Emotions and Enlightenment: Daniel Barrow Q&A out in today's National Post

Daniel Barrow has had a busy spring, with a show at the AGYU (where visitors can play with his famed projections), a new book released and performances starting in New York, where he is a resident at ISCP. In today's National Post, we discuss some aspects of his work, from brutal to Buddhist. An excerpt:

Q On a page of your website devoted to "healing," you have a Thich Nhat Hanh quote about "garbage that can transform into flowers if you hold it in your hand long enough." Is this what your art is about in general?

A Well, Buddhism is really a big part of my work. In my performances, all of my protagonists are in a process of spiritual transformation -- but ones that our culture doesn't recognize as such. I love to write characters who are very intelligent but who are nonetheless very confused; starting with a character like that, I can create a kind of spiritual transformation that, for me, feels real. I guess that reflects my own experience of spirituality, that a healing transformation can kind of come from anywhere. You don't have to be on a Zen retreat -- though of course, a retreat does help a lot. But I'm more interested in representing transformations that take place in a city, amidst the confusion of interpersonal drama and depression.

Image of Barrow's work from the CASV