Dawna Proudman settled in rural Grey County after savouring the cultural smorgasbord of life in Ottawa, Kitchener/Waterloo, Dawson City and Toronto. She now lives in Durham, Ontario where she enjoys the space and pace of rural life and the artist friendly community where she co-founded the Words Aloud Spoken Word Festival and the Highway 4 Writers' Group.
In addition to writing and performing poetry, she has written scripts for stage and video, magazine articles, short stories, children’s stories and a novella, which was a runner up in Malahat Review’s Novella Contest (2000). Her first collection of poems, Elements of Grace, was published by Brucedale Press (2005). She is the editor of Strong in My Skin and Saugeen Stories, also for Brucedale Press.
Dawna also creates whimsical papier mache animals, people and mythical beings as well as twisted wire sculptures which have been displayed in galleries and fine art stores throughout Ontario. Her series, "The Grandmothers", won an Honourable Mention at the Walkerton Juried Art Exhibition (2006). "Hope", a multi-media sculpture and thirteen poems, toured southern Ontario with the Turning On The Light exhibit, curated by the Tom Thomson Art Gallery and the Grey-Bruce Sexual Assault Centre (1998-1999).
As the facilitator of "Just Write!" workshops for adults and "Creative Pursuits" workshops for children, she has worked with groups of 3 to 300 to stimulate and encourage word play and the joy of self-expression since 1993. In 1999, Dawna facilitated an eight week group for teenage girls co-ordinated by the Children’s Aid Society, culminating in the production of a booklet entitled Shattered Reflections.
A student and practitioner of Aboriginal medicine and Transformative Self-Healing, Dawna has a B.A. from the University of Waterloo.
Awards
Malahat Review Novella Contest 2000, Finalist.
Selected Publications
Elements of Grace (Brucedale Press, 2005) ISBN 1-896922-33-3
Selected Anthologies
Wordscape (MTB Press, 1993) ISBN 0-9697035-0-3.
Books in Print
Proudman, Dawna
Elements of Grace (Collected Poems) Brucedale Press, 2005. $16.00 ISBN 1-896922-33-3.
Contact
Dawna Proudman, Box 297, Durham, ON, N0G 1R0, (519) 369-5867
E-mail: dproudman@sympatico.ca
Poet in the School
Phone: (519) 369-5867
Email: dproudman@sympatico.ca
Dawna Proudman has been facilitating "Just Write" creative workshops with children aged 8 to 80-something since 1993. Author of Elements of Grace, editor of Strong in My Skin and Saugeen Stories, and co-founder of the Words Aloud Spoken Word Festival, her performance style is vibrant, earthy and visual. Her whimsical paper mache sculptures have been exhibited in fine art galleries and stores throughout Ontario; her sculpture "Loves All Things" won an honourable mention at the Walkerton Juried Arts Exhibit (2006). While celebrating writing with children in schools, art galleries, recreation centres, libraries and festivals, Dawna Proudman inspires increased self-esteem and faith in the intuitive process.
Grade Levels: Grade 3 - adult
Fees: standard
Classroom approach:
Humour, honesty, respect and flexibility encourage students to create unique poems inspired by a vast pool of well-tested structured exercises. By honouring the courage required to write, dispelling the fear of writing and and de-mystifying the intuitive process, Dawna Proudman facilitates profound results. Poetry-haters, reluctant writers, surly teenagers and bashful non-academics have discovered the pleasure and power of writing. Dawna’s approach is equally effective with visual, auditory and kinesthetic learners. The optional "I am" t-shirt workshop, which takes either half a day or a whole day, requires an additional investment of approximately $5/student for t-shirts and fabric paints.