Community Arts Space events including art workshops, walking tours, artist demonstrations, and experimental theatre now open to the public

Toronto, ON July 12, 2016—At the launch on the new Community Arts Space, the Gardiner announced that the Museum would begin offering free admission to visitors 18 and under, a major step toward increasing the accessibility of its world-renowned ceramic collection.

Now, the Museum has some more exciting news to share: The Gardiner has been awarded a $25,000 Seed Grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation. The funds will go toward the new Community Arts Space, making the entire summer of programming, some of which was ticketed or being offered with admission—art workshops, artist demonstrations, experimental theatre, and walking tours—free to the public.

“With the launch of the Community Arts Space and the Museum’s new free admission policy for youth, we’re making a strong effort to get people—all people—engaging with the arts in a hands-on, meaningful way,” said Kelvin Browne, Executive Director and CEO of the Gardiner Museum. “The Gardiner is grateful to the Ontario Trillium Foundation and the Government of Ontario for allowing us to open our doors to new audiences who are interested in taking advantage of our city’s rich and diverse cultural opportunities. This funding couldn’t have come at a better moment.”

The Gardiner inaugurated the Community Arts Space on June 28 with five community partners: Akin Projects, South Riverdale Community Health Centre, Crazy Dames, UnSpun Theatre, and VIBE Arts. Akin kicked off the first two weeks of the project with free clay workshops, still-life drawing, and a community celebration.

Next up, from July 19 to 24, the South Riverdale Community Health Centre will mount an exhibition of work by two generations of Muslim women, drawing from their experiences of stigma and discrimination. On Thursday July 21 from 3 to 5 pm and Saturday July 23 from 1 to 3 pm, the participants will hold free silkscreening demonstrations. All are welcome to join a community celebration on Friday July 22 from 6 to 8 pm.

Then from July 25 to August 5, Crazy Dames, a collaboration between visual artist/educator Jennie Suddick and urban/community/cultural planner Sara Udow, will work with the public to create a scale version of the neighbourhood, as well as offering free walking tours, including a look at examples of public art in unconventional locations around the city.

The project will conclude on Thursday August 4 from 6 to 8 pm with a panel discussion focusing on the role that creative forms of exploration in cities should play in both the urban design and the planning process. The panel will be comprised of Kristyn Wong-Tam, City Councillor of Ward 27; Adam Nicklin, partner and cofounder of Public Work, an award winning urban design and landscape architecture ­firm; Josh Fullan, educator, consultant and founder of Maximum City; and Janine Marchessault, public art curator and Professor of Media Studies. As a result of the Seed Grant, the panel will now be offered free with registration.

From August 11 to 20, Shira Leuchter of the award-winning contemporary performance group UnSpun Theatre will present All The Things I’ve Lost. Leuchter will revisit significant objects that have been lost throughout her life, alongside her mother, a ceramist, who will reinvent, recreate, and honour these lost childhood objects by re-making them out of clay. Tickets for the performances are now also free with registration.

Finally, VIBE Arts will hold free art workshops from August 22 to 16 and August 29 to September 1, daily from 1 to 4 pm. For their project Making the Real, eight artists working in pairs will create new multi-disciplinary works that explore how to make the creative process authentic and engaging. Visitors will be able to observe and interact with the artists-in-residence.

The Community Arts Space: Make It Real Project runs until September 1, 2016. Learn more about the individual initiatives below or visit livetest.gardinermuseum.com/makeitrealproject for full details and to register.

ABOUT THE GARDINER MUSEUM

The Gardiner Museum celebrates the art of ceramics and engages local and international audiences by promoting understanding of the long history of people crafting in clay. The Museum stewards a highly important collection, connecting visitors to the fundamental role of ceramics in many cultures throughout history, and offers special temporary displays, many highlighting the relevancy of ceramics to contemporary life.

The permanent collection comprises approximately 4,000 objects, and focuses on specific areas which have been collected in depth. These include the most important collection of European porcelain in Canada, with particular strengths in Meissen, Vienna, and Hausmaler decorated porcelain, as well as a comprehensive collection of figures inspired by the commedia dell’arte. The Gardiner holds the best collection of Italian Renaissance maiolica in Canada, and a superb collection of English tin-glazed pottery. It preserves highly significant collections of ceramics from the Ancient Americas, Chinese blue and white porcelain, Japanese porcelain, and contemporary Canadian ceramics. The Gardiner is among the few museums in the world focused on ceramics, and is one of the most important specialty museums internationally. For more information, please visit: livetest.gardinermuseum.com.

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Media Contact:
Rachel Weiner
Communications Coordinator, Gardiner Museum
416.408.5062
[email protected]