Claudia Arana
Claudia Arana
Artistic and photographic documentation
Visual artist, curator and arts administrator.
As part of the Monarques Project, Claudia Arana was invited, visual artist and curator from Toronto, to join the artistic team to create a work that adds another perspective to this complex and delicate subject.
Monarques : a journey to the heart of the human experience is her answer.
Her concern for socially and politically engaged art, her artistic sensitivity, her intelligent view, her professionalism and her openness to others are at the heart of her creative process which explores documentation not as imprint of memory, but as an artistic work in itself.
About Claudia
Claudia Arana is a visual artist, curator and arts administrator, who has installed her practice at the intersection of artistic platforms which promote diversity and inclusion of varied cultural perspectives. Claudia’s curatorial work centers on socially and politically engaged art, providing meaningful representation to often overlooked and marginalized artists from diverse backgrounds. She studied Art Theory and Critical Thinking at the School of Visual Arts, and Advanced Critique at the International Centre of Photography, both in New York. Currently, she is the Operations Manager at Sur Gallery, Toronto’s first gallery space dedicated to promoting contemporary Latin American artistic practices.
Monarques Project : An Artistic Digital Exploration
I’ve been interested in the role of documentation as an art practice that explores different states of any creative process. What are those keen factors that allow projects to shape and adapt through different visions, ideas and circumstances? How artistic perspectives are constantly infused by our most profound and human feelings? These questions currently inform my practice and keep me looking and observing closely.
My role at the Monarques project has been not only to observe and document along the different stages of the project but to build a fascinating universe that is constantly evolving. This universe composed of experiences, conversations, ideas and moments is gravitating towards an online platform that is constantly growing and shaping as the project moves forward.
Throughout a series of video testimonies and conversations, this artistic documentation became a digital exploration in which the current members of the steering committee elaborate on their own thoughts and ideas about the project and the current worldwide situation. Each member locates its own worldviews while inviting others to examine their own perspectives about the world that we are living in and the virtual technological demands that are being presented on a daily basis its imminent correlation with the project and its development.
In the upcoming months, I’ll continue to develop and grow Monarque’s virtual universe and as the project expands its scope to larger audiences inside and outside Quebec, I’ll explore the relationship between words and emotions across the different creative writing workshops that will be held over the year.
Monarques : a journey to the heart of the human experience
How to Navigate
1. Allow a few seconds for the Universe to set in
2. Use the full screen mode for a best viewing
3. Using a mouse or trackpad, you can click and scroll around, exploring the Universe and its planets.
4. Click on any planet to dive into a new world.
5. Watch interviews and find out more about the Steering Committee members!
6. To go back “Home”, click on the Galaxy to return.
Monarques : a journey to the heart of a human experience is an artistic virtual platform and documentation that investigates the Monarques Steering Committee’s personal experiences and insights, their role within the project, and the impact of the current pandemic in their lives.
Virtuality has become a closer avenue for all of us to communicate amid COVID-19.
As the Monarques Project strives to connect veterans and military families with communities through artistic means, this artistic documentation is a living and fluid exploration of how virtuality and digital encounters are not only creating a precedent in this project, but in all of our lives.
Thank you and we hope you enjoy delving into this wonderful universe!
