Help Jori Create Art in Japan

Jori Phillips is organizing this fundraiser.

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ジョリ日本のおかえり！

(Jori, welcome back to Japan!)

For the first time since being an exchange student in high school, Jori is returning to Japan!!

WHATS GOING ON?

I've been selected as Artist in Residence at the Shiroishi-Zao Residency in Miyagi prefecture, Shiroishi, Japan for the entire month of November 2024.

My aim during the residency is to create a series of masks, using entirely second hand and found objects. My stay will culminate with a gallery showcase.

I will have many opportunities to engage with the local community through artistic and cultural exchange, and I will be aiming to immerse myself in the language as much as I can.

WHAT IS THIS MONEY FOR JORI?

The residency covers the cost of my stay (housing as well as studio space,) but I am left to pay for travel expenses (flights, trains, hotels to and from airport) as well as food.

I will purchase traveler's health insurance, and phone plan, (or portable wifi,) to be connected during my stay.

I will also be purchasing basic tools upon arrival in Japan, and some materials for my works. (Sewing equipment, scissors, hot glue etc.)

I have applied for a grant to cover travel, food and material cost, but will not know if the grant has been awarded until my residency is already underway. If it is awarded, I would not be paid out until after the residency has ended, and I am returned home.

I currently have the funds to get myself to the residency, but will be left with only a small budget to work with for the rest.

If anyone in my community enjoys my work, feels the call of the whimsy, and has the means and desire to support my artistic journey financially I would welcome any addition to my residency cost fund.

These funds will give me security during my stay, as well as giving me greater opportunities to learn, travel and immerse myself in the culture. Any additional funds will go directly to experiential costs; (attend workshops, take day trips, visit galleries and museums, visit craftspeople.)

Art is not created in a vacuum, and I am lucky enough to be blessed by incredible and supportive arts communities in my two home countries (Canada, and USA.)

Thank you for your continued and unwavering support, without you, the whimsy has no reason to abound.

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MORE BACKSTORY

ABOUT JORI

Born and raised on a small gulf island in British Columbia, Canada, and currently living in Nevada County California, Jori has worked and trained in the art of storytelling her entire life. Her twin artistic focuses, performance and mixed media soft sculpture both work as a medium in the pursuit of story.

PERFORMANCE

Starting at age 7, Jori was trained and performed in "speech arts" (storytelling, poem recitation and performance.) before moving on to Circus arts, (clown, mime, costumed character work, stilt walking, object manipulation and aerial arts,) at age 11.

Jori left the Circus after high school to study acting for film and television, and has been working in film (both in front, and behind the camera,) and live performance since 2011.

Jori produces and performs locally, (both in BC and California,) as an award winning stand up comic, and has travelled to all 50 states in 2019 on the U.S. THEY comedy tour.

SCULPTURAL ART

Jori was introduced to sculpture as a child, learning ceramics from her mother, (a professional potter.)

She learned to hand sew around the age of 7, and has been making dolls and playing in the textile medium ever since.

in 2012 Jori went viral, appearing in, (among others,) the Vancouver Sun, Huffington Post, Buzzfeed and Good Morning America Live, for the creation of her wearable art piece "Miss Spelled" made from the pages of an old thesaurus.

This piece was later sold to Ripley's Believe it or Not!, and now resides in their Niagara falls museum.

Since 2020 Jori has been focusing on the creation of her "dolls," large scale mixed media soft sculpture art pieces, as well as wearable art masks and costume pieces. Her work has won multiple awards and shown in juried shows and galleries both in Canada and the United states, as well as an upcoming show in Kobe Japan, in 2025.

JAPAN

In 2008 Jori attended Sendai Ikuei Gakuen Highschool, In Sendai Japan, for 11th Grade.

Enrolled in the school's JSL (Japanese Second Language) course, Jori was immersed in the language and culture, building lifelong friendships.

The exchange lasted 8 months, and Jori graduated with a diploma of Japanese as second language.

This period of my life deeply and profoundly influenced me, and allowed me to grow in the human being I am today.

This is the first opportunity I have had to return and I am beyond honoured and excited to return and create my art in Japan. Moreso to return to Miyagi Prefecture, only one hour from where I attended school.

This truly feels like a homecoming to a country that helped to create the person I am today.