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Meet ArtReach's 2018 Grantees!

ArtReach is pleased to introduce you to the 29 groups that were awarded funding for their art-based projects for youth in our 2018 granting round. 


This $300,000 in funding is available thanks to ArtReach's partnership with the Toronto Arts Council (click here for more info on this partnership!)


CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE NEWLY FUNDED ARTISTS! For project descriptions of previously funded groups, see our website.


Art Fusion– Where I Stand $4860.00 Art Fusion will run Where I Stand, a youth-lead photography project that culminates in a community exhibition in Scarborough. Where I Stand is a 3-day intensive participatory photography workshop for youth living in the Kingston-Galloway-Orton Park neighbourhood of Scarborough, running in Fall 2018. This project will be led by Art Fusion, the youth leadership group at Healthy Living For Arts (HLA), and supported by the founder of Project Kids & Cameras, who will mentor youth in PhotoVoice, a method which combines photography, dialogue, photo exhibits and social action to address community issues youth care about.


Conscious Minds Co-operative Inc.– Whole $10,000.00 Conscious Minds Cooperative Inc. is facilitating Whole, a multi-arts storytelling project led by young womxn of colour in Tkaronto, that creates healing spaces for people to come together to remember, re-imagine, and embody holistic ways of being. This project will inspire social action through the arts by questioning what it means to be whole during this time of global transformation. A one-week residency in June 2018 will provide leadership training to seven young womxn of colour artists from Tkaronto. Through skill-exchange and mentorship, these artists will co-design workshops and facilitate them for youth from underserved communities. Whole will culminate with a magazine connecting body, spirit, and Earth.


CUE– CUE Artist Grants $15,000.00 CUE is an award-winning arts initiative dedicated to providing high-access funding, support, mentorship, employment, and exhibition opportunities for new generation artists who live and work on the margins in Toronto. This project will run from August 1, 2018 to December 20, 2019 and will support the creation of 17-20 individual art projects in multiple disciplines by new generation artists who live and work on the margins, and who face systemic barriers that can preclude their artistic contributions to culture.


Dream House Collective– Build A Dream $10,000.00 Dream House Collective will lead Build A Dream, supporting the professional development of marginalized artists, ages 18 – 29, and the mentorship and training of youth, towards the creation and execution of DHC’s annual Music + Arts Festival. From February to July 2019, youth will undergo an intensive 24 week training program that focuses on In-Studio Music Production; including vocal training and songwriting proficiency. Youth will also be mentored in the various elements of Event Coordination; such as artist & venue bookings, contract writing, press-release writing, set design, stage management, marketing, and branding.


FYOU: The Forgiveness Project– Look Both Ways $10,000.00 FYOU: The Forgiveness Project will run Look Both Ways, a six episode podcast and quarterly publication for inmates and by inmates of Toronto South Detention Centre. TSDC houses over one thousand individuals, with the majority being marginalized young men under the age of 35. From June 2018 to July 2019, Look Both Ways will empower these young men to develop their artistic and leadership skills, and support their artistic expression through the creation of these podcasts and publications.


Hala Sayed– Harvest $5,000.00 Hala Sayed and Virginia Jahyu will facilitate Harvest, a youth-led interdisciplinary arts series offering strength-based creative cultivation to a group of 5-8 Black, Indigenous, LGBTQ+, and youth of colour, communities across the GTA, prioritizing low-income and/or street-based youth. This project will offer access to an anti-violent art space and politically conscious creative exploration to a group of youth participants who are often systemically denied these services. During Summer 2018, youth will gain creative arts skills specifically in the performing arts and creative writing, as well as gain the opportunity to develop a strong supportive network, increasing their sense of belonging, well-being, and creative confidence.


Illumine Media Project– The Hideout Media Lab $10,000.00 Illumine Media Project will run The Hideout Media Lab, a community based arts initiative running from September to December 2018, which aims to bring a group of youth together from the Scarborough region to experience both media analysis and media creation. Building on a previous pilot project, this series of workshops will give participants the opportunity to analyze themes in Illumine Media Projects’ youth-created web series, How We Grow, in order to reflect on their own neighbourhoods and communities, as well as to create and develop their own artistic projects, through script writing, acting, filming and recording, which will be shared at a culminating showcase.


In Studio Collective– The Production Lab $10,000.00 In Studio Collective will lead The Production Lab, working with 10 youth from across Toronto to develop skills in production and audio engineering for music, podcasts and radio. Over the course of 16 sessions, running until April 2019, youth will be taught key skills in this art form, supported in building up portfolios and understanding the industry, as well as receiving networking opportunities to connect with lead industry decision makers. Youth will then be given an opportunity to test the skills learned as part of a internship with local youth led podcasts or artists, where they will support in the production of content or a demo.


Jena Alma Singh Herbert– Pretty Wings STAGES $15,000.00 Jena Alma Singh Herbert will facilitate The Pretty Wings: STAGES project, a program for marginalized young people who self-identify as facing mental health challenges, survivors of abuse, BIPOC, or LGBTQ+, and who are interested in pursuing dance as a creative outlet and/or career. From July 2018 to March 2019, youth in the GTA aged 18-29 will be mentored by established youth artists on a one-on-one basis to create authentic dance performance pieces reflective of an aspect of their own lived experience. The program will have an emphasis on storytelling and healing through the creation of performance-art. Participants will also participate in group sessions and the co-creation of a collective piece.


Jordan McTavish– City Shorts, New Arrivals $9999.99 Jordan McTavish will lead City Shorts- New Arrivals, where recent high school graduates will design and facilitate free workshops on practical documentary production for under-served new-arrival youths from Parkdale. The workshop series will run bi-weekly for six weeks in July and August 2018, and participants will write, direct and feature in a short documentary about their life in Toronto, or about a quintessential Toronto experience. The documentaries will have a gala screening and will later be hosted online and promoted through social media.


JustOverMusic– Grassroots Music $9909.00 JustOverMusic will lead Grassroots Music, a program that will engage youth 15-29 from York South-Weston through artist development and hip-hop music training. This program is comprised of 12-Weeks of workshops, from August 2018 to August 2019, where guest speakers and industry field trips will provide 30 youth with tailored artist development supports and technical training around producing, recording and sound engineering. Youth will be provided with the space to create empowering personal narratives through music, and have their voices heard. The program will culminate in an event where youth are able to perform their songs for family, friends and community members.


Kamalayan Konsciousness Kollective– Kamalayan Youth Midya Project $9600.00 Kamalayan Konsciousness Kollective will run the Youth Midya Project, a media training program for youth of Philippine descent, empowering emerging artists with the skills to create new and original radio and television content. This project will be in the context of Filipino history and current events both in the Canadian diaspora and their relationship to the Philippines. Five participants who identify as Filipino will be engaged in meaningful workshops from June to September 2018, with the goal of participants writing, planning, and executing original episodes independently at the end of the program. The Youth Midya Project will prioritize newcomer and under-resourced Filipinos in this training, who otherwise would face barriers accessing this type of programming.


Kendra Yee– Davenport’s Speech Bubble $10,000.00 Kendra Yee will partner with the Davenport-Perth Neighbourhood and Community Health Centre to run Speech Bubble, working with 11 young women aged 14-18 to create a Comics Program focused on personal identity. Starting in Fall 2018, the program will be split into eight workshops focusing on identity exploration and how to develop short comics. The final launch party will be held in 2019, with the release of a physical and digital anthology containing comics made in the program. Hard copies will be produced, with copies going to participants, libraries, community health centers, and youth-based facilities.


Lance Constantine– Speakers U $9963.00 Lance Constantine will facilitate Speakers U, a program designed to help 10 young black males 18-29 living in the Ward 6 Etobicoke-Lakeshore area learn the art of storytelling. Participants will learn through the framework of public speaking training and communication techniques using the art forms of creative writing, spoken word, poetry and monologues. Workshops running from August to December 2018 will serve the creative expression of allegory and will have a direct, personal and emotional impact on participants self-identity. Through the experience of workshop activities and ongoing weekly training, participants will plan a showcase event to present their allegorical speeches to a live audience.


Leslie Van Every– The Dalli Collective $9998.99 Leslie VanEvery will lead The Dalli Collective, a group of 6-8 Indigenous youth between the ages of 18-29, who will come together to learn the traditional Indigenous art of beading. Bead work in the Indigenous community is a reflection on oneself, and is an art form that also teaches many life lessons.This project gives participants the opportunity to reclaim a part of their identities through storytelling and cultural workshops, running from July 2018 to January 2019, and gives the opportunity of meeting with elders in the community. Newly gained knowledge will be the inspiration for the beaded project (medallion) that will be showcased at an event at the end of the program.


Lolita Richards- Wee Bake 2018 $10,000.00 Lolita Richards will facilitate a second session of Wee Bake, a 9 week program serving youth in the West Hill area. This program allows 20 young aspiring bakers, ages 14-17 to learn basic baking and pastry art skills. Wee Bake will combine baking and basic financial education into fun activities. Youth that participate will receive baking supplies upon completion of the program. The project will run throughout Summer 2018 from the East Scarborough StoreFront Community Centre, a free commercial kitchen space in Scarborough.


National Youth Action Council– If You Ask Me $10,000.00 The National Youth Action Council, in partnership with Workman Arts, launched the pilot project “If You Ask Me” (IYAM) in 2017 as a part of the Rendezvous with Madness Film Festival (RWM). Young artists were invited to create short films inspired by their experience with mental illness. Building on the success of this pilot project, IYAM will again participate in the RWM Film Festival. This new program will offer professional training to the young artists and mentorship provided by experienced filmmakers through workshops running from July to December 2018.


P.U.S.H Elite– Bright Lights in the Heights $10,000.00 PUSH Elite presents Bright Lights in the Heights, a music program that will engage emerging artist from the Lawrence Heights neighbourhood of Toronto. PUSH Elite provide artists with opportunities to grow their brand, build networks, and develop their crafts through workshops that focus on songwriting, performance training, studio etiquette, song structure, and understanding industry institutions like SOCAN. Bright Lights in the Heights will culminate in September 2018 with a final mix tape that is professionally recorded, mixed and mastered, as well as an intimate listening session for funders and community residents with artist performing their songs live.


Patrick Walters– Under the Banyan Tree, Phase Two $14,494.00 Patrick Walters’ Under The Banyan Tree is an 8 week course designed to immerse participants in Caribbean art and storytelling with a heavy focus on Caribbean literature. The program will also touch on other Caribbean art forms, using various themes such as sustainability, community, and identity. The project will culminate in September 2018 with an online platform where participants and the public can access course work, information and participant pieces. The community will also be encouraged and welcomed to submit their own pieces, information, and events after the course is completed in order to create a platform that is sustainable and helpful to the community.


Rice Roll Productions– Invisible Footprints Phase Two: Youth Guerrilla Archiving $15,000.00 Rice Roll Productions will follow up on the success of Invisible Footprints, a multi-generational art exhibition showcasing Toronto’s LGBTQ Asian community histories, Phase Two: Youth Guerrilla Archiving will engage Asian LGBTQ youth to further facilitate inter-generational dialogue through art and storytelling. From July 2018 to June 2019 the project team will create platforms, such as 4 bi-monthly art-based community forums, a knowledge transfer symposium, and a website, to engage the Asian LGBTQ communities in Toronto. Through community organizing and storytelling, the proposed project will foster a sense of belonging, strengthen community support networks, and improve art skills for youth leaders involved.


Ryan Dela Cruz- Toronto Krump and Hip Hop Dance Mentorship Program $15,000.00 Ryan Dela Cruz and the BUCC-N-FLAVOR team are a collective from Toronto who utilize dance to engage intergenerational dialogue and build the learning capacity of the next generation youth. The Toronto Krump and Hip Hop Dance Mentorship Program will create a space for youth to learn about and further Toronto dance culture for social change. An 18-month dance mentorship program from July 2018 to March 2020 will involve 25 youth participants from the Kennedy-Eglinton Scarborough community and focus on artist-to-artist development, mental and physical capacity building, local and provincial performances, film documentation and a final recital performance open to the public.


SoundCheck- Play Our Sound Too! $15,000.00 Soundcheck will run Play Our Sound Too!, a one-year musical instruction and mentorship program with a unique focus on music recording for racialized youth ages 15 – 29 years old in Weston Mount-Dennis. This program provides music recording and performance opportunities for youth musicians, equipping participants with the skills, resources and mentorship needed to excel as artists and leaders in their community. Through this series, running from July 2018 to June 2019, participants will have the opportunity to develop life-skills and leadership experience through weekly mentorship-sessions led by experienced musicians.


Tanya Turton– Adornment: Stories of Transformation $10,000.00 Tanya Turton will lead Adornment: Stories of transformation, a space committed to connecting the intersections of art, beauty and wellness. This workshop series will run from July 2018 to March 2019, and will provide a space prioritizing the healing of Black women and femme identified black folks in the unique ways they relate to art, beauty and wellness. The program will explore storytelling in the forms of digital arts, media, writing, and body adornment for improved wellness, self-care and healing.


The BAR Institute- Summer School $4991.00 BAR Institute presents: Summer School, a 12 week music program for youth aged 13-18 designed to create the opportunity to develop as independent artists, while maintaining accessibility through free programming. As educators, the BAR Institute will organize a clear path for youth in an easily manageable manner, focussing on slow, in-depth learning and artist development, promoting present and mindful engagement. The project will run from July to October 2018.


The Dirty B-Sides- The Dirty B-Sides: Gatherings $10,000.00 The Dirty B-Sides are one of Toronto’s leading hip-hop music collectives, creating an open door for youth to learn, join, and expand in their own ventures. Called Gathering, this community-based performance workshop series running until December 2018, will work to create a sustainable culture surrounding live hip-hop performance, teaching professional skills, starting with the quality and ethics of artists and musicians to improve relations with local venues as a community. The project will culminate in professionally recording live ensemble arrangements to book performances for six Toronto feature artists, and support ensemble-inclusive live music culture involving new collective participants.


The Rebellevations Project- The Rebellevations Project $7730.00 Melisa Prieto and Valerie Chavez will lead the Rebellevations Project, a free, ten week art mentorship and youth leadership development course for youth 13-17 years of age, living in the Black Creek Community. From January to March 2019, youth will expand their technical skills in mixed media mural creation and develop workshop facilitation skills. The focus of the program will be for participants to gain a deeper understanding of their personal creative process through self reflection pieces, incorporate education principles to facilitate workshops to children and their peers, and collaboratively create a community mural. This peer- to-peer learning and multi-level-mentorship process will strengthen leadership skills, creating a closer dialogue between children and youth within the community.


Wave Art Collective– Wave Runners Program $11504.02 Wave Art Collective will run The Wave Runners Program (WRP), an arts entrepreneurship initiative for minority youth aged 15-24 in the Scarborough/Malvern community. The aim of this project is to give young people exposure to both the digital media and entrepreneurial skills required to create social media content as a means to build confidence, express creativity, and gain the often neglected business skills that are relevant in today’s technology-driven society. The project will operate from September 2018 to May 2019, involving weekly sessions that feature entrepreneurial education, workshops from industry professionals, experiential film/photo/audio training, and internship opportunities.


Where Are You From? Collective– Where Are You From? Collective $6950.00 The Where Are You From? Collective (WAYF) is an arts-based activism program for Asian-identified youth. WAYF offers arts-based educational workshops, community events, and an online platform for discussion. This project will run from July 2018 to May 2019 to empower Asian youth to develop critical art practices; challenge dominant culture by centering the voices and creative expression of Asian artists; and offer tools of engagement for Asian youth that allow them to expand their networks within the Asian community while also critically reflecting on their own identity in relation to other marginalized communities.


Yasin Osman– ShootForPeace $10,000.00 Yasin Osman will lead ShootForPeace, a unique learning opportunity for youth in Regent Park to photograph the rapidly changing neighborhood in a revitalization process. In the 9 month project, Yasin Osman will teach the fundamentals of building a photography brand to youth. The program will teach youth how to take photos, and culminate in a community photo album. It will be part a legacy project for Regent Park, and in 50 years, the ‘new’ community will be able to remember the families in photos that once lived in the neighborhood.

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