Meet Spillways Resident Chanel Thervil

Antenna is proud to host Haitian American,  Boston based artist and educator Chanel Thervil (she/her)  

Chanel’s process as an artist mirrors that of an educator, researcher, community organizer and attentive listener. Interviews, photography, and primary resources about history that Chanel gathers for research are aligned with the creation of art that activates internal and external reflection which catalyzes new actions and outcomes of greater good. 

While art is for everyone, the road to empathy isn’t linear. Chanels practice offers many entry points for engagement by creating work that can be experienced by viewing, activating via participation, making, and sharing. Chanel training as an educator is a rich subtext of her practice, most visible in the facilitation of interactive and placemaking components that encourage viewers to inquire and reflect upon their own experiences to find personal meaning within the artwork. As a result of the pandemic Chanel has begun leaning on social media as a way to give people a glimpse of her research, reflection, and experimentation that fuels her practice in the studio. During Chanel’s Spillways Residency she will connect with local community organizations to consider ways of engaging with an ongoing exploration around creating affirmations.