The Sounds of Hands: a show

The Sounds of Hands video art show gives an exciting art evening to the ASL/Deaf community on April 24, 2004, showing a series of short video arts produced from the BFA years.

Media artist/presenter: Jolanta Lapiak.
Solo video art evening show.
Calgary, April 2004.

Video titles: Deaf or Dead (video story), Tsunami (video poem), Speak in ASL: Candid, We Help You..., Crack the Audism, More is not Enough, Sounds of Silence, Knowing Fish (Solipsistic Solitude), Life Seasons (video poem), Sweet Nightmare, The Art of Skeedskating, Death Around the Corner.

Attendees' Comments

"... so impressive and fascinating."

"... brilliant."
"... extremely intelligent."

"... unique eye/view... utterly one of a kind."
"...your style is a unique fingerprint that nobody has yours."

"Jolanta's elegant artistic work reflects her deeply provoking thoughts about language, culture and existentialism. Through her eye, she portrays an exceptionally poetic view of life. A true reflection of experience against the backdrop of life full of paradox." -- Linda Hatrak Cundy

"... humorous and effective."

"What an amazing eye-opening night! I wish more people from the hearing population could see it!"

"When I watch your works, I forgot about time, time, time. Very enjoyable."

"... it speaks to the elegance and eloquence of sign language that is different from any other form of communication."

"I think sources that come so deeply from personally held understandings and convictions make the end work resonate much more loudly and strongly. You live this way everyday of your life, you have understandings others can not ever fully share in terms of their own experience, but your work can make it real for them in new ways."

More is Not Enough video: "I liked the sense of motion a lot, it was more like a dance piece than any kind of acting or literal narration ... there is a real elegance and natural element of performance in your use of sign language as a very expressive form of communication and this piece portrays that very well." -- art instructor, 2003.

"They were very attentive; the whole place was completely silent."
"... the silence is very profound as well."
"It's kind of amazing to have silence once in awhile. I find it a nice contrast from the usual norm of sound. Plus it's effective in the context of your work."

"... you are a rose that bravely climbed through deep and thick cement for years and then one day you came out of the cement nicely. Just one soft yet strong rose standing up! That is you!"

"You showed us love last night that we do not give up our precious culture, language and especially history, and what is more you have already spoken out for two hundred years of our past deaf people."