WALLS FOR ALL PART 3: COMMUNITY GATHERING & SHARING
A Networking Jam for Women & Gender Diverse Street Artists
Wednesday June 14th, 2023
IN PERSON, 6PM-9PM
210 King St. East, 5th Floor, Toronto, ON (Adaptavist Canada Building)
FREE | Register via EventBrite
Although more women and gender diverse muralists have become established and well-known artists over the years, mural art has traditionally been -and continues to be- a (mostly white) male dominated field full of barriers and challenges for gender diverse artists. How can we create more space for women and gender diverse creators to participate in street art culture? How can we help these artists tackle many of the barriers they face?
Building on the success of Bombing Misogyny from 2021, Mural Routes and East End Arts have been proud to present a program that challenges the status quo in the street art world called Walls For All. Previously we hosted Walls for All Pt 1 and Walls for All Pt 2 sessions online, and now we present Walls for All Pt 3, an in-person evening opportunity to hear from our lead artists, contribute to our Action Plan, and network and brainstorm with other folks in the street art world! We’re also excited to announce that Part 3 will be supported and presented by Luminato Toronto Festival as part of their Illuminating Ideas Series! Together, we can have big conversations and make our Walls for All!
About Walls For All
Organizations like Mural Routes and East End Arts have had countless conversations with women and gender diverse street artists over the years who have shared concerns about the barriers they face: they are offered smaller and/or less visible walls or projects; there is a lack of opportunities to connect and learn from other women/gender diverse folks who have developed a successful career; they continue to assist male lead artists but lack opportunities to lead the projects themselves; and they have to individually advocate for themselves (including in terms of equal payment), perpetuating the stereotype that women are difficult to work with.
Working in public space is also a challenge for women and gender diverse artists: available data suggests that the vast majority of these artists have experienced some form of unwanted sexual attention or sexual harassment in public spaces. And finally, mural artists who identify as women of colour, Indigenous, disabled, and/or queer face additional barriers to not only advance but to enter the field, and so many decide not to pursue mural art as a viable professional career at all.
Walls for All aims to build a more equitable, accessible, and inclusive street art sector for all gender marginalized artists, while also helping to build a network and/or support group or muralists who share similar experiences and struggles. Our goal by the end of this series is to create a shareable and useful Action Plan that can be used in the Toronto street art world, and in municipalities across the country!
Who is this session for?
- Artists and creatives of all disciplines, creative space-makers, producers, arts workers and/or arts administrators who: Love working in the world of street art, mural making, or public art and want to help make it a more equitable and safe world for everyone!
- Big Dreamers who want to connect with others who love bringing beauty to the public sphere and have ideas to share!
- Folks who are looking for an opportunity to meet like-minded creatives from east Toronto and all across Canada!
What Can I Expect?
This is our first in-person/hybrid event as part of Walls for All, and we’re so excited to see you! Following a brief presentation from our Walls for All lead Artists, there will be an opportunity to contribute your own ideas and vision to our Draft Action Plan, network and brainstorm with other Street Artists and Arts Workers, enjoy some refreshments, and more!
General Breakdown of the evening:
- 6:00-7:00PM – Say Hello, Enjoy Refreshments, Familiarize with & Review Action Plan
- 7:00-7:15PM – Gather Attendees for Panel Presentation
- 7:15-7:45PM – Panel Presentation from our Walls for All Artists (an Overview of Everything that has happened in Sessions 1 and 2)
- 7:45-8:45PM – Review and Contribute to Action Plan; Network with Other Guests; Enjoy Refreshments
- 9:00PM – Wrap-up & Goodbye
Register:
If you’re interested in joining us on June 14th, hit the button below to register on Eventbrite!
If you require any accommodations for a disability, please contact Cynella on the East End Arts team by June 7th, 2023, at cynella@eastendarts.ca.
About the Artists:
Panelist: Fiya Bruxa
Website | Instagram
Fiya Bruxa is an international award winning visual artist, actor, filmmaker, and playwright. Through magical realism, poetry and mathematics, her artistic vision questions and celebrates the beauty, dignity and perseverance of those who have, or continue to, overcome adversity and oppression.
Fiya’s visual stories are expressed through canvas, mural, graffiti and installation. Her work has been exhibited in select galleries and international festivals, and one can find her large-scale murals in the streets of Toronto, Montreal, New York, Sweden, UK, Senegal, Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Venezuela and Colombia. In 2015, she painted the largest collective mural in Canada with her Essencia Art Collective, located in Toronto.
For over 15 years, this Latinx Canadian bruxa has collaborated with local and international communities using art as a tool for social change and community empowerment. Whether on her own or in collaboration with her Bruxas Crew or Essencia Arts Collective (co-founder and co-director), her arts-in-community work has mobilized and engaged hundreds of youth and community members on a variety of social and environmental issues.
She has also worked in public and private sector with a focus on policy development and program evaluation, in the areas of human rights, sustainability, innovation, international development, trade, and diplomacy. She holds a BFA in Theatre Performance from Concordia University, and a Masters of Global Affairs with a specialization in economic development and innovation, from the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto.
Panelist: Claire Browne
Website | Instagram
Claire Browne (she/her) is a multi-disciplinary visual artist and mural artist living and working in Toronto. She graduated from OCAD University in 2015 with a Bachelor of Fine Art degree. Her artwork features a focus on the botanical world, tropical spaces and the Black diaspora. Claire Browne has exhibited extensively in group shows in the Greater Toronto Area. Her work has been acquired as part of Scotiabank’s private art collection.
Panelist: Danielle Hyde
Website | Instagram
Danielle Hyde is a multi-disciplinary Indigenous artist and persons with a disability (OCD). She is a member of Red Urban Nation Artist Collective (RUN) creating Indigenous murals and place-making.
A blend of different mediums their work is centered by a practice that honours Art as alive and acting on its own co-creation. Danielle collaborates with all beings; seen and unseen, human and beyond-human, in this creative chorus to tell stories. Through conversations with Art on ethical relationality with the world generosity anchors our spaces. In creating windows of understanding we can commune in knowledge sharing that replenishes community alongside Art.
About The Presenters:
About Mural Routes
Mural Routes activates communities by facilitating the creation of responsive, collaborative murals, and provides opportunities to build and advance careers in mural art. Our vision is to be a leading resource for all artists, organizations and communities creating mural art.
About East End Arts
East End Arts is a non-profit community arts organization that serves the east end of Toronto. We provide inclusive arts programming, events and services to our local communities, and we provide professional development opportunities to both emerging and established artists and arts organizations.
Funders:
Walls for All has been generously funded and supported by the Canada Council for the Arts!
Walls for All Pt. 3 has been also funded and supported by Luminato Festival Toronto, as part of their Illuminating Ideas Series!
