There was a time when I thought I was good at spreadsheets… and then I met Erin Mulcahy. Erin was the Arts Learning Programs Manager at The ACT for my first 6 months as Artistic Administrator and it was an invaluable time of learning for me. She has a way of holding space for others that I wish was a more normalized thing in upper-management for everyone on all teams everywhere. At some point in their career, I’m sure most folks have navigated reporting to a difficult, negative personality or challenging authority. Erin is quite the opposite of that. In fact, I always left our mindful weekly one-on-one check-ins feeling more empowered and capable than I did entering the room.
I took away three important learnings from my time under Erin’s leadership which I feel compelled to share. Firstly, she offers generous trust to those who report to her. There were many opportunities she identified for me to fully utilize my skillset at The ACT in ways that I craved. By getting to know me, what I do, and how I show up, she determined it would be a wise to put me in charge of a brand-new project now very near and dear to my heart: Community Stage Night. Coordinating this event series throughout the 2024/2025 season brought forth the knowledge and experience I developed during my time event organizing with CreativeMornings/Vancouver, Save On Meats, Kafka’s Coffee, and Locals Lounge. Like those previous roles and projects, Community Stage Night put me in a position to nurture creative community and help foster strong local relationships. Erin knew that this project, like other live events I’ve gotten involved with, would fill my cup and nurture my heart in an impactful way. She had faith that she could trust me with a project that mattered so much to me.
Big picture thinking is important, but the little details matter. Erin reminded the Arts Learning Program team of this lesson countless times in countless ways. Whether it was getting the team in the mindset to support our tireless instructors thoughtfully, asking about what interests and excites us regarding a project and granting us more exposure to that element, or even just taking the time to remember everyone’s birthdays and celebrate them in a special way—There was never a small detail that went missed by Erin in our time together.
We have the opportunity, capability, and responsibility to bring heart, compassion, and humanity to institutional spaces. That is an important truth I carry with me every day because of Erin. In non-profit organizations, resources and finances are finite and managing those elements can overshadow other important aspects of a bigger picture if you aren’t careful. At the end of the day, people are the greatest asset to any institution or organization. It is important to celebrate those people, hear those people, respond to their needs and feedback, and work towards a stronger work ecosystem that can bring out the best in everyone. Structure and organization are important, but it is for nothing if not built on the foundation of human-centred intentionality.
I am so thankful for the time I got to spend working with Erin. She coached me to a new level of confidence and capability while nurturing the empathy I value in my own leadership journey. If I could make the impact on one human through my own leadership in the way that Erin has impacted me, I would feel absolutely fulfilled and elated. Growing into my art practice over the years, I never considered arts programming being part of that story. What a joy it has been to discover this adjacent arts role in which I can support other artists, emerging and established, as well as curious community members. I will always be grateful to Erin for showing me what my creativity, organization, and empathy can accomplish side-by-side.
This portrait and accompanying blog post were created with love and gratitude on the unceded territories of the Katzie First Nation and Kwantlen First Nation. Why do I share a land acknowledgement? I am actively working to decolonize my art practice. Some of the ways I am doing so are by centring portraiture and writing sharing in opportune timing rather than scheduled productivity, I also choose to engage in sharing, and gifting rather than creating a financially profitable business of my art practice. Drawing Thanks will always centre relations above all else. My community is there for me when I need it in return. I stumble and mess up on my journey to be a more conscious settler, but I am striving to be better and share this land acknowledgement from a place of humility and gratitude—I would not be celebrating the folks around me today if it wasn’t for the land stewarding of Indigenous peoples from the Katzie and Kwantlen Nations to the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations from time immemorial to this day. Colonization has destroyed and endangered so many languages, cultures, and relational networks. Although an individual cannot stop forces like colonization and capitalism, we sure can take the time to identify how they show up in our lives and how we can rectify that. If you want to join me on my journey of decolonizing the systems I operate in, check out these local creative minds who have made their resources, lived-experiences, and creativity available to us all through workshops, publications, and artwork. They have taught me so much.
Len Pierre, Katzie Consultant — Website — @lenjpierre — so many free resources for cultural safety and reconciliation! I recommend starting with “Transformative Territory Acknowledgment Guide” and maybe following up with “Indigenous Cultural Safety 2025. I think the best experiences are when Len brings presentations and workshops to the workplace. Thanks, Len!
JB The First Lady, Nuxalk & Onondaga Rapper — Website — @jbthefirstlady — Her album “Righteous Empowered Daughter” from 2018 is one I often return to. It is a powerful call to action for the missing and murdered Indigenous women lost on the Highway of Tears and beyond. We need to protect, honour, and respect Indigenous femininity. For too long, colonization has encouraged people to look at Indigenous women as sex symbols or inferior to others. That needs to radically change. Doing better starts with understanding better. Thanks, JB!
Cole Pauls, Tahltan Comic Artist — Website — @tundrawizard — I highly recommend reading Kwändǖr. The way the stories are all shared in different styles, methods and colour palettes has greatly influenced my own visual-presentation thinking. I often think about his comic focussed on his first critique experience at Emily Carr University. Thanks, Cole!