In Banff today I took a pilates class, ate lunch while enjoying a jaw-dropping view, sat in the steam room, worked ever so briefly, soaked in the nearby hot springs with new friends, and ate an elk burger with pineapple. That’s what I call an artist’s retreat.

I’m in Canadia, as certain American men I know like to call my homeland. Banff to be specific, for a short artist’s residency. I pulled into the parking lot and spilled out of my car, spellbound by the full moon rising over the Rocky Mountains. When I could breathe again, I saw there were two very quiet elk a few feet away from me. I have never before seen elk, and we stood watching each other.

I was born in this province - this is the closest I’ve been to my birthplace in many years. Very nice to be home, especially after Canada won hockey gold.

The desert, the rocky coast, the snowy tundra… you can take a girl off the prairie but you can’t take the barren landscape / big sky appeal away from the girl.

-Jillian

-Jillian

Opening tonight at ASU Art Museum.

Zombies vs Vampires is a video installation featuring two videos projected on opposite walls where zombies and vampires stage a dramatic Western-style showdown at dawn in the desert, amidst photographic murals that wrap the gallery in local desert imagery: cacti, mountain, rugged terrain, contemporary ghost towns, and graveyards. This work was created with a wonderful cast of locals in Tempe, Arizona, including 50 actors, 4 videographers, 1 photographer, 10 make-up artists, and 1 sound designer.

Very special thanks to Bluemedia for their generous in-kind printing of a 100-foot wide photo mural.

~photos by Stephen Gittins

Fun shots of vampires and zombies getting me - staged before heading out for taping in the desert this weekend, photos by Steve Gittins.

Make-up artists, videographers, photographer, and actors were in top form this weekend when we filmed Zombies vs Vampires in Tempe’s Papago Park.

Both shoots went super well - with warm weather, clear skies, an almost full moon, and no police, though a few hiker families watched the zombies in action this evening from the sidelines. One park ranger came by and thought we were a church group (!?) or a band, but he liked it so John Spiak invited him to the Nov 10th opening

Now the editing begins!

-Jillian

I’m in residence at ASU Art Museum in Tempe, AZ. I’ll be working on a few different projects, the first of which starts next week. Details on how you can participate, below:

“Jillian Mcdonald, artist-in-residence at ASU Art Museum seeks participants in a video installation for her November exhibit at ASU.”

Interested parties will attend an information session and audition on October 15th at 11 a.m.; attend a rehearsal on Oct 22nd starting at 11 a.m.; and be videotaped together on the afternoon of Oct 31st in the desert. The information session, audition and rehearsal will be held in the project’s gallery at ASU Art Museum. No acting experience or knowledge of vampires and zombies necessary, however feel free to do some research online.

Zombies may also, if interested, participate in a further performance on the Light in early November. Contact Jillian Mcdonald, info below, to receive notifications.

Also seeking enthusiastic makeup artists - with or without experience. Make-up artists will come to an information meeting on Oct 15th at 2p.m., and a workshop Oct 16th or 23rd at 11a.m.. These meetings will also be held in the project’s gallery in ASU Art Museum. Make-up for the video will be done at the museum on the late morning of Oct 31st. There is no cost to participate, make-up will be provided.

Please sign up with me directly if you are interested in participating in the project (phone 917.443.8107, email jmcdonald[at]jillianmcdonald[dot]net). Feel free to send questions or concerns. Interested parties who cannot make the scheduled dates, please inquire about alternative times.

*images from Vampire Hunting, Zombie Loop, and Undead in the Night

The National Swedish TV Arts and Culture program, Kobra, featured my Undead in the Night performance in Malmö, Sweden as part of their Horror Ministry series about, yes, horror. The performance was a collaboration with Lilith Performance Studio in Malmö, Sweden and 100 non-professional actors, out in the forest in the middle of the night. It placed two undead creatures (hideous Zombies and stunning Vampires) in the same scenes along with their victims, violating the codes and boundaries of the horror genre, and creating an impossible scenario. The audience, transported 8 people at a time to an undisclosed forest location, became visitors in a living horror movie. Following a path in the dark various scenes came alive along a 3 km long horror path.

Also featured in the TV program which aired Oct 1 are Seth Grahame Smith, author of bestseller Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Max Brooks author of The Zombie Survival Guide, and Freddie Wading, lead singer in several Swedish horror-themed punk bands. Most of the interviews are in English. Check out the whole horror series which is fascinating, or just scroll in this “Zombier” episode to 20:45 for the segment on Undead in the Night, created by Ulrik Petersson.

Watch Zombier online.

Lilith Performance Studio posted a slide show of our recent forest performance collaboration, Undead in the Night on their website. Check it out; crank the volume!

The full article from SVT, Zombievandring i mörkret is online! The TV spot features my ever-frightening vampiric and zombified friends Märta and Clara (V’s), Tom and Amanda (Z’s). Notice Tom’s vacant hungry stare, you wouldn’t want to meet him alone in the dark forest…