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Aisha Sasha John

@aishasashajohn

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My ministry is Being seen feeling. 🌕
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my astonishing wealth August 9, 2026 Part of POOLBODY A multi-site performance series curated by Sharon T. Webber-Hefferman @shalontwh (Thank you, Shalon!) with support from @dancemakersto @artsintheparksto @fadoperformanceartcentre Photos by the incredible @henry.chan.photo — Here I am showing you something I felt blessed to be able to make for my mother, Catherine Iris (John) Callender. She was born in La Plaine Dominica on March 22, 1942. She died on June 11, 2026 in New Westminster, BC. I was there when she stopped breathing—10 minutes or so after I arrived to her hospital room from the airport with the idea from the doctor that I would have about 3 days with her (she’d had a stroke the night before). Her heart continued to beat for 2/2.5 hours after her breath stopped so we got to hang out and commune, to say goodbye. My favourite lady. My astonishing wealth. I was 22 weeks pregnant at the time. She had a dementia diagnosis and starting in summer 2024 she would call (from Vancouver) and ask about where I was (she was pretty sure she had just seen me) and inquire about “the boy.” This was before I started trying to conceive but motherhood was definitely on my mind/in my heart. So she has met the baby inside me and that gives me great comfort. My astonishing wealth. Thank you God for the love of this beautiful woman. “THE GREAT LUCK OF LOVING/ THE GOOD LUCK OF BEING LOVED” by @aishasashajohn
68
24 days ago
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We Need It morning practices are back!!!! 🌀 In the new studios of Collective Space at 103 Florence St. (next door) Thank you to @anandamdance 🪩 Mondays & Wednesdays (with a few Thursdays) 10 am soft start - noon $10 or pwyc Follow here for weekly schedule posts or join the telegram channel, link in bio ^ Upcoming: Mon Sept 21 / Wed Sept 23 with @katherosdancer She will share her practice for Ooooopening 🧩 Vivid joyful dancing bear poster by the incredddible @suzycreemcheese 🔮 More info soon Can’t wait to dance together 🩵 by @aishasashajohn
3
a month ago
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LATE SUMMER SOURCE: reading and writing with Aisha Sasha John We love to gather. LATE SUMMER SOURCE is for the joy of feeling and thinking together and writing alongside one another. We’ll read together and then write in response— I’ll offer prompts. Each session will begin with a check-in and close with an (optional) share. If I’m inspired in a particular direction, we might do something funky. Topics may include: Aug 21: Duras/Jabès: Writing, The Book Aug 28: Amie Barrodale / Chronicles I: Dying, Speculative genealogies Sept 11: Hannah Weiner/Alfred Starr Hamilton: Insideland, Weird Report — COURSE DETAILS online when: Fridays Aug 21, 28 & Sept 11 time: 1pm - 3pm ish EST fee: $111 for all 3 sessions or $40 drop-in ($37 for previous SOURCE participants) See link in bio to register 🍑💅🏾🫂📖📝 by @aishasashajohn
2
2 months ago
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Three photos. My mom and I near or in water, with chosen and blood family, plus a recent selfie featuring my own occupied waters. Tomorrow I’ll be doing a site-specific performance called my astonishing wealth Sunday August 9th, 6pm Free to attend Location: backyard pool of a private residence on Baby Point Road *Please email Shalonwh@gmail.com to register/get address* This performance is part of the POOLBODY Series curated by Shalon T. Webber-Heffernan with support from FADO, Dancemakers and Toronto Arts Council | Toronto Arts Foundation @shalontwh @fadoperformanceartcentre @dancemakersto @torontoartscouncil @torontoartsfoundation by @aishasashajohn
32
2 months ago
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I recently heard a definition of flow that was clear and unforgettable: no holding back, no forcing.  Who is the author of your thinking? Writing is listening.  Source is a 5-week writing workshop in which participants practice being faithful to their own listening: no reaching, no denying.  We’ll compose by listening and sometimes that will mean talking. We’ll gather inspiration and instruction from the seriousness and beauty of other artists’ listening as well as from the quiet itself. Each class will feature lots of receiving/reading/listening and even more writing (/practicing/ recording/ documenting/ translating). This course draws from my own decades-long writing practice but is equally informed by the listening practice in which I make and perform movement scores as a choreographer and dancer. Artists whose work we’ll be looking at include David Antin, Jeanine Durning, Aisha Sasha John, Hannah Weiner, Mohamed Mrabet, Mabel Dodge Luhan, Laura Riding Jackson, Simone White, Ariana Reines, bill bissett, Alfred Starr Hamilton, and others.  More course details and registration at the link in the bio. *No drop-ins, as the course builds on itself. But I’ll be offering a reading-focused summer school version of Source this July and August that’s drop-in friendly, so stay tuned. by @aishasashajohn
0
5 months ago
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Hi. My tarot books are open. Link in the bio. 10 years of tarot + 20 years of poetry = It’s magic! I don’t understand it! It works! 🔮 Some recent testimonials: “Aisha worked from a wealth of knowledge and well-honed intuition to meet me where I was at and let the cards speak to me. She/they/we conjured a powerful feeling that helped me feel oriented and grounded me in a time of upset and transition. Highly recommend!” “That was soooo good - articulate - informed - poetic - grouunded... it is clear how much knowledge and care and connection Aisha has with tarot and how it speaks in ways that can really help - guide - inform the questions - the unknowns. A real lighthouse this practice is. Get it.” by @aishasashajohn
5
6 months ago
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WE NEED IT - community class and practice share Mondays and Wednesdays at Collective Space - 101 Florence Street 10 am - 12 pm (starting by 10:15) **Continuing into May** schedule below ⬇️ $10 or PWYC Drop-in Gathering and building dancing community aka **WHOEVER NEEDS TO MOVE *** and wants to practice BEING through moving 📣📣📣 Guided experimental practice, improvising, dancing together, chit-chat hang, perceptions, attuning, creative sustenance and more Come as you are and please reach out if you have questions Join the telegram channel and follow stories to stay tuned, see schedule and updates —-> link in bio —————————————————————— January 21/26: Nyda Kwasowsky @de_adyn January 28: Val Calam @val_3000 February 2/4: Aisha Sasha John @aishasashajohn 16/18: Erin Poole @ernie_rin 23/25: Kate Nankervis @katherosdancer March 2/4: Angela Vitovec 9/11: Eshan Rafi @eshanraf 16/18: lo bil @lobil.art 23/25: Andy Spaziani @amspaziani March 30/April 1: Robert Kingsbury @robertkdancer April 6/8: Roberto Soria @robertoooo0oo 13/15: Angela Vitovec 20: lo bil @lobil.art 22: Allie Blumas @doula_alma 27: Erin Poole @ernie_rin 29: Robert Kingsbury @robertkdancer May 4/6: Bee Pallomina 11: Nyda Kwasowsky @de_adyn 13: sarah koekkoek @trickyruth 18/20: Ty Temple-Smith @aryt.alts 25/27: Aisha Sasha John @aishasashajohn ** taking a summer break for June & July 💛 Thank you to @anandamdance and Collective Space and all the dancing people who make these morning practices deep and joyful ⛲️ by @aishasashajohn
13
9 months ago
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Aisha Sasha John is all kinds of wonderful, and I’m excited to share the interview I did with her on The New Books Network about her intuitively gorgeous collection of poetry, total (McClelland and Stewart, 2025). We talk about Aisha’s artistic practice, language’s adequacy, spiritual life writing, organic thought, and oodles more. ✨ To listen, click my bio link and go to my NBN host page. About Aisha Sasha John: AISHA SASHA JOHN is the author of i have to live (2017), a finalist for the Griffin Poetry Prize; THOU (2014), a finalist for the Trillium Book Award for Poetry and the ReLit Poetry Award; and The Shining Material (2011). She choreographs and performs in the feminist collective WIVES as well as solo performances (The Aisha of Oz, VOLUNTEER). Aisha’s video work and text art have been exhibited in galleries (Doris McCarthy, Oakville Galleries) and installed at Union Station in Toronto (Art Metropole). She was born in Montreal. w/ @aishasashajohn @mcclellandstewart @newbooksnetwork Photo credit of picture of Aisha: Kinga Michalska . . . #poetry #poetrycommunity #poetrycollection #performance #performer #artist #torontolife #torontoartist #dance #torontodance #torontopoets #torontopoetry #blackpoet #blackartist #canlit #bookishcanadians #bookstagram #bookstagramcanada #readmorepoetry taken in Toronto, Ontario by @aishasashajohn
10
a year ago
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I showed up as planned and talked about how the devastating regret of not answering the call is certainly worse to experience than any legitimate risk asked of us by our love. Risk Lab starts in person next Monday. Holler if you have any questions. Some folks expressed interest but the timing isn’t good - if you’re really called, I’m working with folks one-on-one as well, in the context of a particular work (manuscript, show, etc) or more broadly. by @aishasashajohn
3
a year ago
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RISK LAB with Aisha Sasha John   a place to consider, invite and practice  just, appropriate, necessary, beautiful risk                                for people with active practices of any discipline Two aims of RISK LAB: a) to consider what risks are ours to take (via writing, discussion)  b) to practice risking something (through short performance scores) The vibe: whipped cream—rich and sweet. The format of RISK LAB will consist of brief lectures, discussion, writing sessions and short performance scores (in response to prompts/questions). Some things we may get into: • To have an artistic voice is to be risking something • Rigour as an attention to or tracking of risk • How to safely be in trouble with the parts of yourself upholding systems you’re actively trying to dismantle • Some attention, increased awareness, recognition of which if any fucks you choose to give • Not giving a fuck/ giving the right fuck/ the just fuck/ the true fuck/ your true fuck • How can our contradicting values constitute an opportunity, newness? • We don’t have the luxury of self-expression without consequence, i.e. • Trouble is real (some of us are criminalized, objectified, persecuted – as a function of the self-expression of existence, much less any intentional expression) What happens when we honour/recognize the risks we’re already taking in showing up? • What are the conditions that make risk-taking possible? • The exercise of a ruthless willingness – to see • Opportunity to increase discomfort/embarrassment/anxiety tolerance through practice • Risk as the material of performance • A space to encounter what risk is being required of you as growth • Developing an appetite for the sensations produced by taking necessary risks ➡️In person : Mondays in Scorpio season (Oct 27 to Nov 17, 2025) @ 6:00 to 9:00pm  location: Heavenland (west end of Toronto) fee: $222 online: Mondays in Sagittarius season (Nov 24 to Dec 14, 2025) @ 7:00 to 9:00pm fee: $188 For more info and to register, see link in bio Poster by the marvellous @aronaronhell by @aishasashajohn
7
a year ago
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Do you want to come? I’m cooking up some soft offerings- menu coming soon. A writing workshop in the west end called A safe place to be in trouble. Also will be giving readings again - tarot and pure channeling - via voice memo and over video call. More soon ❤️‍🔥 (p.s. do you like this song ? I just made it up after singing Bye bye Blackbird (Carmen McCrae version) 4 times). by @aishasashajohn
24
a year ago
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Come celebrate TDT Affiliate Artist Aisha Sasha John (@aishasashajohn) new poetry collection, 𝘵𝘰𝘵𝘢𝘭, in a somatic listening experience at TDT! Thursday April 17, 2025 at the Winchester Street Theatre Doors open at 7:00 PM Arrive early for your book purchases! Conversation starts at 7:30 PM Somatic Listening Experience of total Followed by book signing by Aisha Sasha John The event will feature a conversation with the incredible Souvankham Thammavongsa (@souvankhamthammavongsa), author of four poetry books and the short story collection, How to Pronounce Knife. Then, guests will be invited to experience total in optimal conditions: laying on the floor of a dance theatre. These poems are meant to be received with the whole body. Aisha’s editing process for total included working with dancer friends in the studio to pass the poems through their bodies — so it’s only right that the book be launched in a way honouring how it was made. This is a free community gathering! RSVP now by clicking our link in bio. Photo by Fran Chudnoff (@franznfriends). Cover of total by Aisha Sasha John, published by McClelland & Stewart (@mcclellandstewart) 2025. #TDT #TorontoDanceTheatre #AishaSashaJohn #affiliateartist #poems #poetryreading #poetrynight #freegathering #freeevent #thingstodointoronto taken in Winchester Street Theatre by @aishasashajohn
7
2 years ago
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