From Here to Wear community events with Akin alumni Norwin Anne on March 18 & 25

This month you can join Akin Studio alumni Norwin Anne at two free community drop-in events entitled 'From Here to Wear'. Each event offers an inclusive community space where curious, like-minded people can swap and repair clothing while also learning more about "textile waste".

This initiative aims to raise more awareness on the problems surrounding the management of “textile waste” and to help prevent them from being disposed of improperly. These events create a circular closed loop system for clothing that people no longer want, while promoting a reuse and “waste not, want not” mentality. It’s a fun alternative to shopping and an engaging way to upgrade your wardrobe — a conscious practice on how to be more intentional with the clothes you wear.

Click here to learn more about From Here to Wear.

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March 18

12pm-5pm at St Matthew’s Clubhouse, 450 Broadview Avenue, Toronto.

Click here for full event details or to register.

Presented in partnership with East End Arts

March 25

12pm-5pm at stackt Market - STUDIO 28, Bathurst Street Toronto.

Click here for full event details or to register.

Presented in partnership with stackt Market.

Images above: Black and white event posters with text that describes the event details that are in this blog post. The first poster has a white background, the centre is a black and white circular drawing of people, animals, landscapes, and various symbols. The second poster has a dark background and the image on the poster features a repeated image of a planet that creates a curving shape across the image. 

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About Norwin Anne

Norwin Anne is a Filipinx multidisciplinary artist / designer, (re)maker and eco-culture communicator. They studied Fashion Techniques and Design at George Brown College with a waste conscious approach and slow fashion mentality. Primarily working with secondhand materials, they started focusing on textile waste as a research study during school which evolved into learning more about waste generally to understand its environmental impacts and beyond. They want to continue developing their ideas and merge their knowledge of fashion with other subjects by creating wearable art and installations to visually translate complex topics through culture jamming. They always prioritize working with used objects and discarded materials. They’re dedicated to creating conceptual and functional things from what’s seen as useless. It initiates this challenge of exploring different alternatives and they try their best to avoid using new items as much as possible.

Norwin is an Akin Studio alumni from Akin Lansdowne and Akin King.

Call for Submissions: Local Art for New Residential Community

Daniels HR Corporation, on behalf of The Daniels Corporation, invites artists from the Regent Park and downtown East area to submit proposals in consideration for the residential areas at Artworks Tower and Artsy Boutique Condominiums in Regent Park. The installation of the various artworks will take place in phases between late 2022 to early 2023. The proposal process will involve consulting with Daniels HR Corporation on the design and fabrication of the work to arrive at a final concept, as well as the installation of the piece.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

For The Daniels Corporation (Daniels) each new home community is a work of art - literally. From conception through to completion, every Daniels neighbourhood is designed to enhance its surroundings, the community and to make a statement about its unique character. Daniels has pioneered a new approach to décor and art focused on sourcing local art for each of our new buildings. Within each community Daniels looks to source a wide range of art forms from paintings to photography to sculptures and beyond. This addition of striking local art through community engagement has quickly become a cornerstone of the company’s design philosophy.

The community is located at the north side of Dundas Street, between Tubman Ave. and River St., consisting of the 32-storey Artworks tower on the east side and the 11-storey boutique condominium, Artsy on the west, joined by a 4-storey podium with shared amenities.

For this opportunity, priority will be given to artists who self-identify as:

• Having a connection to the Regent Park Community and downtown East area: current or former resident, or works within the specific community identified 

• Emerging and mid-career artists 

• Diverse and equity-deserving individuals including but not limited to members of visible minority groups, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, and LGBTQ2S+ people

Deadline: 11:59 p.m. on May 15, 2022.
For any other questions, please contact LocalArt@danielscorp.com.

First Meeting of the Akin D.I.Y. Comics School! →

Interested in continuing your education and development as a cartoonist and in helping others do the same? Join us Monday, July 2nd, from 7pm to 9:30pm at the Akin St. Clair Studio in the “Don’s Meats” building at 1747 St. Clair Avenue West for the inaugural D.I.Y. Comics School Meeting.

The new D.I.Y. Comics School is just one of the member led projects to evolve from the Akin Comic Day that occurred in May 2018. Founded by Akin St. Clair member Christopher Green, aka Mumblethief, a cartoonist, educator, and fictional character who comes from the Alaskan wilderness, the D.I.Y. school will meet the first Monday of every month at Akin's St. Clair location and is open to everyone. The first meeting will include a show & tell, a visual vocabulary exercise, a 1 page comic exercise, a critique and more!

Photo of Akin Comic Day by Jen Pilles

Community Arts Space Open Studio: Treaty Talk with Akin King artist Louis Esmé this Saturday at the Gardiner Museum

Sat May 26, 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm, Gardiner Museum, 111 Queen's Park, Toronto
Registration required. 

Part of the Community Arts Space: Recent Histories at the Gardiner Museum, Treaty Talk is Co-presented with Akin King artist Louis Esmé and Titiesg Wîcinímintôwak Bluejays Dancing Together Collective. 

Join knowledgeable community members Jodi Lynn Maracle (Kanien’kehá:ka) and Shane H. Camastro (anishinaabe) in this short, interactive workshop on Treaty relationships and responsibilities in Dish with One Spoon Territory. As practicing artists and educators from this place, they will facilitate activities and discussions to root community arts and museum practices in these original agreements.

About the Community Arts Space: Recent Histories:
Inspired by the transformative aspects of ceramics, both real and metaphorical, the Community Arts Space is the Gardiner’s incubator for arts-based community projects. In collaboration with local artists, designers, and collectives, the Museum will mount five public projects that examine how cultural knowledge is passed on or performed, and the role of the museum in cultivating the so-called lived and living memory.

About Louis Esmé:
Louis Esmé (Mi’kmaq-Acadian, Irish) is an artist, writer, and illustrator whose social art practice spans over 20 years working within grassroots, artist-run, and academic spaces. A co-founder of Titiesg Wîcinímintôwak // Bluejays Dancing Together Collective, which has gathered knowledge, stories, and desires for re-urbanized Two-Spirit people and their relations since 2012, Esmé’s work is granny craft/old media with social commentary akin to Statler & Waldorf from Sesame Street. For the Gardiner’s Intervention Project, which will evoke participation and educational potential within the expanded field of ceram­ics, Esmé will make seven clay districts representing the Mi’kmaq Seven Directions in the Gardiner’s Exhibition Hall, lobby, and permanent collection galleries. Vessels referencing Woodland pottery forms will reckon with ongoing colonialisms, while offering witness to Indigenous survivance on the Dish with One Spoon Territory.

Community Arts Space Open Studio Schedule: 

1 – 5 pm | Micro Comedies, Macro Tragedies
2 – 4 pm | Treaty Talk
2 – 5 pm | ‘Take a Future, Leave a Future’ All-Ages Game
3 – 4 pm | Invisible Footprints Panel
4 – 5 pm | Panic in the Labyrinth Open Mic

The Community Arts Space is the Gardiner Museum’s annual summer incubator program for arts-based community projects conceived by up-and-coming local creatives. Since 2015, we’ve partner with artists, curators, and cultural innovators to present free, accessible programming—from live musical performances and film screenings, to collaborative art workshops—all inspired by the transformative aspects of clay.

This year’s theme, Recent Histories, is inspired the Gardiner’s mission to be an active force in the community, and to truly reflect the histories, lived experiences, and traditions of its publics. Through five different project streams, our partners will transform the Museum according to this theme, activating our 307-square-metre third-floor Exhibition Hall as well as our Outdoor Plaza.

Earth Day Community Clean Up on April 22 at Akin Lansdowne

Join Akin artists, friends and neighbors on Earth Day for a casual community clean up followed by a free beer and a snack courtesy of Henderson Brewing Co. Limit of one beer and snack per person in exchange for a bag of garbage. 

Rain or shine! Gloves and garbage bags will be provided by Akin. Please RSVP on this Facebook Event Page so we know how much supplies we need. Everyone is welcome to participate but you must be legal drinking age to receive your free beer. Garbage pick-up has been arranged by Henderson Brewing Co.

SCHEDULE:
9:45am - We will meet at 87 Wade Ave on the north side of the building.

10am - Garbage clean-up begins as we walk slowly south along Wade Ave to Bloor street and continue West to the West Toronto Railpath. We will then head south on the Railpath and continue our clean-up.

11am - Arrive at Henderson Brewing Co at 128A Sterling Road where you can exchange your bag of garbage for free beer and a snack! 


About Earth Day:
Earth Day is an annual global event celebrated on April 22. Various events are held to demonstrate support for environmental protection all over the world. First celebrated in 1970, Earth Day events in more than 193 countries are now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network.www.earthday.org

About Akin Projects:
Akin Projects is an arts programming organization and registered nonprofit established in 2015 for the purpose of providing both creative and professional development opportunities to members of Toronto’s artistic and cultural community and the public at large. We have offered services to over thousands of individuals since our inception in 2015. Our sister organization, Akin Collective, was founded in 2009 and provides affordable studio and shared workspace in a friendly atmosphere for over 300 members. www.akinprojects.org

The Art of Healing - Akin Projects at Ronald Macdonald House Charities

The Art of Healing is a collaboration between Akin Projects and Ronald McDonald House Charities Toronto. Local artists graciously gave their time and creativity to craft pieces of art with children staying at the House. The pieces they produced are colourful, unique and beautiful expressions of the pairings that produced them. Families are there during a stressful and often chaotic time in their lives. Creating art gives kids a chance to take their mind off of things and encourages them to pursue their creativity in new ways.

The one-of-a-kind works of art were auctioned off at a special donor and volunteer appreciation event. Click here to see images of the artwork and auction event.

The Art of Healing was also featured on City News. Click here to see the video.

Click here to read the official program from The Art of Healing.

Participating Artists
Rachel Butler, Jason Deary, Suzanne Dennis, Scott Everingham, Matt Greenwood, Nadia Gurkova, Chris Harms, Justyna Janik, Sarah Letovsky, Erin Loree, Sean Martindale, Alex McLeod, Juliana Neufeld, Oliver Pauk, Sara Pearson, Derrick Piens, Jen Pilles, Claire Scherzinger, Broadbent Sisters, Diana VanderMeulen, & Michael Vickers

About Ronald McDonald House Charities Toronto
Ronald McDonald House Charities Toronto is a “home away from home” for seriously ill children and their families to heal better together. The House is “home” to 81 out-of-town families who have had to travel to Toronto for specialized treatment.