CREATIVE FLOW
Bestiole, Rainette, Grenouille (Little Frog)! When one meets Dominique, that’s what you call her. Because Little Frog swims in colours; she leaps into her friends’ arms; and dives headfirst into committed causes like one frolics in a stream.
Born in the seventies on a military base by the sea in Sydney, Dominique emerges as a stubborn little tadpole in this world of wind, cliffs and Acadian traditions where the sound of fog horns exudes the aroma of algae. She remains traditional despite the nomadic life that brings her from school to school… the life of the perfect military brat.
One day, the family moves to Les Pays d’en Haut to stay. Is it a coincidence that Dominique is a direct descendant of Claude-Henri Grignon… Stories of Lac Rond, summer theater, pipe smoke, pine smells, secrets whispered in the rushes… Dominique’s head fills with ideas and colours.
From leaps to bounds, we also learn that the blood of Éva Circé-Côté flows through her veins. Don’t be surprised! In the early 20th century, Eva campaigned for education, stood against church interference and fought for the empowerment of women. If Dominique never had the inclination to emulate Eva, her spirit had other ideas. Born activist, she moved heaven and oceans!
In this world where the story spins into a fabulous tale, the die is cast: there’s a ripple on the surface. Our strong woman is born with spina-bifida. Multiple surgeries, hospitalisations, troubled childhood. Our Little Frog wades in the bizarre.
To tame her pain, Dominique draws under the sun and sings at night. Sometimes, the hospital staff warn her she sings too loudly. To this day, Dominique lives with this disorder, but when one meets her, it is but an allegory of strength: she is courageous, she is a queen, she is boundless.
Among the few accepted to Collège Notre-Dame, hurray! Dominique is admitted! Our chosen one tries her hand at the French horn, the parallel bars, the drums… she skips from street theater to contemporary danse and dabbles in poetry… leaping from one fable to another, yearning for a simple life.
From jumping lily pads to skipping school, Dominique is still filled with the desire to learn more. She spends time at the St-Joseph Oratory where she has a heart to heart with Frère André –what’s left of him – and hangs out behind the great organs under the disapproving eye of the church mouses and woosh! She glides into an art studio and meets Brother Jérôme, her first great painter, where she discovers all the fun to be had there, paddling about.
Holding a bachelor’s degree both in creative arts and political arts, Little Frog immerses herself into the world of giants and meets René Derouin, Pierre Falardeau, Marcelle Ferron, Gaston Miron, Guido Molinari, René-Marcel Sauvé, Francis Simard… Dominique is a very endearing entrepreneur : not only does she communicate well with people, but she also knows how to care for those around her.
Our friend Dominique also works as a civil servant. Like a pebble among cattails and reeds, she painted her own world to live with her art while drawing stability from work. Un pont pour Gauguin, I am a pretty monster, Rien à comprendre… brushstrokes that are born from the bottom of her heart into chromatic and aquatic wonderlands…
Annie Morin, author, composer, performer
Thank you, Annie, for this beautiful biography filled with fantasy.
Annie is also known as Annie-Mots.
It’s my pleasure to invite you to listen to her music created for children but appreciated by all.