We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Destiny Toussaint. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Destiny below.

Destiny, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I started dancing when I entered middle school; there was a gifted program that allowed children from grades 1-8 to leave school once a week to learn and explore their craft in either dance or visual art. Looking back, I am incredibly grateful for that opportunity, because I wasn’t just learning different dance techniques but I was also learning dance history, how to critique and interpret art meaningfully as well as creating choreography.

This way of learning dance in an interdisciplinary environment continued all the way through high school and college, where I grew an interest in film and wanted to combine my two passions.

I believe the desire to even want to even “speed up” your learning process is pretty Western and capitalist. We’re really obsessed with the idea of measuring success with being better, faster, and stronger when that ideology just doesn’t coexist with the humanist nature of art. Art, in any medium, is about living and breathing and interacting with the world we live in; acquiring experience so that we can then make meaningful subjective productions that allow others to come to thousands of different interpretations all to share just one beautiful moment of connection. This is why it doesn’t matter you come from, you can be an artist as long as you’re “living more.”

In relation to my personal experience, I believe the skill that has served me the most is collaboration with other artists. I’m thankful for being surrounded by a community of artists where we support one another, and I’m in love with the way we collaborate. It’s always essential to find inspiration in the world and people around you to find the motivation to constantly hone your craft.

What may have held me back from learning more, or living more, is myself, honestly. I am only now understanding the importance of taking risks, and saying “yes” more to opportunities. It’s very easy to stay in a comfortable bubble, because it’s secure and stable, but it’s very different to be upfront with yourself and make the commitment to take actions you wouldn’t normally do.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a New York-based interdisciplinary artist specializing in dance and film with a Caribbean familial background. I pursued a BFA at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA under the direction of Donna Faye Burchfield. I performed in works directed by instructors such as Katie Sowrds-Thurman, Tommie Waheed-Evans, Jesse Zaritt, Shayla Vie-Jenkins, Thome White, Maleek Washington, Annie Rivne’s, and Kyle & Dinita Clark. I presented my recent work, Maelstrom of Icarus (2021), which explored modes of grief and mourning in the face of apocalyptic events. The project invited the audience to share in a communal loss by diving into the memoirs of catastrophic damage to the Self, the Group, and the World.

I recently trained in Broadway Dance Center’s Professional Semester under instructors such as Huu Rock, Neil Schwartz, Sheila Barker, Jay Mills, and Bo Park, and performed in their biannual showcase.

My research builds linear and nonlinear timelines connecting the metaphysical worlds I imagine to the instinctual coping mechanisms people deploy when faced with the condition of being human. My proclivity for immersive interdisciplinary art forms allows me to enact a service to those who view my work. A service to disturb normative thinking, a service to challenge daily practice, and a service to expose one to an alternative way of knowing.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I believe changes to our current creative ecosystem start small, but one of the most important things society can do is to understand the importance of artists and their work. We are a constantly undermined, underpaid, underfunded, and neglected breed of individuals that persist and continually advocate for ourselves and peers. By understanding our value, people can take steps to make ripples in their surroundings.

As an individual, one can spread awareness about artists and premieres of their works, both online and offline. Financial support is another method; I would consider supporting artists from marginalized communities first, if possible. Lastly, one can utilize their voice as a citizen of this country to vote for officials that support creatives, and be involved in their local community’s council when arts-related subjects arise.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I think the best book I read that significantly impacted the way I think about myself as a freelance artist was Andrew Simonet’s “Making Your Life As An Artist.” It’s a fantastic resource for anyone, especially dancers, to rethink the way we sell our image and product. I believe it’s available for free as a PDF, but can be bought with a personal workshop book paired to allow artists to complete exercises and evaluate our value monetarily.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @_dessaint_

Image Credits
German Vazquez Jenna Maslechko Ralph Andre Ravix