Sharing diverse stories of creativity in our city, The Storytelling Podcast shines a spotlight on artists and projects that connect Calgarians to the arts.

Part of The Storytelling Project, this series raises awareness about Calgarians who, by living creative lives, are making Calgary a better city, effecting positive change and enriching others’ lives.

Have a story to share? Email us at news@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.

The Storytelling Podcast

The Vice President, Government Relations for Shaw Communications, Chima Nkemdirim is a born and raised Calgarian with a background in law, politics, and civic administration who just happens to be passionate about building Calgary’s arts community.

A prolific board member actively working to make Calgary a better place, he currently serves with the Calgary Foundation, Arts Commons, The Walrus, and Calgary Arts Development.

Listen to this week’s podcast to hear more about his community work, the role of boards, and why he is a passionate local arts champion.

Chima Nkemdirim | The Storytelling Podcast

Community builder, administrator, facilitator, writer, spoken word artist, and Program Lead for Trico Changemakers Studio at MRU, Sally Njoroge is heavily involved in Calgary’s arts community and looking at promoting artists as change makers.

Working with artists and organizations throughout Calgary, she seeks to bring people together in a shared space to address some of the more complex challenges in our society today.

Listen to this week’s podcast to hear more about her further efforts building community through the upcoming virtual workshop and gathering, Why Art for Social Change?

Sally Njoroge | The Storytelling Podcast

Founder and director of Woezo Africa Music & Dance Theatre, choreographer, dancer, filmmaker, producer, and member of the Cultural Instigators Program in the Black Led Spiral, Wunmi Idowu is working towards equipping Black artists with the tools needed in order to succeed in Calgary’s arts sector. 

The Black Arts Development Program was created to offer opportunities for Black artists to learn from Black instructors, to train and hone their skills in order to thrive in their craft.

Listen to this week’s podcast to hear more about the Cultural Instigators Black Led Spiral and the Black Arts Development Program, as well as upcoming workshops and events arising out of this initiative.

Wunmi Idowu | The Storytelling Podcast

Paula Timm is a visual artist, writer, mixed media arts instructor, and a community collaborator. A life changing decision to live her life as a creative person while coping daily with illness led to her co-creating and co-facilitating an arts-based workshop series with creative partner, Michelle Dyer. 

The Creative Wellness Program combines art therapy with the physical practice of art, allowing people to connect to the material and to express themselves fully in the moment.

Paula Timm | The Storytelling Podcast

Cowboy Smithx is a filmmaker, a theatre artist, a community organizer, and curator, and Jennifer Armand brings her background as a photographer and graphic artist to their collaboration—showcasing local artists with #T7NFT, a project that explores the new art space of crypto art and NFTs. 

Smithx and Armand see this new space as an opportunity to demystify crypto art for Calgary artists. By offering a new way to monetize their work and to share their work wider, they hope to expose as many artists as they can to a new realm and new possibilities.

Cowboy Smithx & Jennifer Armand | The Storytelling Podcast

She's an award-winning filmmaker and director, a theatre maker, a mentor, the creator of a re-imagined Herland, as well, Sandi Somers is a past recipient of the Doug and Lois Mitchell Outstanding Calgary Artist Award, part of the Cultural Leaders Legacy Arts Awards at Calgary Arts Development. Having started her career in visual arts and theatre, then moving into film, Somers saw how film could incorporate different aspects of the arts.

Somers feels that a lot of her stories deal with connection and how we connect, a theme that runs throughout her work and continues to inspire her.

Sandi Somers | The Storytelling Podcast

Leader at Stand and Command, Dad, Husband, good Calgarian.

Avnish Mehta

Musician, producer, songwriter, composer. good guy.

Russell Broom

Alberta Small Brewers Association event and marketing manager. Beer and Agriculture champion.

Lauren Reid

Brooke Apshkrum

Bill Ptacek

Adam Kamis

Jeremy Klaszus

As the city’s designated arts development authority, Calgary Arts Development supports and strengthens the arts to benefit all Calgarians. 

These podcasts are part of our Storytelling Project, a series to raise awareness about Calgarians who, by living creative lives, are making Calgary a better city, effecting positive change and enriching others’ lives through arts and creativity.

Chima Nkemdirim | The Storytelling Podcast

Calgary Arts Development

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