concordia University to work collaboratively throughout the week via immersive workshops to build a multi-media installation in response to key question and themes raised by the group in relation to the theme of The Unseen and The Unheard, such as:

How might we learn to pay attention to that which is difficult to see, difficult to hear? How might we listen and see differently?
What is research-creation? How might research-creation methods shift the questions we are able to ask? How might research-creation methods allow us to attune differently to the world?
How do we make decisions (and what does it feel like) when we think about representing our own experiences and the experiences of others?
After introductions and the Ohén:ton Karihwatéhkwen, participants were taught the concepts of Seven Generations and the Future Imaginary, then guided through the basics of character design. By answering a list of questions we provided, the participants used their imaginations to dream up fun characters ranging from futuristic space navigators to gentle gardeners on earth.