creative forces

Blog # 73…September 2017

A headline in Saturday’s Globe and Mail read   “How art can nourish a community” referring to Gallery 1313 which opened in 1997 in Parkdale.  I know this blog is often Toronto-centric, so here's some local context - Parkdale is in the downtown west end of the city, an area plagued by drug use and crime. A number of things have contributed to a shift in the past 20 years, but the Gallery was early on the scene and has maintained its presence as a safe and positive space that nourishes the healthy aspects of the community. 

As well as being open and welcoming to the public (as opposed to when it was a  jail) it has an active outreach to local schools, providing a place to exhibit the work of artists of all ages and from near and far.

Recently, members of the large Tibetan diaspora in the neighbourhood flocked to see the work of Tashu Norba, one of their compatriotes who lives and works in Amsterdam.

                                                

The Aga Khan Museum is embedded in another neighbourhood feeling some change.   On the northeast edge of the city, originally developed in the last century as an industrial/business area, it's now home to thousands of folks, many of them newcomers. The Museum, opened in 2014, is set amidst beautiful gardens and reflecting pools and shares the site with an Ishmaeli cultural centre and mosque.
On a recent visit we were treated to a wedding party strolling around the grounds, the women’s gowns glittering and reflecting in the pools.

In the spirit of connecting cultures through art, the current programme features several Canadian artists.  i have now seen, a poem by Parliamentary Poet-in-Residence George Elliot Clarke explores identity as an indigenous black.

And...a whimsical piece by Babak Golkar titled, The Fox, the Nut and the Banker's Hand catches our eye, makes us think and reminds us of what cross cultural pollination is bringing to Canadian art.

But the most brilliant exhibit is outside…Skate Girls of Kabul consists of large cubes with portraits of young Afghan girls with their skateboards. Their faces reflect joy or  shyness as they peek out from their helmets (worn over headscarves) or confidence as they don knee pads over their traditional leg coverings. Skateistan is an NGO operating in Cambodia, South Africa and Afghanistan, empowering youth and children through skateboarding and education. A great idea!

Many thanks to Norm Nicholls for the photos.