August 29 – September 7, 2024
The Riverdale Hub Gallery
1326 Gerrard St East, 3rd Floor

Community Arts Space 2024

Established in 2016, the Gardiner Museum’s Community Arts Space (CAS) is a series of collaborations with community partners and local artists rooted in the real and metaphorical ability of clay to transform. The program provides an inclusive space for its participants to connect, collaborate, and explore their creativity through hands-on making and open dialogue.

This year’s featured summer presentation celebrates the theme “Fostering Connections.” In collaboration with VIBE Arts, we invited ten emerging artists from diverse disciplines and with limited ceramic experience to reflect on their own personal histories, inspirations, and cultures. Using the medium of clay, they explored aspects of their identity ranging from family and tradition to food and nature, resulting in works that express their unique perspectives while highlighting broader connections between clay, creativity, and community.

With the Gardiner Museum temporarily closed for our Ground Floor Transformation, workshops are being held off site in July and August in partnership with Clay Space, guided by ceramic artist and mentor Adam Williams. The workshops create space for the artists to build meaningful relationships and develop narratives as they learn techniques ranging from coiling to mold pressing. The culmination of their work will be presented at The Riverdale Hub Gallery. Visitors will have the opportunity to learn about the artists and discover how working with clay can foster and nurture connections within our communities and ourselves.

Free Public Celebration on September 7

Join us at The Riverdale Hub Gallery on September 7 at 2 pm for a public celebration and discover how these emerging artists, through their work with clay, have built connections that embody their personal growth and shared narrative. Learn more

Pixel Heller Solo Exhibition 

In the spirit of summer—a season synonymous with warmth, happiness, and the city coming to life—I invite viewers to immerse themselves in a world where Jumbies come out to play. 

These Caribbean spirits embody the essence of traditional carnival. With its history and traditions, their embodiment is a powerful metaphor in my work. It is a time when masks and costumes allow for a playful exploration of identity, challenging societal norms and embracing the multiplicity of the self. 

“Summer Jumbies” is not just a celebration of the season; it is a celebration of life, community, and the enduring power of cultural expression. It is a tribute to the joy and vitality of embracing one’s heritage and identity. Through this exhibition, I hope to create a space where viewers can connect with the transformative power of art and culture. 

Learn more: https://www.thedrake.ca/events/workflow-pixel-heller-solo-exhibition/

Join us at Gallery 44 for this year’s OUTREACH Darkroom Photography Exhibit, where participating creatives will be awarded before showcasing their works under the theme “Unfixed.”

Facilitated by Toronto-based portrait and documentary photographer Ebti Nabag, the theme of “unfixed” inspired young creatives and emerging photographers to explore darkroom techniques to convey their identities and stories using film photography in a traditional darkroom studio.

Learn more: https://www.gallery44.org/exhibitions/unfixed