Plank Profile: Who is Peter Chin?

Peter Chin’s reputation as a heavy weight in the contemporary dance world precedes him. Reading his bio made my eyes pop with admiration. Being a choreographer myself, I was a little nervous, perhaps a bit intimidated by the assignment to write about him for Plank, but I bit the bullet and took it on, suspecting it might be an inspiring task for me to pursue. And it was.

I first spoke to him on the phone, just as he was preparing to take his dance piece, *Transmission of the Invisible*, on tour from Toronto to Regina and Vancouver. His soft voice responded openly to my initial questions which touched on subjects such as his cultural lineage, his artistic background, his impressions travelling to places far from Canada. After that, I knew it would be a treat to meet him in person to chat further about a variety of topics that would reveal the man behind the art.

We met for coffee after he arrived in Vancouver to present his dance as part of the "PuSh Festival":http://pushfestival.ca/index.php. A petite man with warm soulful eyes, he is articulate, forthcoming, refined and utterly charming: a Renaissance Man for the 21st century.

Born in Jamaica with Chinese, black and Irish in his background, the racial diversity in Chin’s own family is further demonstrated by his Jewish and Portuguese in-laws. According to Chin, this diversity – and relative harmony – is typical of Jamaica more generally. With his parents, he immigrated to Canada in 1966 at the age of 4. Until the age of 12 he travelled back and forth between Toronto and Jamaica returning to his country of origin for schooling as well as summer time visits. Even as a child he was always looking at maps, curious about the geography, the costumes and artistic customs of other countries.

He studied music from a young age, attending St. Michael’s Choir School in Toronto, where he sang in the choir and studied piano. He eventually became a professional organist, teaching piano, music theory and technique steeped in the traditions of Bach, Handel and Beethoven. (These great European traditions influenced his own future music compositions for gamelan and other Asian instruments from Indonesia and Tibet.) After graduating from York University, he became a performance artist incorporating movement and visual arts into his shows. In 1990, propelled by his insatiable desire to see the rest of the world, adult Peter became a traveler, researcher and observer, a modern day scribe as he embarked on a journey of artistic exploration throughout South East Asia, a journey he continues to follow to this day.

He did not take formal dance classes, something that has now stood the originality of his movement impulses in good stead. His sophisticated movement vocabulary came about because his “blood remembers” rather than the codified dance patterning that infuses the bodies of most dancers. When asked to describe his style, like most choreographers he hesitates, in order to find clarity, and then responds with “It has a marital arts quality, requires a low centre of gravity, is full of flow and lyricism. The facial movement is choreographed and there is an emphasis on hand and wrist and finger movements.” The Asian influence is ever present.

[img_assist|nid=708|title=Transmission of the Invisible, photo by Cylla von Tiedemann|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=384|height=251]Okay, enough background information. If you crave more, check out his company’s web "site":www.tribalcracklingwind.ca. It is very beautiful. And continue to read below if you want to discover more about the man, his philosophies, passions, beliefs.

At our meeting we enjoyed a wide ranging discussion, and he responded to every question with honesty and simplicity. I took copious notes for reference but for this profile, I would prefer to mix my own personal impressions with his thoughtful comments.

Peter possesses the spirit of an _artist_, there is no doubt about it. I am not one to overuse the word _artist_ when talking about the person beyond the work they create, but I believe it is exactly the right word when referring to Peter. One gets the feeling that all his pursuits are grounded in an intuitive connection to emotional intelligence, which is then filtered through a powerful visual, aural and kinesthetic sensibility; whether he is making a dance or engaged in more prosaic activities. To quote him “With hindsight, I realize I was always an artist from a very young age.”

He believes that artists must possess both “a responsibility and a desire” (one and the same thing, in his world) to connect, share, be generous and inclusive. He feels compelled to create work with themes that explore how we are all part of something larger than ourselves, which makes me believe that his creative impulses come from and speak to the spiritual and ephemeral world. He states “that dance can act as a bridge into a more ineffable, less tangible place and for everything to work well it requires generosity on the part of the creator, performer and audience member.”

I really connect to this philosophy. I believe that it is one we all need to apply diligently from beginning to end of each creative project as well as to the everydayness of our lives in general.

Although he declares that he is not an academic, it is clear to me that his brain is of a scholarly bent. For example he no longer reads fiction, partly due to time constraints. So he indulges in books on architecture, design, anthropology, history, spirituality. I don’t know about you, but that sounds pretty scholarly to me.

When asked for a favourite film he responds with _Apocalypse Now_, directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Why? Because of its theme of balancing the dark and the light, and of course its South East Asian connection. He is also a fan of the novel _Heart of Darkness_ by Joseph Conrad, the inspiration for the film.

Much to my surprise, he is also a fan of _Battlestar Galactica_ and _Star Trek Voyager_. Why? “They deal with issues of going home”. And maybe because they are about the other and our acceptance or rejection of what we don’t know or comprehend (to give you my interpretation of these choices). “I also like _Ugly Betty._” Ah ha, I mean, who doesn’t!

He listens to all kinds of music, from Baroque and Classical, to Country/Western, Reggae, World music. Eclectic tastes for sure.

I could tell he likes food. He had just come from a Dim Sum lunch with his cast members. We met at Choices and he was eager to buy some goodies for dinner. Always a good sign when someone appreciates the sensual joys of a great eating experience.

Towards the end of our meeting, I couldn’t resist. I wanted to hear him talk about two much discussed issues: the politics of arts funding in Canada; and one of my personal bugaboos, the relevance of craft building in today’s dance making.

He is careful in choosing his words but doesn’t skirt the issue of government money and programs. “It isn’t a perfect system, but strategic targeting can give a leg up, especially to dance companies that are ethnically diverse.” He continues to explain that in Toronto there is quite a breadth of companies who nurture dance steeped in classically trained forms from other cultures as well as support those who mix it up a bit with other kinds of influences. He feels that his company, Tribal Crackling Wind, is growing, that the funding has been commensurate with its success. After having seen *Transmission of the Invisible* and his untitled solo, it is clear to me that Peter’s aesthetic, although influenced by South East Asian rituals, rules and ceremonies, is also strongly influenced by contemporary dance, both in the movement style and the structure of the work.

As for the role of craft in the artist’s development, he says with complete assurance “If you want to break the rules, you need to know what they are.” Because of his own background, he is naturally predisposed to the discipline of crafted technique. “If you pay attention to what the work asks of you, then it can be both iconoclastic and well crafted, as long as it conveys your ideas clearly and truthfully.” He believes that anything is relevant, as long as the work is done “with discernment and understanding.” He adds that “craft supplies tools that assist the artist to speak universally and truthfully.”

Well, there it is folks, from the mouth of a Canadian artist who has spent a lifetime travelling to other parts of the world in order to study, build, rearrange and refine his art-making. From my point of view, the greatness of Peter Chin is that he is an artist that all Canadians can take pride in: a man sensitive to the reality of ”the other”, a modern day explorer, with grave interest in ancient rites and rituals and, most significantly, a human being with a modern mind and compassionate heart.

Remember the young boy who loved to read maps? My take is that the present day Peter roams the earth, observing and absorbing it into his bones, fluid and flesh. Then Peter, the Artist, transforms his moving body into a map of the world, taking everyone who cares to watch on a journey to places some might know, to places others can’t go and to places that only the human spirit can comprehend.

Chick’s impressions of an evening of dance with Tribal Crackling Wind which took place on January 29th, 2009 at the Scotiabank Dance Centre:

_Transmission of the Invisible_: a tapestry of interwoven sounds, video images and dancing full of gesture, flow and powerful legs, consumed by sorrow, loss, pride, human connection, within a lyrical aesthetic that intermingles ancient ritual with contemporary influences

_Peter’s unnamed solo_: the trickster, an imp, weight and softness, oddly satisfying, a global Everyman

_Peter Chin was in Vancouver as part of the PuSh Festival. Find out more_ "here":http://pushfestival.ca/index.php?mpage=shows&spage=main&id=76#show