The ARTSPEAKS Project
The ARTSPEAKS Project is dedicated to offering women impacted by sexual violence, addictions and mental health challenges, a ‘safe space’ to collaborate with local professional artists in the service of cultural mentorship, fostering resiliency through arts-based skills-building towards the creation of personally meaningful works. Participants, with or without art-making experience, take part in workshops built on the basics of art, design and narrative processes, working in small groups along side professional artists in a functional artists' studio.
Over the past year we have had the honour of mentoring and working alongside many individuals who have helped to make ARTSPEAKS and the 'Ideal Art Space' feel like home. As we near the end of our first year it has only become clearer how much we value and are valued by the community. The feed back we have received from participants and our partner agencies let us know how much the project is needed in our community.
Our first year has been gratefully funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation. We intend to apply for funding to continue with the ARTSPEAKS Project come 2019. In the interim we will be making every effort to keep the doors at the 'Ideal Art Space' (724 Queen Street E.) open. Idealy, any and all monies aquired through this campaing will go toward renting the space, purchasing materials, and creating a workshop series offered by the ARTSPEAKS Team on a once a week basis through the 2018 year.
We ask that you take the time to check out the ARTSpeaks website and what we've been up to through our first year of programming.
It's difficult to convey the powerful and positive impact this project has had on the women/female-identifying folks in the community. This is not art therapy, but the practice of using art and creation to tell our stories: creating strength, friendship, and building a healthy community. We at the ARTSPEAKS Project would be so grateful to receive any amount of support in order to help keep our doors from closing.
