Photography by: Nasuna Stuart-Ulin

We asked Emily Enhorning, Isabelle Shi, Jennifer Broydell, and Krista Muir seven questions…
(Shortcut tip: click on the names!)

Emily Enhorning – Membership Services Coordinator

1. What attracted you to work for an organization like ELAN?
   I wanted to do work that valued and prioritized the arts, and I wanted to do work in community building and organizing. I’d done both separately but never at once, so ELAN presented an exciting opportunity.

2. What was your background before coming to ELAN?
   I’m originally from Toronto, but moved to Montreal to study at McGill.

3. Do you practice any art forms on a professional or amateur level — if so, what are they?
   I do photography and printmaking. I would like to write professionally one day, and maybe combine the three.

4. What inspires you?
   The people I love! Also views, smells, colours, flowers, windows, food…

5. If you could suggest a local cultural activity (series, festival, theatre, venue, etc) to someone, what would it be — and why?
   Ooh, it’s hard to say! There’s so much that goes on here, and there is a lot of movement towards safer, more inclusive festivals and venues. Lux Magna is a new one that I enjoyed. The first show that I went to after moving to Montreal was in the Red Roof Church, which was weird and funny and memorable.

6. What’s your favourite word, and why?
   Cozy! It’s how I want to be.

7. What’s your least favourite word, and why?
   Precisely. Too definitive, and I don’t like the sound.

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Isabelle Shi – Membership Services Assistant

1. What attracted you to work for an organization like ELAN?
   Working in the arts and culture sector is something I’ve always been interested in, but didn’t think would actually be possible. So I was quite excited when the opportunity arose. Also, I thought it would be a great way of becoming more involved with the artistic communities of Montreal.
   
2. What was your background before coming to ELAN?
   I’m a Political Science student at McGill University. Still am, actually. I’ve done some editing and translating work.
   
3. Do you practice any art forms on a professional or amateur level — if so, what are they?
   Nothing on a professional level, but I write and draw. Writing is probably my biggest artistic passion. Writing a novel has been one of my life goals for as long as I can remember. I used to play the piano competitively, too—but not non-competitively, somehow—but that was several years ago.
   
4. What inspires you?
   All sorts of things, often at unpredictable times. Association of ideas can get really weird. I think it’s more fun to just let it happen and not question it too much.
   
5. If you could suggest a local cultural activity (series, festival, theatre, venue, etc) to someone, what would it be — and why?
   This is a difficult question! Montreal has so many great cultural events and activities going on. There’s definitely something for everyone. That said, if you’re interested in comic books, graphic novels, movies, video games, and other kinds of popular media, I would definitely recommend checking out the Montreal Comiccon. These types of conventions are always a great blend of popular entertainment and both professional and fan creativity.
   
6. What’s your favourite word, and why?
   I think instead of one favourite word, I’d say that there are tiers of words. Three tiers. Maybe even four. That said, I think “serenely” is one of the funniest possible adverbs to tack onto a verb depending on context.
   
7.  What’s your least favourite word, and why?
   I don’t hate it, but “harbinger” let me down pretty personally when I realized that it wasn’t spelled “harbringer.” Now reading it the right way makes me think of Bing, the search engine.

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Jennifer Broydell – Special Projects Assistant

1. What attracted you to work for an organization like ELAN?
   As a student of Art History imagining professional life after graduation, I’ve been trying to find my place in the arts community. A not-for-profit arts organization like ELAN seemed to be a good fit for my skills, interests and values.

2. What was your background before coming to ELAN?
   My background is in research, education and communications. I’ve worked in a variety of professional environments, from tech start-ups to contemporary art galleries to academia, Ottawa to Seoul to Montreal (I moved here on a whim in 2014 and haven’t looked back).

3. Do you practice any art forms on a professional or amateur level – if so, what are they?
   I like to experiment with film photography and collage, but I am by no means a professional.

4. What inspires you?
   When people I admire are open about their own flaws, insecurities and failures, breaking the illusion that they are some kind of superhuman.

5. If you could suggest a local cultural activity (series, festival, theatre, venue, etc) to someone, what would it be – and why?
   I appreciate the work that Slut Island Festival does to showcase marginalized artists, like those who identify as queer, trans/non-binary/gender-nonconforming, POC and/or people with disabilities. The organizers do their best to ensure that event venues are safe(er) and accessible (a huge issue in Montreal), prioritizing an anti-oppressive approach.

6. What’s your favourite word, and why?
   To be honest, I’m having a challenging time answering this question as there are so many words that I hold dear – some for the way my fingers feel when I handwrite their letters (especially letters with loops), others for the way my mouth feels when I speak their sounds (“phenomenological”), and many more for the meaning they evoke.

   I especially love words with silent letters or interesting phonetic features, like “knife” and “phlegm.” More often, I use the words “wonderful,” “lovely” and “super” a lot in casual text/in-person conversation.

7. What’s your least favourite word, and why?
   I know some exist, but I genuinely can’t think of any at this moment.

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Krista Muir – Communications Assistant for Arts Alive! Québec

1. What attracted you to work for an organization like ELAN?
   Ultimately the community. As an artist, arts advocate and long-time ELAN member, when the opportunity arose for me to work in-house on the regional project Arts Alive! Québec my curiosity was piqued.
   
2. What was your background before coming to ELAN?
   It’s a long, long story… After graduating from Mcgill I worked in film and television for several years in Toronto. Missing school (!) I completed a Grad Dip in Communications at Concordia that segued into life as a full time professional touring musician. After seeing my quirky electro pop alter ego Lederhosen Lucil at a great little dive bar, DJ Kid Koala (friend/creative co-conspirator) invited me to tour North America/Europe. After touring and recording albums for over a decade I dug my heels into arts education – studying with ukulele virtuoso James Hill and facilitating collaborative songwriting workshops. Composing for film/tv/interactive media and writing custom commissions are also still ongoing.
   
3. Do you practice any art forms on a professional or amateur level — if so, what are they?
   Yes! Many art forms at various levels. I’m primarily a professional composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer and performer and have engineered, produced and mixed several albums. I’ve also produced, hosted and performed at many multi-disciplinary shows where I enjoy conceptualizing and constructing costumes and working with designers to create sets in order to create an immersive experience. I’m also an embroiderer, culinary enthusiast, baladi dancer, digital storyteller…
   
4. What inspires you?
   Nature, people, food…the moon!
   
5. If you could suggest a local cultural activity (series, festival, theatre, venue, etc) to someone, what would it be — and why?I love organ music – the rich sound and beauty of being in a grandiose space – so I would suggest checking out one of the organ festivals Montreal has on offer. ELAN is located opposite the St. James United Church and they have a beautiful Casavant organ and have both PWYC concerts and ticketed events this summer.
   
6. What’s your favourite word, and why?
   Plethora. It’s just fun to say and randomly popped into my head!
   So favourite word of the moment…
   
7. What’s your least favourite word, and why?
   Moist. Just because.