Gaayathri Sukantha Murugan
Gaayathri Sukantha Murugan is a third year visual arts student from India, studying at Memorial University of Newfoundland, Grenfell Campus. Her art practice consists of painting, printmaking, and digital art. She also currently holds a MUCEP position at the Grenfell Art Gallery. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, swimming, and travelling.
Emily Finch
Emily Finch is a freelance musician and music educator based in St. John’s, NL. She holds a Bachelor of Music (Honours) in trumpet and Bachelor of Music Education both from Memorial University of Newfoundland. Emily is typically found working as a music educator throughout schools on the Avalon, in her home studio teaching trumpet, or playing music with a variety of ensembles and groups including the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra, Jazz East Big Band, and Nova Collective. Emily has a love for bringing musical experiences to unconventional spaces, collaborating with others, and musical improvisation.
Chrissy Dicks
Chrissy Dicks is the Executive Director at Lawnya Vawnya and has been instrumental in building the festival and organization since 2012. She currently sits on the Board of Directors for Riddle Fence Arts Magazine and is the Festival Coordinator for First Light’s Spirit Song Festival. Over the past decade she’s worked extensively within the arts & culture sector including roles at the NL Folk Festival, the Festival of New Dance and the Christina Parker Art Gallery. Chrissy has a B.A from Memorial University and completed post graduate studies at NSCAD University in 2012. She is from Corner Brook, Ktaqmkuk (NL) and currently lives in St. John’s with her golden Rosie.
Jenelle Duval
Jenelle Duval is a singer and song-writer from St. George’s, Ktaqmkuk (NL) and a founding member of Eastern Owl. Her work is centred in contemporary narratives pertaining to her relationship with the land, Mi’kmaq identity, language and reclamation of cultural practices. Jenelle is currently the arts and culture coordinator for First Light in St John’s, where she co-ordinates local arts programming. She has been instrumental in building the annual Spirit Song Festival into a central showcase for the Canadian indigenous arts scene.
Luke Quinton
Luke Quinton is a writer and audio producer in St. John’s. He has recently returned to Newfoundland after a decade in beautiful, hot, Austin, Texas. He’s made longform audio for podcasts “99 Percent Invisible,” “Snap Judgement,” and for the BBC, CBC, and NPR. His writing’s appeared in Dwell, Maclean’s, the Globe and Mail, Gramophone, Eater and elsewhere. He loves visual art, the sound of a foghorn, experimental music, balsam fir, and living a ten-minute walk from the Atlantic Ocean.
.
Rachel Webb
Rachel Webb Jekanowski is a community organizer, feminist, and postdoctoral fellow at Memorial University in the Department of English. Rachel draws on her professional training in film & media studies and the environmental humanities to advocate for climate justice, decolonization, and the arts. She’s also an active member of the Social Justice Co-operative of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Coalition for a Green New Deal NL. Outside of her day job as a researcher and educator, Rachel is also an amateur quilter and zine-maker. She’s excited to continue her advocacy and arts practice in St. John’s as a new board member at Eastern Edge.
Michelle LaCour
Michelle LaCour is a freelance audio engineer based in St. John’s. After completing a Bachelor of Music in piano and musicology at Memorial University, she went on to earn a Masters of Music in sound recording from McGill University in Montreal, where she worked extensively as a live sound engineer, recording engineer, director, and research assistant. Since returning home in 2017, she has found herself working in a variety of positions, including as a festival manager and administrator; as a location recordist and post-production mixer for film and television; as a live sound engineer at various venues in the province; as a recording, mixing, and mastering engineer for local bands; and as a sound designer for theatre.
Jonny Lush
Jonny Lush considers himself a product of the vibrant intersection between the local art and music scenes. In 2015 he completed his B.A in English and French between Carleton University and Memorial University and received his B.Ed from Memorial University in 2016. After graduating he spent 3 years living in Pangnirtung Nunavut working as a teacher and organizing art workshops and opportunities. Currently working in St. John’s as a high-school teacher during the day, Johnny is interested in analog photography and spending time in the darkroom.
Sarah O’Rourke-Whelan
Sarah O’Rourke-Whelan is a muralist and multidisciplinary artist based in Outer Cove. She enjoys mixing digital artwork with programming, to create interactive installations. Sarah received her BFA in Visual Arts at Memorial University, Grenfell Campus, in 2016.