“It is our hope that by documenting these stories we’ll be able to show the many benefits of community arts and its value can be raised.”

Next Wednesday, March 20th, we celebrate the first day of Spring and although it might not feel like it with Toronto temperatures still dipping below 0°, my head is already fillinIg with thoughts of Spring and the feeling of rejuvenation that it brings.

ArtBridges/ToileDesArts is currently going through its own ‘rejuvenation’ with the development of its new website. It’s a learning process that we started months ago and it has, at times, felt intensely overwhelming–but we have an amazing web development team and I’m certain we’ll have a finished product that we can all take pride in.

Although the website won’t launch for a few more months, we’ve been working hard at building new content for the website. Part of this initiative includes sharing more personal stories, not only from members of the ArtBridges team (like the weekly ‘Friday Morning Coffee‘ feature you’re reading now), but also from our community partners that have inspired us with their work. It is our hope that by documenting these stories we’ll be able to show the many benefits of community arts and its value can be raised.

The first person I approached with this idea was Lauren Akbar of SYiM (Southern Youth In Motion). We’ve posted about SYiM several times and have had a great relationship with them since we first met with them last fall. SYiM is unique to me as it is the only program I have heard about that uses art to bridge the disconnect between youth in Ontario’s northern First Nations communities with youth in the south. They’ve achieved a lot since they first launched a few months ago and I thought it would be interesting to follow their story over the next few months and share it on the ArtBridges blog. Thankfully, Lauren was her usual awesome self and agreed to submit regular updates—the first of which will be posted next week so check back and check back often as we already have another post in the works!

Bridging the gaps between north and south is something I feel personally connected to. I grew up in the relatively northern city of Thunder Bay and even though I currently live in the big city of Toronto, I love seeing Ontario’s northern communities being represented and always feel a little extra burst of excitement when I come across a really great arts program anywhere north of Barrie (considered ‘north’ to many Torontonians). In addition to Myths and Mirrors (Sudbury), CAHEP (Thunder Bay), New Traditions Multi-Arts (Sault Ste. Marie) and the Sioux Lookout Anti-Racism Committee (Sioux Lookout), I’ve recently profiled Aanmitaagzi, a multidisciplinary artist-run company serving North Bay and the Nipissing First Nation; and Rue Studio, an artist-run centre offering print-making, sewing and music to the community of Sheguiandah on Manitoulin Island.

Other things I’ve been working on outside of Ontario include: the Adäka Cultural Festival in Whitehorse, which is currently accepting artist submissions. The festival takes place in late June and brings together First Nations artists from all across Canada to share and celebrate their creativity and culture with local, national and international audiences. Meanwhile, Toronto’s Red Sky Performance will be traveling to Alberta in May and is looking for communities, large and small, to host performances of their production of The Great Mountain, an eco-adventure story geared to children (ages 6-12) and their families.

Do you have a personal story regarding community arts that you’d like to share or is there a really great arts program in your community that you think ArtBridges should know about? If so, please get in touch with me at cora@artbridges.ca. In the meantime, have a happy Spring and enjoy the rejuvenating and renewing qualities of the season!

– Cora-Rae Silk
Indigenous Community Arts Coordinator & Communications Assistant

The above photo was taken on a drive to Niagara Falls this past weekend,
one of the first opportunities I’ve had to enjoy some warmer temperatures this year.

For ArtBridges/ToileDesArts sponsorship opportunities: Simon Constam, Sponsorship Director, simon.constam@gmail.com, 905-537-7227
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