WHAT: PW Practice/Process 02: Artists in Communities
WHERE: Possible Worlds (708G Somerset Street W.)
DATE: Thursday, October 26, 2017
TIME: 6:30-8:30 PM
This event is PWYC with registration; suggested $10 at the door. Spaces are limited. Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/pw-practice-process-02-artists-in-communities-tickets-38704277536
Practice/Process is a new series of professional development meet ups for emerging artists, designers and other creative practitioners hosted by Possible Worlds. We discuss a particular theme, focusing on the "what" of guest artists practices, and the "how" of their process.
This month, we’re focusing on artists working in various communities. They'll speak to their practices which include facilitating, educating, and mentoring, some with vulnerable communities, in Ottawa and beyond.
Guest speakers:
Speakers Mique Michelle and Mailyne Briggs both facilitate youth-centered visual art programming. As a graffiti artist and Ottawa School of Art alumni, Mique’s work takes her to schools and communities throughout Ontario where she includes children and youth in the creation of collaborative mural projects. Mailyne is the founder of social enterprise/creative studio Dream.Love.Grow., and non-profit A.R.T (A Real Thought) In Action. Her work at Dream.Love.Grow allows her to donate proceeds and creative services to local causes, while A.R.T In Action delivers programming to youth facing barriers in Ottawa and Nunavut. Stephanie Nadeau is Head of Ottawa Art Gallery's growing Public, Educational and Community Programs department, where she has advanced the Gallery’s commitment to accessibility by forging a programming and consultation partnership with Tangled Art + Disability, developed volunteer programming councils for both youth and older adults, instigated childcare during exhibition openings and events.
Beyond the experiences of our speakers, we’ll discuss various opportunities and resources to fund and sustain involvement within various communities. This meetup is open to creative practitioners who are curious about working within different communities, as well as representatives from organizations interested in developing creative programming.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Mique Michelle is a Franco-Ontarienne from Field whose nomadic journeys allow her to exercise her graffiti art from Northern Ontario to France. Through her travels and studies at the Ottawa School of Art, she has evolved as a mixed media artist and an active facilitator of the arts in Ottawa. Her work can be seen in galleries, public buildings, and in outdoor venues. Mique often includes youth to create with her in collaborative mural projects, as she remains a strong advocate for abolishing negative perceptions of graffiti and street art.
Mailyne Briggs (aka Mai) is a self-taught multidisciplinary artist, photographer, video producer and entrepreneur. In 2007 she started Dream Love Grow Media, an arts-based social enterprise, which allocates proceeds and services to help local causes, charities and individuals in need. In 2014, Mai and a fellow artist dreamed up A Real Thought (A.R.T.) In Action and by 2015 the organization became a registered non-profit. A.R.T in Action provides free 12-week art workshops for youth facing barriers in Ottawa and Nunavut. Notable achievements in the organization's first two years include: paid mentorships for youth to start their own businesses; two satellite workshops in Arviat, Nunavut; three workshops with youth living with disabilities; a Canada150 collaboration that involved our youth showcasing their work in the Toronto Subway System; and now, a partnership with CNIB, an art workshop for blind and low vision youth.
Photo courtesy of Ottawa Art Gallery
Stephanie Nadeau is Head of Ottawa Art Gallery's growing Public, Educational and Community Programs department. She has more than doubled OAG’s public programming attendance by developing an expanded program of events, programs and projects that promote public engagement with the Gallery. Stephanie studied art at the Ontario College of Art and Design (BFA 2005) and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (MFA 2008), and brings previous professional programming experience from the Foreman Art Gallery of Bishop's University and The Banff Centre. She continues to foster ongoing mentorship opportunities in education and public programs, cultivating the OAG’s commitment to providing students with opportunities to develop professional skills in a not-for-profit arts environment. Her outreach into the community also includes serving on the Board of Directors of Being Studio (formerly H'art of Ottawa), an innovative visual art studio that facilitates creative opportunities for adults with intellectual disabilities.
We would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario.