Candace M. Younghans
SINCE 2011, CANDACE YOUNGHANS (PERFORMANCE ARTIST, TRUE NATURE ADVOCATE, S.E.W.ING GUIDE, FOUNDER OF O.N.E.SPACE FOR CREATIVE COMMUNICATION, AND INITIATOR OF THE HEART WARRIOR PROJECT) HAS BEEN EXPLORING RETURNING VETERAN'S AND THEIR FAMILIES' SENSE OF COMMUNITY, PTSD AND TRANS-GENERATIONAL TRAUMA; INTERVIEWING VETERANS AND CIVILIANS ABOUT THEIR HEALING JOURNEYS; DEDICATING TO HER OWN HEALING JOURNEY; AND, CREATING PERFORMANCE ART BASED IN THIS EXPLORATION. HERE IS A LINK TO HER JOURNEY TO THE HEART WARRIOR PERFORMANCE PIECE, HTTPS://VIMEO.COM/154120513
THE EVOLVING CULTURE OF ONESPACE IS INFORMED BY THE SELF-EXPLORATION WITNESSING PRACTICE (S.E.W.ING) THAT CANDACE HAS BEEN DEVELOPING AND USING AS HER CREATIVE PROCESS SINCE 2002. IT IS CORE TO HER PERFORMANCE ART AND LIFE PRACTICES - IT HAS BEEN A HEALING AND INFORMING TOOL FOR HER ALONG THE WAY AND CONSISTENTLY INFORMS HER CHOICES. SHE HAS FOUND IT TO BE A USEFUL AND THERAPEUTIC TOOL TO ALL CREATIVE SPIRITS, ACTIVISTS & ARTISTS, WHETHER PERFORMERS OR NOT - USEFUL FOR ANYONE INTERESTED IN LIVING A LIFE OF CONGRUENCE.
SHE DEVELOPED IT BASED ON HER OWN AFFINITY FOR AND RELATIONSHIP WITH MOVEMENT/DANCE. ITS DEVELOPMENT WAS INSPIRED FURTHER BY HER TRAINING IN MEISNER TECHNIQUE AS AN ACTOR AND HER BRIEF EXPOSURE TO 'WITNESSING' AKA 'AUTHENTIC MOVMENT' BY AN ELDER FEMALE DANCER WHO WAS A SORT OF 'CONGRUENCY AND CONSENT ACTIVIST'. IT HAS CONTINUED TO EVOLVE HER AND THEREBY EVOLVE ITSELF. SHE NOW USES IT AND SEES IT AS A CRITICAL TOOL TO HEALING AND HALTING TRANSGENERATIONAL TRAUMA.
CANDACE HAS A BACKGROUND IN DANCE, THEATER AND FILM ACTING AS WELL AS RELATED FORMS OF BODYWORK SUCH AS YOGA, PILATES, FELDENKRAIS, ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE. HER AFFINITY IS TO INTERPRETIVE DANCE AND MODERN DANCE THEATRE WITH AFRICAN AND LATIN INFLUENCE. SHE STUDIED AT AMERICAN CONSERVATORY THEATRE AND HAS HER B.S. IN SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP FROM SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY.
IN HER ENTREPRENEURSHIP STUDIES SHE CHOSE TO FOCUS HER RESEARCH ON THE GREEN BUILDING AND SUSTAINABILITY INDUSTRY AS WELL AS THE VIDEO, ONLINE GAMES AND VIRTUAL WORLDS INDUSTRY. HER LENGTHY UNIVERSITY STUDIES ALSO FOCUSED ON SOCIOLOGY, SPANISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE, EXERCISE SCIENCE, AFRO-HATIAN DANCE AND DUNHAM TECHNIQUE -these dances she studied under the tutelage of the beautiful, powerful and most strict, professor, Alicia Pierce, who has since passed on, but who will live on through through hearts of all who danced with and learned from her. May she rest, fly, dance and dream, in peace.
CANDACE HAS TRAVELLED THROUGHOUT EUROPE AND A TOUCH OF MOROCCO, AND LIVED FIVE MONTHS IN BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA AND FIVE MONTHS IN LOWER PARTS OF BAHIA, BRAZIL. SHE WAS BORN IN A SHACK IN RURAL SONOMA CALIFORNIA WHERE SHE WAS BIRTHED BY HER MOTHER WHO WAS SUPPORTED BY TWO MIDWIVES. HER SISTER, TEN YEARS OLD AT THE TIME, CUT THE UMBILICAL CORD. AT AGE FIVE THEY MOVED AND SHE WAS THEN RAISED FOR THE NEXT SEVEN YEARS IN A SMALL FARM-WORKING, PREDOMINANTLY MEXICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY IN CENTRAL VALLEY CALIFORNIA. AT AGE 13 THEY MOVED TO NORTH COUNTY SAN DIEGO.
AFTER TRAVELLING THROUGH EUROPE FOR NINE MONTHS AT AGE 18, SHE MOVED TO SAN FRANCISCO TO STUDY AT AMERICAN CONSERVATORY THEATRE. SHE STUDIED MEISNER TECHNIQUE THERE, EXTENSIVELY, WITH RACHEL STEINBERG-ADLER (LATER CONTINUED WITH KIRK BALTZ ), AS WELL AS SHAKESPEARE SCENE STUDY WITH DEBORAH SUSSELL AND BREATH, VOICE AND ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE WITH JEFFREY CROCKETT, AMONG OTHERS.
SHE LIVED IN SAN FRANCISCO FOR 14 YEARS, DEVELOPING A PERSONAL CREATIVE WRITING, YOGA, DANCE AND FELDENKRAIS STUDY, WORKING AS A WAITER/PERFORMER AT TEATRO ZINZANNI, BECOMING A PERSONAL FITNESS TRAINER, DABBLING WITH ACTING IN AND PRODUCING INDEPENDENT FILMS, EXPLORING HERSELF AND HER CREATIVE PROCESS WITH THIS WITNESSING PRACTICE, AND TRYING TO MAKE RENT...
IN LATE 2009 SHE FELT A STRONG IMPULSE TO MAKE HER PERSONAL PROCESS, PUBLIC. SHE DECIDED TO NAME THE PROCES, SELF-EXPLORATION WITNESSING AND CREATED "THE SEWING SHOW". THE SHOW RAN ONCE A MONTH FOR SIX MONTHS. WITH EACH DEEP DIVE OF THE PERFORMANCE, THE SEWING WORKED ON HER AT A CORE LEVEL, ON HER NERVOUS SYSTEM, ON HER ADRENALS, ON HER UNRESOLVED TRAUMA, FEAR AND SHAME. IT BECAME HARDER AND HARDER FOR HER TO NOT 'ANSWER THE CALL'. AND ONE DAY HER BODY SHUT DOWN AND INSISTED SHE LEAVE THE CITY AND CONNECT WITH HER ROOTS - HEAL - TO RECONNECT WITH HER MOTHER, THE LAND, WITH HORSES, HERSELF AND WITH 'HER PART'. SHE USED SELF-EXPLORATION WITNESSING TO DO THAT HEALING WORK AND THE WORK OF FINDING HER WAY. THAT IS WHAT ULTIMATELY LED HER AWAY FROM SAN FRANCISCO AND, EVENTUALLY, VIA SAN DIEGO, NEW YORK CITY, BOSTON AND A RANCH IN MUGGINSVILLE CALIFORNIA, TO THE ROGUE VALLEY, ASHLAND, OREGON.
FIRST AND FOREMOST, SHE CONSIDERS HERSELF TO BE A TRUE NATURE ADVOCATE AND HEART WARRIOR (BOTH TERMS ARE HER OWN CREATION) . SHE WORKS WITH THE RACIAL EQUITY COALITION OF SOUTHERN OREGON, IS DEDICATED TO SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL WELLNESS AND IS THEREBY DEDICATED TO DECOLONIZATION, DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION WORK - TO FOSTERING HARMONY AND CONTRIBUTING TO REPARATIONS WITH THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THIS LAND, AS WELL AS THE LAND HERSELF. SHE EXPERIENCES ART AS A CRITICAL TOOL/PRACTICE FOR WELLNESS - FOR HONESTY AND RIGHT RELATIONS - FOR COMING TOGETHER AND BEING FREE.
SHE HAS LED S.E.W.ING BASED WORKSHOPS FOR MILITARY VETERANS AND THEIR COMMUNITIES AS WELL AS EQUESTRIANS INTERESTED TO LEARN HOW THEY ARE UNCONSCIOUSLY IMPACTING THEIR HORSES BEHAVIOR UNDER SADDLE. SHE LOVES GETTING CREATIVE WITH THE USES AND APPLICATIONS OF S.E.W.ING. AND LOOKS FORWARD TO WORKING WITH MORE YOUTH.
SHE LOVES HER DOG, HER ADOPTED NIECES, NEPHEWS AND GOD KIDS AND THE LAND OF SOUTHERN OREGON - THE RIVERS, THE BIO-DIVERSITY AND THE PEOPLE. AS WELL AS THE GROWING FRIEND-FAMILY AND COMMUNITY SHE HAS FOUND BY CHOOSING TO STAY - ACTIVELY AND PATIENTLY CULTIVATE RELATIONSHIP. SHE KNOWS THERE IS SO MUCH MORE TO LEARN AND GROW TOGETHER. SHE APPRECIATES THE SOFTENING AND SELF-ACCEPTANCE THAT HAS OCCURRED INSIDE HER BY LIVING CLOSER TO THE LAND AND AMONGST MORE RURAL & RURAL CHOOSING PEOPLE.
THE EVOLVING CULTURE OF ONESPACE IS INFORMED BY THE SELF-EXPLORATION WITNESSING PRACTICE (S.E.W.ING) THAT CANDACE HAS BEEN DEVELOPING AND USING AS HER CREATIVE PROCESS SINCE 2002. IT IS CORE TO HER PERFORMANCE ART AND LIFE PRACTICES - IT HAS BEEN A HEALING AND INFORMING TOOL FOR HER ALONG THE WAY AND CONSISTENTLY INFORMS HER CHOICES. SHE HAS FOUND IT TO BE A USEFUL AND THERAPEUTIC TOOL TO ALL CREATIVE SPIRITS, ACTIVISTS & ARTISTS, WHETHER PERFORMERS OR NOT - USEFUL FOR ANYONE INTERESTED IN LIVING A LIFE OF CONGRUENCE.
SHE DEVELOPED IT BASED ON HER OWN AFFINITY FOR AND RELATIONSHIP WITH MOVEMENT/DANCE. ITS DEVELOPMENT WAS INSPIRED FURTHER BY HER TRAINING IN MEISNER TECHNIQUE AS AN ACTOR AND HER BRIEF EXPOSURE TO 'WITNESSING' AKA 'AUTHENTIC MOVMENT' BY AN ELDER FEMALE DANCER WHO WAS A SORT OF 'CONGRUENCY AND CONSENT ACTIVIST'. IT HAS CONTINUED TO EVOLVE HER AND THEREBY EVOLVE ITSELF. SHE NOW USES IT AND SEES IT AS A CRITICAL TOOL TO HEALING AND HALTING TRANSGENERATIONAL TRAUMA.
CANDACE HAS A BACKGROUND IN DANCE, THEATER AND FILM ACTING AS WELL AS RELATED FORMS OF BODYWORK SUCH AS YOGA, PILATES, FELDENKRAIS, ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE. HER AFFINITY IS TO INTERPRETIVE DANCE AND MODERN DANCE THEATRE WITH AFRICAN AND LATIN INFLUENCE. SHE STUDIED AT AMERICAN CONSERVATORY THEATRE AND HAS HER B.S. IN SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP FROM SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY.
IN HER ENTREPRENEURSHIP STUDIES SHE CHOSE TO FOCUS HER RESEARCH ON THE GREEN BUILDING AND SUSTAINABILITY INDUSTRY AS WELL AS THE VIDEO, ONLINE GAMES AND VIRTUAL WORLDS INDUSTRY. HER LENGTHY UNIVERSITY STUDIES ALSO FOCUSED ON SOCIOLOGY, SPANISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE, EXERCISE SCIENCE, AFRO-HATIAN DANCE AND DUNHAM TECHNIQUE -these dances she studied under the tutelage of the beautiful, powerful and most strict, professor, Alicia Pierce, who has since passed on, but who will live on through through hearts of all who danced with and learned from her. May she rest, fly, dance and dream, in peace.
CANDACE HAS TRAVELLED THROUGHOUT EUROPE AND A TOUCH OF MOROCCO, AND LIVED FIVE MONTHS IN BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA AND FIVE MONTHS IN LOWER PARTS OF BAHIA, BRAZIL. SHE WAS BORN IN A SHACK IN RURAL SONOMA CALIFORNIA WHERE SHE WAS BIRTHED BY HER MOTHER WHO WAS SUPPORTED BY TWO MIDWIVES. HER SISTER, TEN YEARS OLD AT THE TIME, CUT THE UMBILICAL CORD. AT AGE FIVE THEY MOVED AND SHE WAS THEN RAISED FOR THE NEXT SEVEN YEARS IN A SMALL FARM-WORKING, PREDOMINANTLY MEXICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY IN CENTRAL VALLEY CALIFORNIA. AT AGE 13 THEY MOVED TO NORTH COUNTY SAN DIEGO.
AFTER TRAVELLING THROUGH EUROPE FOR NINE MONTHS AT AGE 18, SHE MOVED TO SAN FRANCISCO TO STUDY AT AMERICAN CONSERVATORY THEATRE. SHE STUDIED MEISNER TECHNIQUE THERE, EXTENSIVELY, WITH RACHEL STEINBERG-ADLER (LATER CONTINUED WITH KIRK BALTZ ), AS WELL AS SHAKESPEARE SCENE STUDY WITH DEBORAH SUSSELL AND BREATH, VOICE AND ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE WITH JEFFREY CROCKETT, AMONG OTHERS.
SHE LIVED IN SAN FRANCISCO FOR 14 YEARS, DEVELOPING A PERSONAL CREATIVE WRITING, YOGA, DANCE AND FELDENKRAIS STUDY, WORKING AS A WAITER/PERFORMER AT TEATRO ZINZANNI, BECOMING A PERSONAL FITNESS TRAINER, DABBLING WITH ACTING IN AND PRODUCING INDEPENDENT FILMS, EXPLORING HERSELF AND HER CREATIVE PROCESS WITH THIS WITNESSING PRACTICE, AND TRYING TO MAKE RENT...
IN LATE 2009 SHE FELT A STRONG IMPULSE TO MAKE HER PERSONAL PROCESS, PUBLIC. SHE DECIDED TO NAME THE PROCES, SELF-EXPLORATION WITNESSING AND CREATED "THE SEWING SHOW". THE SHOW RAN ONCE A MONTH FOR SIX MONTHS. WITH EACH DEEP DIVE OF THE PERFORMANCE, THE SEWING WORKED ON HER AT A CORE LEVEL, ON HER NERVOUS SYSTEM, ON HER ADRENALS, ON HER UNRESOLVED TRAUMA, FEAR AND SHAME. IT BECAME HARDER AND HARDER FOR HER TO NOT 'ANSWER THE CALL'. AND ONE DAY HER BODY SHUT DOWN AND INSISTED SHE LEAVE THE CITY AND CONNECT WITH HER ROOTS - HEAL - TO RECONNECT WITH HER MOTHER, THE LAND, WITH HORSES, HERSELF AND WITH 'HER PART'. SHE USED SELF-EXPLORATION WITNESSING TO DO THAT HEALING WORK AND THE WORK OF FINDING HER WAY. THAT IS WHAT ULTIMATELY LED HER AWAY FROM SAN FRANCISCO AND, EVENTUALLY, VIA SAN DIEGO, NEW YORK CITY, BOSTON AND A RANCH IN MUGGINSVILLE CALIFORNIA, TO THE ROGUE VALLEY, ASHLAND, OREGON.
FIRST AND FOREMOST, SHE CONSIDERS HERSELF TO BE A TRUE NATURE ADVOCATE AND HEART WARRIOR (BOTH TERMS ARE HER OWN CREATION) . SHE WORKS WITH THE RACIAL EQUITY COALITION OF SOUTHERN OREGON, IS DEDICATED TO SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL WELLNESS AND IS THEREBY DEDICATED TO DECOLONIZATION, DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION WORK - TO FOSTERING HARMONY AND CONTRIBUTING TO REPARATIONS WITH THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THIS LAND, AS WELL AS THE LAND HERSELF. SHE EXPERIENCES ART AS A CRITICAL TOOL/PRACTICE FOR WELLNESS - FOR HONESTY AND RIGHT RELATIONS - FOR COMING TOGETHER AND BEING FREE.
SHE HAS LED S.E.W.ING BASED WORKSHOPS FOR MILITARY VETERANS AND THEIR COMMUNITIES AS WELL AS EQUESTRIANS INTERESTED TO LEARN HOW THEY ARE UNCONSCIOUSLY IMPACTING THEIR HORSES BEHAVIOR UNDER SADDLE. SHE LOVES GETTING CREATIVE WITH THE USES AND APPLICATIONS OF S.E.W.ING. AND LOOKS FORWARD TO WORKING WITH MORE YOUTH.
SHE LOVES HER DOG, HER ADOPTED NIECES, NEPHEWS AND GOD KIDS AND THE LAND OF SOUTHERN OREGON - THE RIVERS, THE BIO-DIVERSITY AND THE PEOPLE. AS WELL AS THE GROWING FRIEND-FAMILY AND COMMUNITY SHE HAS FOUND BY CHOOSING TO STAY - ACTIVELY AND PATIENTLY CULTIVATE RELATIONSHIP. SHE KNOWS THERE IS SO MUCH MORE TO LEARN AND GROW TOGETHER. SHE APPRECIATES THE SOFTENING AND SELF-ACCEPTANCE THAT HAS OCCURRED INSIDE HER BY LIVING CLOSER TO THE LAND AND AMONGST MORE RURAL & RURAL CHOOSING PEOPLE.
Candace M. Younghans - Photography by Marga Laube