Biography
Jullianna (she/they) is an interdisciplinary emerging artist of Japanese-Canadian descent, working and playing in Vancouver as a settler on the unceded, ancestral, and unsurrendered lands of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
Having finished their Bachelor of Fine Arts, Honors in Dance from Simon Fraser University, Jullianna’s interests lie in perception of identity, and the passage of information and non-verbal communication expressed from one body to another. She was a Commissioned Artist for the Festival of Recorded Movement (2022), and was in residency with Evergreen Cultural Center as part of their Emerging Creators Incubator (2023).
Photo Credit: Mikela Vuorensivu
Artist Statement
With movement, dance, and choreography serving as a home base for me, I situate my work in relation to embodied listening - to others, to the offerings of new technology and media, and to my own lineage and ethnicity. I welcome creation and practice from a place of slow processing, where I can let things evolve as they naturally do, through marinating, ruminating, and melting.
Listening to what my own subconscious body holds has also brought me to reflect on my experience being a mixed-race Japanese-Canadian. Absorbing what others have to say about the ethnic guessing-game I provoke while also spending time processing the history of Japanese-Canadians in Canada informs a portion of the
movement-based personal projects I undertake.
Wanting to find the medium of art that fits each project most has urged me to explore other modes for conversing and conveying the information I’ve absorbed beyond the modes of dance and movement. Thus, some of my recent works largely exist in the realms of sound, projection, and film. Through whichever medium of art I may navigate, I am eager to share tidbits of experiences and encounters I have gotten to listen and bear witness to over time. I use this embodied listening process to urge my audience to deep dive into small nuances they may not have noticed before, whether this be in themselves or in others,
positioning the viewer as a fly on my own wall.
Photo Credit: Tiffany Au