Spotlight on St. James Town

This past April, Toronto Arts Foundation and the Neighbourhood Arts Network sponsored workshops for artists living in St. James Town. The initiative was part of the Foundation’s Arts Impact Study, a research project to better understand how Toronto residents interact and engage with the arts at a local level.

Art City in St. James Town Mural

Extending from Sherbourne to Parliament and Bloor to Wellesley, St. James Town is a neighbourhood at the heart of Toronto. In the 1950s the area was transformed into Toronto’s first community of high rise apartment buildings. Today, St. James Town is one of the most densely populated areas of Toronto with 19 residential towers in a 32 acre area. In addition to the spatial density of the neighbourhood, St. James Town is also an area of incredible diversity: the 15 000 tenants speak more than 50 languages and are twice as likely as other Toronto residents to have come to Canada within the past five years.  The density and diversity of the area creates unique challenges for people in St. James Town but also offers opportunities for community engaged arts.

Several arts-focused programs have made an ongoing commitment to the neighbourhood. Art City is a not-for-profit organization committed to providing free and accessible, multidisciplinary art programs to the children and youth of St. James Town (check out our previous post on Art City). Similarly, UforChange combines skills development with an exploration of the arts. Working with new Canadian and low-income youth living in and around St. James Town, UforChange uses  arts-based programs to inspire youth and give them the tools to succeed by providing support and resources to pursue higher education, volunteering, job shadowing and/or employment opportunities.

Alejandra Higuera is an artist who has lived in the area for almost five years. She is currently studying film and animation at OCAD, and works primarily in the west end. Despite the range of programs for children and youth she finds it difficult to connect with other adult artists in St. James Town:  “There are a lot of art programs available here for youth, but nothing for adults. There’s tons of potential for community projects though…there’s such a rich history here, and so many different stories to be told.”

Community Café is one example of a meeting place for artists and other residents of St. James Town.  This project started in the summer of 2011, when local residents and organizations began working toward a vision of forming a community-based social enterprise to promote social inclusion and food security in the neighbourhood. Community feasts are organized every couple of months and usually include an arts component, from performance to art classes. Miguel Camacho is an artist and NAN member who contributed to a recent event.

Community Matters is also working to create arts opportunities for adults through their Artists of St. James Town Initiative, run by local resident and artist Neudis Abreu. The St. James Town Banner Project invited residents to submit their artwork and 25 entries were chosen by a panel of local artists. They are displayed as banners attached to lampposts along Rose Avenue.

Lisa Simpson’s Banner on display in St. James Town

Banner creator Lisa Simpson is a graphic designer and painter living in the area. As a graduate of UforChange and volunteer at Art City in St. James Town she is aware of the connection between art and community development. “St. James Town needs to be upgraded: people deserve better than the current conditions. It needs more colour, it needs to feel safer…Arts events and projects would help with that, something to bring us together and showcase everything we have to be proud of.” Local artist and Banner Project judge, Iftikhar Ahmed, confirms the potential of creativity in St. James Town: “Art links us as a community, and adds colour and warmth to the neighbourhood.”

In addition to several community-engaged arts organizations, St. James Town is also home to many individual artists. Learn more about how NAN members are active in their community as winners of the Community Matters Banner Contest and as artists in a variety of disciplines.

Raj Sandesh recently emigrated from India where she worked as an Ayurvedic doctor. Now living in St. James Town, she pursues her passion for art while raising her children. Art is central to Raj’s impression of her community. “When I first moved to St. James Town, I saw a wall sketch of a dog right off of Wellesley towards the Food Basics. I just loved it.” The neighbourhood continues to contribute to her artistic practice. “I like finding different combinations within my drawings, find inspiration here (in Toronto).” Although Raj says that “I don’t have many friends who have the same interest,” she recognizes that community connections can enrich her work as an artist. “I would like to see more art classes and shows take place in the library and community centres. I would also like to have a chance to show my own artwork somewhere in the city.” Raj participated in the St. James Town Banner Project.

Paul Byron’s Banner Design

Paul Byron is an emerging artist, educator and writer whose large scale paintings straddle the line of representation and abstraction. He submitted the winning entry in the St. James Town Banner Project. He is originally from Hamilton and has been living in St. James Town for the past three years. The diversity of St. James Town intersects with Paul’s interests as an artist. “I am very interested in the diversity in this building. I am very interested in language. It is really great when you can engage with all of the cultural, linguistics and different kinds of things going on…I think it has had a lot to do with my interest in presenting a more complex and specific narrative moving away from traditional portraits.” However, Paul also feels isolated as an artist in St. James Town. “I know fewer people here and there is more of an anonymous feeling. It is difficult to make acquaintances. I have a circle of associates who are active in the artistic and academic community in Hamilton.” Even without the kind of network that he was familiar with in Hamilton, Paul is interested in connecting with arts organizations and contributing to art programs in the neighbourhood. “I have been involved with the Cabbagetown Art Community Centre. I will give a workshop here or teach a class at the library…these kinds of things. There should be more art classes. I don’t even know if there are places in the neighbourhood where this service is available. I was even speaking with the people at Community Matters about workshops or even volunteering time.”

Binod Dhungana, Musician and NAN Member

Binod Dhungana is a singer in the Eastern classical music tradition who participates in a Nepalese community in St. James Town. The active Nepalese music community influenced Binod’s decision to move to the area. He explains: “We get together quite often and have cultural events every two months. There are three or four groups and they perform a variety of songs and dancing…The group was actually one of the main reasons why I moved over here. I knew most of the people from back home in Nepal. There are not a lot of Nepalese people in Mississauga.” Binod’s activities as an artist build on his training in Eastern classical music however he is generally optimistic about the arts in St. James Town. Discussing his dreams and hopes for the neighbourhood he says: “There is such a diverse community and everyone can come together for these community events.”

Banner Design by Iftikhar Ahmed, one of the judges of the St. James Town Banner Project

Iftikhar Ahmed is an established artist who is passionate about making a name for himself in the Toronto arts community. He has been practicing mixed media, collage and painting for over thirty years. Iftikhar finds that the gallery system in Toronto is limited. “There are so many artists, including myself, who are underrepresented. I just think it’s a shame that the AGO is not representing the culture within its city. Artists need freedom to create and this is impossible if the system is not supporting them.” However he is encouraged by community projects and participated in a show at the nearby Strong Communities Gathering Place.  “They really take an initiative to exhibit some local artists, which is great. It’s a small gallery in the Daniels Learning Centre.” Moreover, Iftikhar thinks that the arts play a positive role in St. James Town. “I have seen many murals on the wall. I think that there is a lot of art happening in the area. We just have to search a little bit harder than in other places. This area is very suitable for me and it would be great to do something for the community.” Iftikhar was one of the judges of the St. James Town Banner Project.

Laya Mainali’s Banner Design

Laya Mainali is an established artist who recently emigrated from Nepal. Laya has an MFA and Ph.D in sculpture and has been teaching sculpture at fine arts colleges for 25 years. He has made more than 24 portraits and busts of distinguished persons and has exhibited his paintings and sculptures around the world. Laya won fourth place in the St. James Town Banner Project. Laya’s banner shows his sculpture “Internal Peace.” Laya hopes that this image will encourage people to find peace inside themselves.

 The Arts Impact Study is a project of the Toronto Arts Foundation, in partnership with Art Starts, OCADU and York University. Funded by a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Arts Impact Study researches how arts are created and enjoyed in neighbourhood settings. The study is part of TAF’s Creative City: Block by Block Program designed to advocate for the arts and to support and foster collaboration between artists, community organizations and local residents.

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Written by Amy Goudge and Emily Macrae

Emily Macrae is the Neighbourhood Arts Network 2012 Summer Intern.

In Times To Come: Citizen Media and the Power of Community

Toronto-based filmmakers Monica Gutierrez and Galen Brown discuss 3004 Studios, their community-engaged practice, and their current documentary film project about community organizing and self-determination in Placencia, Belize.  

How did you come to be involved in community-engaged media production?

Monica Gutierrez: During my formal arts training, we weren’t really exposed to how artists can be an asset to the communities. There’s an emphasis on aiming for genius and working in solitude. As I became interested in film, I became more aware that arts can be used to benefit a community. As a newer medium, video comes with less hang-ups than more traditional media like painting, lithography, or even film. It’s more accessible and there’s a lot more freedom for it to be used in different contexts.

Galen Brown: I met Monica in Guatemala. We were both working as ArtCorps artists, collaborating with NGOs in Central America.  That was really the beginnings of community work for me. I worked on 3 documentaries for ArtCorps and fell in love with that kind of work.

I actually started out as a photojournalist; I was always drawn to political and economic issues. I’m trained in economics and I’ve got a certificate in digital videography form Concordia. I’m really fueled by a passion to document moments in history for future generations. A lot can be captured in still images – even more can be captured in video.

MG: I’m interested in video and film as an alternate form of storytelling. I want to be a facilitator for those who don’t have immediate access to media tools and the knowledge to use them. To help communities to create their own media, where they benefit.

GB: We started 3004 Studios after our time in Central America. It’s a boutique media production studio. We’re really interested in longer term partnerships over one-time clients. We’re very community oriented – we want to bring high-quality video production to those who have minimal budgets. Video is such a great way to communicate.

How did you start working in Placencia?

GB: We both visited Placencia separately, while we were in Central America.

MG: It’s a beautiful place that supports more low-key tourism like backbacking; there aren’t a lot of hotels.

GB: The hotels that are there are smaller scale and independently owned by locals. At that time, a local community group, Peninsula Citizens for Sustainable Development, was involved in this fight to stop cruise ships from coming in to the area. When we talked with them, they told us a strip of mangrove swamp between the peninsula and the mainland where unregulated development is taking place. They are dredging coral reef and using it to make concrete.

 What is your goal for this project?

MG: We want to inspire people around the world, to show that you can remain in control of what’s happening around you.

GB: The film is unscripted, there’s no narration. We’ll follow community members through their daily life. We plan to be low-key, and unobtrusive in terms of equipment. We won’t be filming anyone who doesn’t want to be filmed. This is about community in every way. We don’t want to just focus on statistics and problem after problem. Overall, it’s about how the community is coming together and fighting outside influences.

MG: We want to spread the message as far and wide as possible. More awareness means more potential allies, which means support for the community in terms of longer-term sustainability.

How does this relate to Toronto?

GB: These beautiful places exist, but at the end of the day it’s someone’s home. They thrive off of tourism here, but to continue in this way means preserving for the future. There’s a parallel to the mega-quarry project here in Ontario. There’s money to be made with a quarry. It’s a project that affects ecology, the environment, and people’s lives, yet the real beneficiaries don’t live here. If you don’t live there, don’t dig there. It’s about ownership and responsibility, and respect of other people’s homes. The community in Placencia is really getting things done – they are an inspiration.

Lots of people in Canada go to Belize to vacation. There’s a connection. Every decision here does affect what happens there and which interests are awakened. Even if you don’t think you have an influence, you definitely do. That’s part of the reason our fundraising is community-based.

How does community-based fundraising work for this project?

GB: We have a Kickstarter Campaign. Everyone involved in the campaign is now part of a community allied with Placencia. There’s a sense of growing links, a heightened sense of community. We’re 80% of the way to our fundraising goal, and we have a week left!

To learn more and support the Placencia documentary project, visit the Kickstarter website at http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2031845333/amunegu-in-times-to-come

Contact:

Monica Gutierrez: monica@3004studios.com or 416.788.1767

Galen Brown: galen@3004studios.com or 416.878.4258

Placencia Citizens for Sustainable Development: http://sites.google.com/site/pcsdbelize/

In Times to Come on Kickstarter: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2031845333/amunegu-in-times-to-come

Take Me With You: Street Art Mentorship

Whippersnapper Gallery has partnered with ArtStarts this summer to facilitate a youth street art mentorship project. Using recycled and found objects as their materials, youth are working alongside professional artists to create artwork that challenges traditional notions of both trash and art.

A jungle gym in the Atkinson Housing Co-op made out of found objects by the Youth Street Art Mentorship team.

The sensory pleasures that art can incite are boundless in extent, and inimitable in effect. But what I find most fascinating about art, and particularly about community art, is the potential it holds to spark dialogue and engagement. By communicating familiar ideas in imaginative, unconventional ways, artists continually provoke audiences to challenge their own assumptions and opinions. Innovative modes of representation force viewers to broaden their perspective, and in doing so, art can serve as a powerful instigator of social change.

Whippersnapper Gallery’s Take Me With You is an inspiring example of how art can rouse healthy debate, and encourage community members to question mainstream ideology. The program will run until the end of August, and involves a number of different projects, collaborations and events. Components range from music shows to panel discussions and installations, but all aspects share the mandate to “re-imagine the use, importance, and social significance of objects and materials cast away by others.”

Recycled materials were re-purposed to create a musical instrument for local kids in the Atkinson Housing Co-op.

At the centre of Whippersnapper’s packed agenda is a 5-week Youth Street Art Mentorship project, facilitated in partnership with ArtStarts. Whippersnapper’s artistic director Joshua Barndt has worked with ArtStarts for nearly a decade, assisting them in their community arts projects. This spring, Barndt approached ArtStarts with a proposal to hire youth from Alexandra Park in a pilot youth mentorship project. After receiving the support of ArtStarts and the City of Toronto’s Graffiti Transformation Project, Whippersnapper began recruiting local participants.

Poster plants installed by the Youth Street Art Mentorshop team at Spadina and Dundas.

For each of the first three weeks, a different visiting artist or art collective led the youth in a specific installation or project. The first week saw Sean Martindale teach participants how to create his trademark poster planters, by transforming illegal posters into beds for potted plants. The next week was led by Sasha Foster and Felix Kalmenson, who helped the youth assemble neighbourhood shrines from local debris. Although some of the shrines have since been dismantled, the group has found strategies to promote synergy between the community and their work.

A neighbourhood shrine created by the Youth Street Art Mentorship team in Alexandra Park.

“Working with trash material, sometimes people can get a negative vibe,” Barndt explained. “But whenever we include some sort of living plant in our work, people are more likely to get a positive impression. They assume that since it’s being taken care of, the shrine is intentional and a positive thing. We also want the neighbourhood to be included in the project, so we’ve posted signs to encourage passers-by to contribute, and left watering buckets for the plants so that the community can participate.”

A slide created with found and recycled materials by the Youth Street Art Mentorship project.

The third week of the project involved public sculpture-making with Urban Trash Art, a collective from Sao Paulo that works exclusively in trash materials. Together, the group refurbished an underused neighbourhood structure into a colourful and whimsical playground for kids in the Atkinson Housing Co-op.

A playful ladder created by the Youth Street Art Mentorship Project.

For the final two weeks, the youth will work on a permanent and self-initiated installation at the Scadding Court Community Centre. Applying the tools and techniques they’ve learned from their artist mentors, the group will incorporate found materials like cans and tires into their final project. Using such untraditional materials to create something beautiful has solicited a range of responses, from skepticism and confusion to laudatory acclaim. But in our current climate of reckless over-consumption and irresponsible waste disposal, this is the type of inventive project that can stimulate exciting social change.

Take Me With You will run until the end of August. To find out more, please visit http://www.whippersnapper.ca/page5/page13/page13.html.

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Amy Goudge is the Summer 2011 Membership Intern at the Neighbourhood Arts Network.

Hunger and Wholeness

A PARC member admires one of the Hunger and Wholeness light boxes.

On Thursday, June 23, the Parkdale Activity Recreation Centre (PARC) hosted the launch of Hunger and Wholeness: a Making Room and PARC collaboration. The event showcased portraits and light boxes that have been created by PARC members over the past year. Visiting artist Savannah Walling followed the launch with a presentation about her community arts work in Vancouver’s downtown eastside.

As a drop-in community centre for the Parkdale community, PARC promotes safety and dignity in a neighbourhood that witnesses constant struggle and adversity. Although recent gentrification has slightly shifted the area, in both resident demographic and reputation, Parkdale remains home to many psychiatric survivors and marginalized populations. For over thirty years, PARC has advocated for the rights of these people, and spread awareness about the need for affordable housing in the area.

PARC member Marlene describes her work to PARC Executive Director, Victor Willis.

Hunger and Wholeness is a collaboration between PARC and Making Room Community Arts, led by artistic director Michael Burtt. A multi-disciplinary project that combines writing, photography, sculpture and mixed media, Hunger and Wholeness explores the opposition of scarcity and abundance. The project began in September of 2010, when PARC recruited its members to create installations and light boxes for the basement of their centre.

Detail shot of a Hunger and Wholeness light box.

The result is Sparks that Fly: a name that references both the medium and the alchemy of collaborative art-making. Lead artist Joshua Barndt designed and facilitated the series, which incorporates quotes from PARC members relating to appetite and satiation. Lining the halls towards the Sorauren Food Bank, the artwork brings thematically fitting imagery to a basement that was once bleak and unadorned.

A Portraits of Silence installation at the corner of Queen and Triller Ave.

Portraits of Silence is the second part of Hunger and Wholeness, in which Toronto-based photographer Patrick Struys captured a cross-section of PARC members while meditating. The intention of the project, says Michael Burtt, is to provide visual reminders of peace and reflection in an area that can be overwhelmed by chaos and noise. The portraits have been blown up and mounted throughout the neighbourhood, on everything from storefronts to local rooftops.

A Portraits of Silence installation in the window of PARC.

As a compliment to the launch, visiting artist Savannah Walling spoke about her community-engaged art projects in Vancouver’s downtown eastside. Savannah has been producing collaborative theatre performances for almost thirty years, currently serving as the artistic director of Vancouver Moving Theatre. She also runs the annual Heart of the City festival, which is now entering its eighth year of celebrating arts, social action, and cultural diversity in the downtown eastside.

“It’s amazing to see the transformative effect that the festival has had on the neighbourhood,” Savannah shares. Not only does the festival bring the community together, but it teaches audiences about the area’s cultural depth and history. The media is starting to take notice. “In the past, the media has focused only on the problems that exist in the area, while ignoring what’s being done to fix them. The media is finally starting to acknowledge the solutions that are being produced, and everything in the area that deserves being celebrated.”

Although Parkdale and the downtown eastside are distinct communities that require different strategies, Savannah’s success is an encouraging example of how community arts can reshape a neighbourhood. She says that the most important thing she has learned is that “every single person has something of value to share. We just need to learn to listen.”

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Amy Goudge is the Summer 2011 Membership Intern at the Neighbourhood Arts Network.

Welcome, Leah Burns!

Engaging Diverse Communities is a research and education project of the Toronto Arts Foundation’s Neighbourhood Arts Network, and Manifesto Community Projects. Engaging Diverse Communities aims to strengthen relationships between the arts and social service sectors in order to build capacity for artists and cultural workers to increase access and reduce barriers to cultural participation for culturally diverse communities.

The Neighbourhood Arts Network is pleased to welcome our new Engaging Diverse Communities project coordinator, Leah Burns. Read on for more about Leah and this exciting new project!

Hi everyone,

I am really excited to join the Neighbourhood Arts Network team and this important project. I have been working in and thinking about community-based arts practices in Canada and abroad for the past 17 years. What inspires me the most about community-based arts is the opportunity it provides for connecting with other people in creative and supportive ways. At its best, creative collaboration in communities is a complex dialogue. Different personalities, ideas, and understandings come together to share an experience and generate new expressions that don’t emerge in the same way when working independently. It is truly amazing how energizing this kind experience can be.

'Days of Light' Lantern Installation

One summer evening in 1994 I walked into Trout Lake Park in East Vancouver. Usually a very quiet green space surrounded by residential housing and a small community centre, the park that night, was transformed. It was a magical setting. Flickering lanterns of various shapes and sizes dotted the landscape: some shaped like large lotus flowers floated on the water pulled along behind a kayak gliding gracefully around the lake’s edge, others, small and round, adorned the branches of one large tree lighting it up, so that it almost appeared as if it was on fire. Nearby a small group of performers stood singing in a clump of reeds. In the distance fire dancers could be seen moving rhythmically across the grass. As I stood there watching, a wide range of people, neighbours and community members that one wouldn’t normally encounter together, slipped past me to join a bustling parade led by small band of djembe drummers and horn players weaving through the park. Many of the people carried their own lanterns or musical instruments; some were dressed up in elaborate costumes, and everyone was aglow with enthusiasm.

'Circus of Dreams', a Public Dreams community event in the Strathcona neighbourhood of Vancouver's downtown eastside

This was my first encounter with the Public Dreams Society a community arts group in Vancouver that works collaboratively with communities to create inclusive celebratory events that often aim to transform and reclaim local public spaces. It was also a pivotal moment for me in terms of my career and life choices. This magical moment solidified my decision to pursue an arts practice that would allow me to share and build opportunities for collective, creative experiences. I want to help others experience the sense of agency, excitement and transformative potential that the arts can offer. I would later come to work for Public Dreams as well as numerous other community arts organizations in Vancouver and Australia.

'Imaging Ourselves', an excerpt from a community mural created for FoodShare

Since moving to Toronto to study in the year 2000, I have sought out similar opportunities for participating in and contributing to community-based arts practices with organizations such as: FoodShare, MuralRoutes, Scarborough Arts, LEAF, Arts for Children and Youth, OCADU, the Centre for Arts-Informed Research, and the Faculties of Health and Environmental Studies at York University.

My studies and work as a researcher have also been linked to community arts: reflecting on the use of community-based arts to support social change and environmental education, developing alternative approaches to arts evaluation, and examining community arts education programs.

In all these contexts an important theme that comes up again and again is the need for networking and development. As community-based arts workers we need more time and opportunities to think about our practices and to share what we have learned with one another. We also need more resources for developing skills to address the diverse needs of the people and communities we work with.  Sharing and professional development helps us to improve and to be more inclusive. It also helps us to re-energize, reduce burn-out, and re-ignite the creative spark and passion for collaboration that motivates so many people in this field.

'Chrysalis', a mural created from community stories for Mural Routes on Kingston Rd. in Scarborough

As part of the Engaging Diverse Communities Project, I will be connecting with a range of social service and arts organizations throughout Toronto to identify best practices for supporting and engaging culturally diverse communities through the arts.

This information will then be shaped into a series of free workshops, case studies and practical toolkits for arts and cultural workers.

I will also be sharing regular updates about the project as it progresses. So keep an eye out for more blog posts in the coming months!

If you have questions, suggestions, or would like more information about the project please contact me at: leah@torontoarts.org

STEPS video on art and public space

Check out this video by the Sustainable Thinking and Expression on Public Space (STEPS) Initiative, a group of artists, activists, architects, and academics, collectively promoting sustainable and community-centred public spaces.

This is Bigger Than You: Che Kothari on Social Change

Che Kothari, Executive Director of Manifesto (right) and Skye Louis, NAN Coordinator.

 

On November 18, artists, cultural workers, and community builders interested in building a movement for social change gathered at 793 Pharmacy Ave. This event was presented by the Neighbourhood Arts Network and City of Toronto Arts Services featured Che Kothari, Executive Director of Manifesto Community Projects.

Check out the full podcast here!

 

What issues are you and/or your community facing?

Attendees toured the venue, the home of First United Pentecostal Church, which also hosts two large studios (once graced by William Shatner and Kelloggs Frosted Flakes) that are used for film shoots, commercials, and other activities.

Pastor Timothy L. Pickard of the First United Pentecostal Church.

The event started with Pastor Timothy Pickard of 793 Pharmacy and Sean Lehane of 918 Bathurst Centre speaking about their space, which is available for arts-related programming and space rental.

How do you define your community?

Sean Lehane, Executive Director of 918 Bathurst.

Che Kothari spoke of the importance of having a dream. The audience was invited to share their dreams-some of which include writing a book and starting an arts and literacy centre. Che spoke of his dream to become a photographer.

Speak to and involve your elders.

Youth space at 793 Pharmacy.

He realized his passion for photography on a family trip in South America at Carnaval, when the performers invited him to take pictures of them.  This caused him to realize that ‘the camera is a tool to get closer to people’.

Build a strong team with varying strengths.

He recognized Toronto as a cultural hub that has the best urban artists in the world, and wanted to showcase what the city has to offer. Through hard work, determination and help, he started Manifesto.

Clearly define your mission.

Youth space at 793 Pharmacy.

“Don’t just pick a cause and jump on it,” he advises. “It has to come from a place of passion and realism or you will burn-out.”

Don’t just pick a cause and jump on it. It has to come from a place of passion and realism or you will burn-out.

Here are Che’s tips for starting a movement for change:

• What is the seed inside of you?
• What issues are you and/or your community facing?
• How do you define your community?
• Don’t just pick a cause, it won’t last, it needs to come from within and be driven by passion and love.
• Talk to people about what you are thinking about.
• Hold a gathering to gain input and insight.
• Learn about what has already been done.
• Speak to and involve your elders.
• Build a strong team with varying strengths.
• Ask yourself who is missing from the table.
• Drop your ego.  This is bigger than you.
• Clearly define your mission.
• Keep your message simple.
• Engage Partners…even the unlikely ones.
• Plan the work…Work the Plan.
• Word is Bond.  Uphold your Integrity.
• Take care of yourself within it all.  An unhealthy leader is of little use to the mission.
• Aim for sustainability and stability.
• Balance order and chaos.
• Revisit. Refine. Revision. Repeat.

What are you passionate about?

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Learn about City of Toronto’s cultural centres and museums rental space available here.

Find out more about the Jewil Project, one of the programming activities at 793 Pharmacy Ave, at http://www.thejewilproject.com/.

For space rental of 793 Pharmacy and programming inquiries, contact Pastor Timothy L. Pickard at 416-676-3113.

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Aasana Sri is the Fall/Winter 2010 Communications Intern at the Toronto Arts Foundation.

Red Pepper Lights Up the Longest Night!

Founded by Andy Moro and Gabriella Caruso in 2002, Red Pepper Spectacle Arts is a storefront at 160 Baldwin Street in busy Kensington Market. Red Pepper has worked with community members to provide resource-sharing and collaboration opportunities in diverse media. Red Pepper’s Kensington Market Winter Solstice, which attracts over 10, 000 people annually, is entering its 21^st year.

Both Andy and Gabriella have backgrounds in production design and have worked as professional artists, especially with children and youth. They initially worked with Ida Carnevali at the Kensington Carnival before inheriting it fifteen years ago. Red Pepper has programming partnerships with Tumivut Youth Shelter,the Native Men’s Residence, First Nations School, and many other community-engaged organizations, due to Andy and Gabriella wanting to put the tools of creative activity back into people’s hands.

Andy says, “Ironically, the festival is successful because we are not trying to make it so. It is a community event with social activism and people taking charge.”

Ironically, the festival is successful because we are not trying to make it so. It is a community event with social activism and people taking charge.

 

Some of Red Pepper’s community-level partners will be participating at the festival, such as the Gaa Dibaatjimat Ngashi , in which a youth group will perform a scenario. Andpva will also be performing at the festival with shadow puppets.

“Many cultures mark the time of the solstice each year by having a gathering or a meal. The solstice event is connected to all of us,” says Andy.

Many cultures mark the time of the solstice each year by having a gathering or a meal. The solstice event is connected to all of us.

This year the Kensington Market Winter Solstice will be taking place on December 21, 2010 at 6:30 p.m. at Oxford and Augusta, and the procession will continue towards Alexandra Park. The lunar eclipse will take place 10 minutes after the start of the parade. Everyone is invited to wear costumes, bang drums, and carry puppets and lanterns!

 

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Make your own candle-lit lantern to carry at Red Pepper’s Kensington Market Winter Solstice! Join Red Pepper on December 12 between 11-6 p.m. in the Steelworkers Hall at 25 Cecil St. to learn the how-to’s of lantern-making. Children must be accompanied. This is a pay-what-you-can event.

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Aasana Sri is the Fall/Winter 2010 Communications Intern at the Toronto Arts Foundation.

Creative Spirit Supports Artists with Disabilities

Creative Spirit festival performance.

Founded in 1992 by Ellen Anderson, Creative Spirit Art Centre is an art gallery and studio that is dedicated to advancing the creative power of artists with disabilities. Ellen Anderson started the centre for her son Gabe, who has cerebral palsy and loves art, but was unable to continue his work after he no longer had access to special education at 21.

Since then, Creative Spirit has relocated to 999 Dovercourt Road and over the years has welcomed artists with a range of abilities to use the studio space and exhibit their art work. Creative Spirit is listed by VSA (Very Special Arts) under its global community listing. Recently, it has hosted a three-day festival and conference in October to showcase the accomplishments in accessible arts from across Canada.

Ellen Anderson, Executive Director of Creative Spirit talks at the festival.

During my visit at Creative Spirit, I was impressed by the bright and colourful space. I spoke with Ellen, while two artists worked on sketches at the centre table. Ellen took me on a tour of the space and showed many of the art works that were completed by members.

Artist Gabe Anderson.

Ellen has worked hard to make the space completely accessible. The studio uses low-toxic materials. Artists have professional, height-adjustable tables. Lighting is installed at a wide angle to diffuse throughout the area.

Hanni Sager is the artist whose art dolls are exhibited at the centre until January 29, 2011. Known as ‘The Toy Lady’, Hanni is severely disabled with muscular dystrophy, but her indomitable spirit enables her to run toy-making workshops for orphans with disabilites in Mexico.

Grazia Merigioli, a painter, has been a member for two years due to her heart condition. She is also a volunteer at centre and is making cards for the February auction. Grazia says “It’s a wonderful centre. The people are friendly. I enjoy coming here.”

It’s a wonderful centre. The people are friendly. I enjoy coming here.

Creative Spirit artists working.

To become a member of Creative Spirit, artists have to go through an application process by presenting a portfolio and are taken on a trial-basis. There are different types of memberships depending on the needs of the artist. Some require studio time and others can showcase their work.

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Go see Hanni Sager’s art dolls at Creative Spirit before January 29, 2011. To find out more about Very Special Arts, visit http://www.vsarts.org. Learn how to donate or volunteer at Creative Spirit Art Centre here. Like Creative Spirit on Facebook.

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Aasana Sri is the Fall 2010 Communications Intern at the Toronto Arts Foundation.

What is AMY Doing Now?

The AMY Project participants working together.

Founded in 2005 by Claire Calnan and Weyni Mengesha, The AMY (Artists Mentoring Youth) Project is a free program offered to young women between the ages of 14-24 living in the Greater Toronto Area. It is an educational arts project that nurtures the confidence and unique identity of emerging artists through developing their cultural vocabulary and skills of healthy, creative self-expression.

The participants typically meet once a week for a couple of months to rehearse and are provided with TTC tickets, attend live theatrical performances, share a free weekly meal, earn volunteer hours and cash honorariums for performing.

For each session of the AMY Project, there has been a theme that the participants have chosen to work around. Claire says, “A discussion ensues around various issues that young women face, and conversations start to emerge about what the group has in common.  Then, a theme for the session becomes established.”

A discussion ensues around various issues that young women face, and conversations start to emerge about what the group has in common.  Then, a theme for the session becomes established.

Past themes have included pressure, girl-on-girl hate, normal versus deviant, and values.

The AMY Project participants.

Each young woman receives a mentor, who works in the field that she wants to pursue. These mentors are highly accomplished women from the local community including Weyni Mengesha (director, da kink in my hair, blood claat), Nicole Stamp (actor and host of TVO Kids), d’bi.young (dub poet and actor, da kink in my hair), Nylda Gallardo, Camilla Singh and many more.

The mentors work with the participant for six hours and help create a piece of work that will be performed at Theatre Passe Muraille. In the past, participants have performed at Luminato Festival, the annual Lab Cab Festival, and ARC Fest (Arts for Real Change). They have received high praises and have been featured in Say Word and CanPlay.

Claire says, “A huge number of young people have helped create programs and The AMY Project is shaped through the people that help create it. So it changes over time.”

A huge number of young people have helped create programs and The AMY Project is shaped through the people that help create it. So it changes over time.

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Young women who are interested in participating in the 2011 session of the AMY Project can contact Claire Calnan at whoismyamynow@yahoo.com or call 416-819-1612 to receive an application form. Deadline for applications is December 3, 2010. Space is limited.

The AMY Project receives project grants from numerous sources, such as Toronto Arts Council, Ontario Arts Council, Theatre Ontario and several private donors. Like The AMY Project on Facebook!

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Aasana Sri is the Fall 2010 Communications Intern at the Toronto Arts Foundation.