Masi Medicine: Joyful Nourishment

Experience the fusion of dance, poetry, and music in this residency that brings together three South Asian artists from Enable: Art Society, a non-profit collective dedicated to uplifting art projects by emerging and marginalized voices, in partnership with 5X.

The word “masi” means aunt In Punjabi, Hindi, Gujarati, and other South Asian dialects. Masi Medicine honours the masis in the artists’ own lives. Regardless of blood ties, masis have been instrumental in cultivating communal wellbeing and providing sisterhood.

Poets Franz Seachel and Anjalica Solomon, along with dancer Alyssa Amarshi, delve into identity, nourishment through play, and centring joy during the course of their residency. Their sensory journey will feature digital projections of the artists’ work in development through poetry and movement, accompanied by soundscapes that invite audiences to slow down, breathe, and move with intention.

The artists will be leading an interactive workshop on May 13 and the residency culminates in the 5X Art Party with the Gallery on June 18. 

About the Artists

Alyssa Amarshi

Having parents from Tanzania, and of Indo-Ismaili heritage, Alyssa Amarshi has always been interested in diverse types of cultural expression, especially movement and intermodal art. Amarshi is grateful for the opportunity to share her expression in all ways and feels lucky to have graced the stage with local and international artists, to have choreographed music videos, and to be featured in commercial dance media. She has creative directed, choreographed, and performed in pieces for Vines Festival, Indian Summer Festival, and Vancouver International Children’s Festival. Having taken part in panels for the City of Vancouver, the Reach Gallery, and in her work with Dance West Network, Amarshi strives to bring voice to equity in the arts. Her vision, through her collective Her Tribal Roots, is to create more opportunities for artistic expression, rooted in symbiotic collaboration, compassion, and play.

Franz Seachel

Franz Seachel is a South Asian settler residing on unceded lands of the Coast Salish, Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, and Musqueam Nations. She is a multidisciplinary artist, organizer, and workshop facilitator. Seachel has a BA in Creative Writing from Kwantlen Polytechnic University and is the Founder/ Executive Director of Enable: Arts Society. Seachel is doing her best to put more colour into the world. She means this both in the sense of brightening up the mundane with creation, as well as in her mission to uplift the truths of marginalized bodies.

Anjalica Solomon

Anjalica Solomon is a genderfluid Desi artist based in Vancouver, BC, on the territories of the Coast Salish, Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, and Musqueam Nations. They are a singer, songwriter, poet, spoken word artist, and organizer. Solomon’s work focuses on the possibilities of love and resilience, with a deep faith in beauty and the human capacity to find joy in moments of struggle. Their performances offer visions of hope and tenacity.

Curator: Suvi Bains and Guest Curator Sahil Mroke
Origin of Exhibition: Surrey Art Gallery and 5X