Akin Vitrine Q&A Series: Chico Togni installation "Portable Moon (with physics)"

Akin Vitrine Q&A Series:
Chico Togni installation “Portable Moon (with physics)”

Oct 27 until Jan 7, 2024

The Akin Vitrine Gallery, 1747 St Clair Ave W

An image of Chico Togni’s sculpture, Portable Moon (with physics) in the Akin St Clair’s Vitrine Gallery. An American flag (without the white stars), sewn against a beige sheet appears to be waving. The flag is attached to a pole sunken into a sculpture of a jagged rock.

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Be sure to swing by Akin St Clair’s Vitrine Gallery at for Chico Togni’s new exhibition, Portable Moon (with physics), which will be on until January 7th, 2024. We caught up with Chico to learn more about his art, inspirations and favorite places in the city. 

Chico Togni works with cardboard, fabric, wood, metal and other found materials to create images and large sculptures. He also creates situations and happenings within the structures he builds. Most recently he exhibited his work at Kunsthaus Dresden and the Museum der Bildenden Kunst (MdbK) Leipzig, in Germany. He was an artist in residency at Cité International des Arts in Paris and Museumquartier in Vienna amongst other institutions, including the Artist Research Fellow at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C., EUA. Chico Togni holds a Bachelor in Sculpture from São Paulo University, Brazil. Chico is currently based in Toronto where he is experimenting with quilting and developed the Bellaroche Stories, an expanding series of quilts and collages that narrates the trajectory of rocks, power tools and visual paradoxes.

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Tell us about your exhibition 

“Portable Moon with Physics” is a scientific contemplation. Crafted from paper maché, cardboard, and found material, this piece offers a fresh perspective on the moon's iconic flag. This sculpture represents the lunar flag, as if it were experiencing Earth's gravity, mirroring the calm and stillness of a terrestrial flag on a windless day. 

A fan generates a gentle breeze that delicately rustles the flag, preserving its position as if unaffected by the lunar environment. "Portable Moon with Physics" invites observers to reflect on the fascinating interplay of scientific principles and creative interpretation. It pays homage to the delicate equilibrium between the celestial and terrestrial realms, where even in the absence of a terrestrial atmosphere, the presence of gravity remains ever-present. The sculpture's title, "Portable Moon with Physics," encapsulates the humorous blend of science and art, reminding us of the unbreakable connection between fiction and science... 

This is the first attempt of the artist, to merge the clean and neat necessities of the world of quilting fabric and the dirty and chaotic sculptures with cardboard, found materials and paper maché. 

What are you curious about right now? What do you do to stimulate curiosity and inspiration? 

Collage and Sculpture.

What was your first medium and what's your favourite tool/material right now? 

Cardboard and Cardboard.

Do you have a studio routine ie: Are you a daily ritual person or are you project-focused in spurts?  

Both! Studio routine and project focused, depending on what I'm working on, the routine gets just entirely focused on the next mission!

Do you have creative prompts or habits to help you get started? Any self-care tips to share?

I just keep trying to do everything with found materials, “survival mode” on.

A detailed, close up image of Chico Togni’s piece, Portable Moon (with physics), a fragmented American flag, missing its white stars, is sewn into a beige fabric in such a way that it appears to be waving in the wind.

What are some of the benefits of being in the studio for you? What brought you to Akin?

To share a space and feel part of a group with similar needs.

What are you NOT very good at? What do you WANT to be good at? 

Bureaucracy...

Where is your favorite place in the city to buy/get art supplies, tools and materials?

Dollarama / Street / Home Depot (last option)

What is the most inspiring place in the city for you right now?

Ikea... the challenge of going there and trying to buy nothing, just try everything...

What is your favorite place in the city to view art? This could mean either in a gallery, a museum, or in a public space.

Whimbrel Point at Colonel Samuel Smith Park

An image of Chico Togni’s sculpture, Portable Moon (with physics), an American flag (without the white stars), sewn against a beige sheet appears to be waving. The flag is attached to a pole sunken into a small red and beige stool. The sculpture is outdoors, on gravel ground with tire tracks, behind the sculpture are dirty snow piles, reminiscent of a ploughed parking lot. 

Chico is an Akin studio member as well as a 2023 recipient of the Newcomer Space Award. Created by Akin, the Toronto Arts Foundation’s Neighbourhood Arts Network, the Newcomer Space Award provides newcomers credit for an Akin studio membership and to Akin’s Remote Gallery. This award not only provides funding and space essential for professional artists to grow their practice, but also supports artists in growing their network through the shared studio space model. 

Find more of Chico’s work on his Instagram @bellaroche_stories and website

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We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts

#BringingTheArtsToLife @Canada.Council

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The Akin St Clair Vitrine Gallery, 1747 St Clair Ave W

 

Akin Vitrine Q&A Series: Tiana Robinson installation 'A Simpler Time'

A Simpler Time, an exhibition by Tiana Robinson 

Sep 22 until Oct 22, 2023

The Akin Vitrine Gallery, 1747 St Clair Ave W

A closeup of the paintings in Tiana Robinson’s exhibition, A Simpler Time, against the white walls of the vitrine gallery. Amidst poems, the vibrant, colourful paintings on paper are detailed renderings of flowers and a young girl blowing a dandelion.

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Tiana Robinson is a Canadian artist, born in May Pen Jamaica, Her journey as an artist began at an early age, as she was always doodling in class, or at home. In middle school, she was nominated to participate in the Leaf Dreams scholarship program which gave her the opportunity to freely enroll in art classes at the Art Gallery of Ontario where she was constantly being exposed to instructors who were working artists themselves.

Tiana attended C.W. Jeffery’s Collegiate Institute special art program, and it was here that she was introduced to the Modern Batik Art Technique during a workshop. Batik Art involves the application of simple ink outlines, light-to-dark gradation of dyes, and using wax as a resist for separating colours. Tiana was a quick study and gained rapid recognition for her work, including her best-known image, “The Nation of Mothers”, which was purchased by the City of Toronto and now hangs in the Mayor’s office. Tiana graduated with a Bachelor of Design from the York-Sheridan Design Program and is currently working as a Graphic Designer while still exploring her love of art. 

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Tell us about your exhibition 

A Simpler Time  was created using  watercolour & gouache paint. This work was based on a poem I wrote called A Simpler Time. It shows a moment we have all experienced in our childhood of blowing a dandelion and watching the seeds scatter. It’s about returning to a time in our lives when we were free to have fun and just follow what felt right, what felt fun, and what made us happy. Summer days are filled with possibility and lots of sneezes.

What are you curious about right now? What do you do to stimulate curiosity and inspiration? 

What I am curious about right now is just exploring new media. I am trying to get reacquainted with my art process, and just let loose and explore what can come out of no expectations. I am working on being a bit more free with my expression and trying to find an authentic voice that is more representative of the woman I am now.

Tiana Robinson, wearing blue jeans and a grey t-shirt, is pictured inside the vitrine gallery installing her exhibition, A Simpler Time, hanging bright, colourful paintings done on paper onto clear string.

What was your first medium and what's your favourite tool/material right now? 

That was crayons, most definitely. Currently, I do mostly digital illustration and modern batik art with wax and dyes on fabric. I like the versatility of digital illustrations and the unique patterns created from the modern batik technique. Recently, I have been revisiting watercolours and gouache mediums and have been enjoying the learning curve of remembering how to work with the medium.

Do you have a studio routine ie: Are you a daily ritual person or are you project-focused in spurts?  

My daily ritual when arriving at the studio is to first put some sage into my little humidifier to set the mood, and set up any tools I need that day. I ask a quick question of where I should start today and flow with whatever my intuition tells me to go.

Do you have creative prompts or habits to help you get started? Any self-care tips to share?

I look at images to gain some inspiration and when I feel that tingle of excitement I follow that thread to the next step. Sometimes I am guided by meditations or poems I have written before and recently I love to turn those poems or messages into a motivational video and utilise music and video to create inspiration for myself and others. I recommend this video to get you fired up.

Artist Tiana Robinson in her Akin Studio

Is there an artist you'd like to go back in time to meet? Or someone you'd love to invite to dinner right now? Who is it and what would you ask them about?

I would love to go back and revisit the younger version of me before I stopped doing art and tell her that only when you are creating can you be fully you, fully grounded, fully really free. I realized after starting this journey again that It’s not losing my identity as an artist that made me fall apart. It was that I lost that ritual that allowed me to discard all the pieces of me that didn’t belong to me. All the external burdens and responsibilities that were not mine to begin with. I was no longer able to shed away that skin imposed on me by external circumstances, and sadly other people’s projections, demands, and responsibilities imposed on me slowly became my identity. I became empty while others became fuller, and paradoxically my spirit became heavier while others became lighter.

What are some of the benefits of being in the studio for you? What brought you to Akin?

In 2020 I became paralyzed after getting sick with COVID, and spent the better part of 2021- 2022 just getting well again. I struggled a lot with my mental health, depression, and anxiety, and can say since getting and coming to the studio I am no longer depressed, my anxiety has reduced significantly and I am a lot happier and more peaceful than a year ago. More confident, even though I don’t know where I am going I just know I will be damned if I am going to stop this again. My new mantra for life now is “protect my peace”.

What are you NOT very good at? What do you WANT to be good at? 

I am not very good at asking for help, and at showing my work. I want to be better at showing every facet of me and just being present and stop overthinking life.

A view of the finished install of Tiana Robinson’s exhibition, A Simpler Time. The paintings and poems are hung on clear string fastened vertically from top to bottom of the white vitrine gallery. The paintings are colourful, intricate images of flowers. On the white floor of the vitrine are paint brushes and small palettes, and a small sign that reads the “A Simpler Time, Tiana Robinson”

See an extended video version of this interview below or click here to view it on YouTube.

Explore Tiana’s work further through her instagram and youtube.

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We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts

#BringingTheArtsToLife @Canada.Council

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The Akin St Clair Vitrine Gallery, 1747 St Clair Ave W

 

Free Community Wellness Session with Shadi Mogadime

Date: Monday, June 1st 2020
Time: 6:30-8:30pm

How to Join this Zoom Meeting:
Copy and paste this URL into your browser:
https://zoom.us/j/95180398464?pwd=UEczRlY4akRmZTUzYVN4Zm9Ta3JBZz09
Meeting ID: 951 8039 8464
Password: 356639

This is a FREE virtual event.

Join us on June 1st at 6:30pm for an online community wellness session with a focus on moving from anxiety to resilience and creating a sense of well-being during this current period of isolation. Facilitator Shadi Mogadime will introduce attendees to various concepts and practices that can help you identify and manage daily stressors and anxiety triggers. Feel free to participate and share your experience or simply log on and listen with your fellow Akin community members and other artists.

Due to the 2hr time limitation for this event, we may not be able to accommodate everyone's questions and comments. If you don’t get the chance to speak but want to continue the conversation please email Akin at janet@akincollective.com or Shadi at shadimogadime@hotmail.com.

Accessibility:
Have a computer or mobile device? Then you're good to go as soon as you have signed up for a free Zoom account. Sign up here: https://zoom.us/

Please contact us regarding any accommodation requests or concerns, and we will do our best to support.

How to Join this Zoom Meeting:
Copy and paste this URL into your browser: https://zoom.us/j/95180398464?pwd=UEczRlY4akRmZTUzYVN4Zm9Ta3JBZz09
Meeting ID: 951 8039 8464
Password: 356639

Can’t attend this event but interested in future events on health and wellness? Let us know by emailing us at janet@akincollective.com.

About the facilitator:
Shadi (pronounced so it rhymes with buddy) has been a student of many modalities in 30+ years of spiritual and personal growth exploration. Her deepest dive has been into practices of mediation, yoga and qigong as well as other wellness technologies. She has used these experiences and the knowledge she developed to mentor clients from around the world for the last 5 years. She feels privileged to have spent her 25-year professional career in the charitable sector fundraising and marketing for the missions of crucial causes and arts & culture organizations. Her current focus is creating a platform to support women in the caring professions with wellness resources, practices and indulgences.

Double Vision II: Clara Hirsch and Jake Hirsch-Allen

September 12-22

2nd floor gallery

Opening reception: September 12, 7-10pm, everyone welcome!

Double Vision II is the continuation of a mother-son collaboration, first shown in Madrid in 2016. It brings together Akin Alum Clara Hirsch’s painted images and the photographs of Jake Hirsch-Allen. Double Vision II portrays the tension between urban space and the natural environment. The series illustrates Clara’s conflicted perspective: on the one hand, a delight in architecture, culture and the vitality of urban life; and on the other, her love of nature and organic forms. This series also includes four of Jake’s stand-alone photographs.

Image via: clarahirsch.com

Paperhouse Studio - Fall 2019 Classes Open for Registration

This season's education programme has some of Paperhouse Studio’s classic and popular classes plus plenty of opportunities to pick up more skills in their brand new classes!

Classic classes include: Beginner Introduction to Papermaking, Pulp Painting Eco Printing, Papercutting Explorations and more!

Paperhouse Studio’s new classes include Papercutting Explorations, Unusually Shaped Boxes, Gold Tooling on Paper and more!

Surgi Dolls on display at the Textile Museum

Exhibition: Friday, April 5-Thursday, April 11, 2019
Ticketed Reception: Thursday, April 11, 7:00-10:00pm
Online Auction Ends Thursday, April 11, 2019

The Textile Museum of Canada is partnering with Project Sunshine Canada for a new fundraising initiative in support of family-oriented programs at both organizations. Professional artists, designers, and celebrities are creating one-of-a-kind, collectable Surgi Dolls, to be auctioned online and displayed at the Museum from April 5-11. Surgi Dolls represent an intersection of healing and creativity through textiles: Project Sunshine gives children blank dolls of diverse skin tones to make their own, to travel with them through their medical journey and provide a sense of comfort and control. By participating in the auction, you could take home your very own collectible Surgi Doll - these art objects are not for hospital use. The auction will culminate in a ticketed event at the Museum on April 11, 7-10 pm, with special guest Sally Siren.

Akin King member Rakefet Arieli, Akin alumni Emily Norry and many other talented artists were invited to decorate a Surgi Doll for The Doll Project: #SewMuchHeart. The Textile Museum of Canada has partnered with Project Sunshine Canada for a new fundraising initiative in support of family-oriented programs at both organizations. Get a chance to see the dolls in person at the Textile Museum until April 11th. Or bid on them online here.

Upcoming Events: <3 <3 <3

I <3 Paint 3, Curated by Kim Dorland Opens April 4th at 7pm

Opening Reception: Thursday April 4th, 7-9pm
Exhibition Dates: April 4-28, 2019
Location: 1151 Queen St East

Patel Gallery is pleased to present I ♥ Paint 3,  an exhibition of international painters curated by Kim Dorland with works by:

Tunde Adebimpe (Los Angeles, USA)
Todd Bienvenu (New York City, USA)
Seth Birchall (New South Wales)
Sara-Jeanne Bourget (Vancouver, Canada)
Keiran Brennan Hinton (New York City, USA)
Greg Burak (Ridgewood, USA)
Rudy Cremonini (Bologna, Italy)
Laura Dawe  (Toronto, Canada)
Anna Fidler (Corvallis, USA)
Shaun Morin (Arnes, Canada)
Hilary Pecis (Los Angeles, USA)
Jonathan Podwil (New York City, USA)
Francisco Rodríguez (London, UK)
Joseph Tisiga (Montreal, Canada)
Paige Turner Uribe (Los Angeles, USA)
Nadia Waheed (Austin, USA)
Guim Tio Zarraluki (Barcelona, Spain)
Aaron Zulpo (New York City, USA)

Kim Dorland on  I ♥ Paint 3:

"I’m not a curator. I’m not a taste maker or a gallery professional. I’m a painter. And I ️ paint. I love looking at paintings. I love thinking about paintings. I love the act of squeezing a brand new tube of paint. Painting is romantic. Painting is sexy. Painting is infuriating, but I can’t give it up.
When I did the first I ️ Paint shows it was a reaction to this boring, cyclical idea that “painting is dead”. I’m happy to report that that idea is now dead (at least for now). A quick scan through Instagram is proof that painting is alive and well (especially reassuring to this middle-ager is the amount of young artists picking up the mantle).
There’s good painting being made all over the place these days, and thanks to Instagram and such we have access - which is how I “curated” this show. This isn’t proof of what’s “on trend” right now. You’re not going to get a dense or complicated thesis. This is a show about using paint. About the talented ways that some artists are exploiting paint’s possibilities - materially, thematically, stylistically... At the end of the day, I just wanted to put together a really good painting exhibition."

Kim Dorland pushes the boundaries of painted representation through an exploration of memory, material, nostalgia, identity and place. Born in 1974 in Wainwright, Alberta, Dorland holds an MFA from York University in Toronto, and a BFA from the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design, in Vancouver. He has exhibited globally, including shows in Milan, London, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. His work is featured in the Contemporary Art Foundation (Japan), The Sander Collection (Berlin); Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal; Musée d’art contemporain de Montreal; Glenbow Museum (Calgary); Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, Art Gallery of Alberta, the Audain Art Museum and numerous important private collections. Dorland currently lives and works in Vancouver.

Please direct inquiries to devan@patel.gallery

Public Volumes

Opening reception: April 6, 2019 | 2–5pm at the Small Arms Inspection Building
Exhibition Dates: April 6–May 5, 2019
Exhibition continues at Bradley Museum and Mississauga City Hall

FREE Contemporary Art Bus Tour: April 6, 2019 | 11:45am–4:45pm
Pick-up and drop-off at Kipling Station
Features visits at Humber Galleries, Art Gallery of Mississauga, and SAIB

Public Volumes Bus Tour: April 13, 2019 | 12.30-4.30pm
Pick-up and drop-off at the Gladstone Hotel
Features tours of SAIB, Bradley Museum and City Hall with artists HaeAhn Paul Kwon Kajander, Amanda White, soJin Chun and LeuWebb Projects.

Public Volumes gestures towards broad interpretations of spatial justice, a concept that acknowledges the connection between space and justice as integral to understanding how we arrive at our relationships. Bringing together exhibitions, public programming and writing, the many projects within Public Volumes focus in or out from a particular location or series of locations, fostering deeper insight into why space matters. From thinking through ideas around memory and ways of living to community mobilization and immigration, Public Volumes espouses the multiple meanings folded into the spaces of everyday life and those of unexpected circumstance. This program looks to the tangled means by which we defend the spaces that offer support and the efforts we take to transform those that fail.

Taking place over three sites within Mississauga and featuring collaborations with Koffler.Digital and independent curator Anu Radha Verma, Public Volumes features existing and newly commissioned work from artists working across a range of media

ARTISTS at Small Arms Inspection Building:
Joi T. Arcand
Cathy Busby
Stephanie Comilang
Sheena Hoszko
Germaine Koh
HaeAhn Paul Kwon Kajander
Morris Lum
Dawit L. Petros
jes sachse
Kara Springer

ARTISTS at Bradley Museum:
soJin Chun
LeuWebb Projects

City Hall (April 6-20, 2019): Amanda White

Guest curators and collaborators:
Letticia Cosbert
Nicole Hanson
Sajdeep Soomal
Anu Radha Verma

Curated by: Noa Bronstein
To RSVP for bus tours, please email small.arms@mississauga.ca

Pio Abad: Splendour

Exhibition Dates: 31 March – 2 June 2019
Oakville Galleries in Gairloch Gardens

In Pio Abad’s Splendour, the London, UK-based artist brings together objects and images that draw connections between specific moments of political and economic upheaval, from the fall of Cold War era dictatorships that erroneously heralded ‘the end of history’ to the economic crises of 2008 that brought us to our current age of political disenchantment. Lifting its title from an Abi Morgan play, which takes place in the drawing room of an unnamed autocracy on the eve of its collapse, the exhibition imagines Gairloch Gardens as the domestic setting of another scene of political devolution and decay. Splendour reflects on the roles of repetition and mistranslation in our understanding of history and asks how we might meaningfully go forward at this moment of worldwide political unease.

Free exhibition tours:
Saturday 13 April 2019, 3:00 pm
Saturday 11 May 2019, 3:00 pm

Rebecca Brewer & Rochelle Goldberg: Waves and Waves

Exhibition Dates: 31 March – 2 June 2019
Oakville Galleries at Centennial Square

Longtime friends and occasional collaborators, New York-based artist Rochelle Goldberg and Vancouver-based artist Rebecca Brewer have been engaged in a dialogue about their respective practices for years. This exhibition emerges from that conversation, with their distinct ideas unfolding materially in a shared space for the first time. The project sees both artists explore forms that allude to the relationship between human life and the natural world: Brewer's recent textile works recall dream-like perceptions—seen here alongside new paintings that stem from an early memory of being carried out to sea on a wave—whereas Goldberg's sculptural works evoke material transitions, tactility and the traces that contact leaves on human bodies and other living beings.

Free exhibition tours:
Saturday 13 April 2019, 2:00 pm
Saturday 11 May 2019, 2:00 pm

ARTBUS: EXHIBITION TOUR

Sunday 31 March 2019, 12:00 pm–5:00 pm
Pick-up and drop-off at the Ryerson Image Centre
$10 donation includes transportation to all galleries and afternoon refreshments

 Our spring ARTbus begins at the Ryerson Image Centre with a tour of True to the Eyes from the private collection of Howard and Carole Tanenbaum. The ARTbus continues to the Art Gallery of Burlington to visit Ears, Eyes, Voice curated by Dr. Julie Crooks. Lastly, at Oakville Galleries participants will visit the opening of Rebecca Brewer & Rochelle Goldberg: Waves and Waves and Pio Abad: Splendour.

Calling all zine makers! Apply to the Artist Project today!

This February the Artist Project will welcome its 12th year with the most exciting show yet. From collectors and curators, to gallerists and designers, visitors will have the opportunity to explore and discover works of art from over 250 top contemporary artists from Canada and abroad. This is a unique opportunity to meet and buy art directly from artists at Toronto’s favourite art fair.

Location: Better Living Centre, Exhibition Place, 195 Princes' Blvd, Toronto

When: February 21st-24th 2019

In addition to the always popular main, untapped, installation zone and the front entrance, this year’s Artist Project will feature a section for zines.

Have a zine you would like to show at the Artist Project in 2019? Find out how to apply below.

How do I apply?

Apply Online. Jury fee is $25.

How many applicants will be selected?

A maximum of 12 artists will be chosen for the ZINES section.

What is the fee for selected ZINE exhibitors?

There is a $75 fee for selected applicants to participate in Artist Project’s ZINE section. The $25 jury fee will count toward the $75 ZINE exhibitor fee.

When is the application deadline?

Deadline to apply is Monday, January 15th, 2019.

Art Connections Exhibition and Sale

Akin artists at Edition 2018

October 26–28, 2018
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
Admission is free

Akin Projects is thrilled to be selling works by many of our talented studio artists at the 3e Edition Toronto International Art Book Fair. Artists from Akin King, Dupont, Lansdowne, and MOCA will be presenting a diverse collection of editioned prints, 3D art multiples, printed totebags and scarves, artist books, zines and other collectables.

Participating artists for 2018 :

Adria Mirabelli, Laura Kay Keeling, Loretta Mui, Lily Kim, Liliana Vera, Mark Liam Smith, Mia Zhou, Monique Resnick, Rebekah Andrade, Natalie Waddell, Erin Candela, Rebeccah Houston,

Edition, unique in its scope and contemporary approach, celebrates the idea of the “Multiple” and limited edition art productions. It is hosted annually in tandem with Art Toronto , Canada’s largest International art fair. Officially labelled a ‘‘book fair’’, Edition is dedicated to the promotion of art book publishing and all forms of art works created in limited edition format, which opens the door to exploratory ventures and mediums. The concept champions forward-thinking projects by artists, publishers, galleries, and organizations who share a similar mission to advance and strengthen Canadian and International art book initiatives. Vendors at the fair represent a diverse cross-section of mediums and interests, as well as a wide range of locales spanning Ontario, Canada, and Internationally.

Artists Rebeccah Houston (left) and Natalie Waddell (above) work in clay and will be contributing ceramic multiples to the show.

Edition is a fantastic place to find original prints like this poster-sized Risograph by Loretta Mui. Loretta is also bringing several sets of zines and t-shirts in original designs.

HOURS:
October 25, 2018  6–10pm
October 26, 2018  12–8pm
October 27, 2018  12–8pm
October 28, 2018  12–6pm

editiontoronto.com

arttoronto.com

akincollective.com
akinprojects.org

Limited edition archival giclee print (right) by Mark Liam Smith 2018.

Edition 2018: Call for Submissions →

Artist Multiples, Prints, Printed Objects, Books, Zines (Akin Collective Members Only)

Edition is dedicated to the promotion of art book publishing in all forms, and building an appreciation for artworks produced in editions of more than one. The 3 ⁄ edition Art Book Fair runs from Friday, October 26 to Sunday October 28, 2018 in conjunction with Art Toronto, Canada’s international art fair. A special preview opens the fair on Thursday, October 25 for select patrons.

Akin Projects is thrilled to have been invited to participate again at Edition this fall (October 25-28, 2018) and we would like to showcase the diverse talent of our over 300 members at this special art world event. Last year over 8,000 art and book enthusiasts visited and perused a wide range of artist’s books, publications, editions and ephemera presented by local and international exhibitors including Akin!  

Keeping in mind the specific, more curated fine art focus on the event we want to see your books, artist multiples, zines, prints, printed objects, and artworks to sell on your behalf at our table. We will return any unsold items to you after the fair.

TABLING FEE: To help cover our significant costs of our four days at the fair (table fees, administration, staffing, promotion and marketing) we ask that artists selected contribute a table fee of $40. Profit from items sold will be split 75% to the artist, and 25% to Akin’s non-profit Akin Projects.

SUBMISSIONS: Each Submitted Work MUST BE A MULTIPLE or PART OF AN *EDITION for this fair.

(* See links for what is an Edition, and how to Edition your prints below). Please note the following:

• You can submit up to 4 different editions or types of multiple to be featured for the four days, with the understanding that Akin will be rotating items from different artists on a regular basis (ie: not all items will necessarily be shown every day of the show, though we will ensure that each artist is represented daily).

• Not every submission has to be a ‘’complete ‘’ edition. (ie: if you only have prints ⅕, ⅗, and ⅘, that works. Your edition must be more than one, and can be as high as you like.)

• Artists may submit up to 5 multiples of each work (ie: max 5 prints of each particular photo/drawing) or up to 10 items total of a single edition (ie: if you submit just one photo: max 10 prints of it...whichever makes sense with your application.)

• Artists must determine their retail price with the understanding that Akin will be taking 25% with each sale. The artist receives 75% of the retail price. No tax is taken on items sold.

• Unfortunately, as we only have one table and so many artists, therefore not all items submitted may be selected per admission depending on available space.

WHAT TO INCLUDE: If you would like to submit your work to be considered, please email Erin at erin@akincollective.com no later than Thursday, September 27, 2018. Please include:

1. A list and description of each item(s) you would like to sell, including the number if possible of each edition. Feel free to add contextual information if relevant.

2. The Retail price of each item.  

3. How they will be packaged (ie: clear plastic envelope, no packaging, pinned to a card  etc…)

4. A photo of the work or similar items that convey a sense of the work proposed.

5. Relevant artist website and Instagram details (for promotional use if accepted).

6. Which Akin Studio you are at.

7. If you are willing and able to volunteer time at the sales table during the event (and when.)

8. If your submission requires special delivery or attention during the sale.

Artists will be informed of work that has been chosen by October 1st  and items are to be dropped off at Akin King ( 511 King, 4th floor) by 5pm on Friday October 12th, 2018 in order to be included.

WHAT IS AN EDITION?: Please refer to the following links for helpful information on what to know about editions in art and how to edition your work:

https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-specialist-buying-limited-editions

https://makingamark.blogspot.com/2011/10/how-to-sign-art-print.html

http://www.monoprints.com/numbering_prints.php

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  We are also looking for general volunteers to assist with sales at Edition and other fall programming- please let us know if you are interested in helping out at this, or any other events!

Thanks, we are looking forward to hearing from you and seeing the beautiful work you are doing!

Call for Participants: Art+Tech Jam

ChangeUp's Art+Tech Jam (September 21-23) will unite a diverse group of artists and technologists in an intensive, collaborative three-day creation period and culminating showcase (public exhibition and interdisciplinary rave). ChangeUp is currently accepting applicants from tech and arts/culture spaces of all ages, backgrounds, and experience levels. Limited spots available! More information here.

ChangeUp Art + Tech Jam

Location: Toronto Media Arts Centre, 32 Lisgar St, Toronto, ON.

Date: September 21-23, 2018.

Deadline to apply: September 14th 2018.

ChangeUp is building fluid, infinitely expansive networks between the wildly creative spheres of art and tech: increasing access and forging empowering spaces for creation and exchange.

Informed by punk, rave, and DIY approaches, open source software development, and decentralized platforms, ChangeUp mounts frameworks to support art-driven approaches to technological development, the co-opting of new technologies for cultural creation, and critical examination of an increasingly technological social and cultural reality.

Through its hackathons, incubators, symposia, concerts, and exhibitions, Changeup cultivates open, decentralized spaces for tech and arts communities to experiment and explore in collaboration, catalyzing groundbreaking developments and new approaches.

Call for Artists: Festival of Faith →

Festival of Faith is looking for artists for their artisan market. Festival of Faith is a celebration of faith, arts, and social justice.  The festival is made up of a wide range of live music, workshops, the Artisan Market, and an OpenMic and over 3000 visitors are anticipated.  In addition there will be lots for all ages with bouncy castles, meditation areas, a charity run, a lip sync battle, and we are even attempting a world record.

When: Saturday and Sunday, July 21‒22, 2018

What: The Festival of Faith kicks off GC43. It’s a celebration of our work and witness through the arts.

Where: 43rd General Council at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Durham College, Oshawa, ON

Time: 10am and into the evening on both days.

Call for Applications: Toronto School of Art →

For over 40 years, Toronto School of Art has established itself as one of the most distinguished alternative arts schools in the city. While their history alone sets them apart, it’s their ideology that truly defines TSA. TSA believes in taking an organic approach to the arts. This translates into a hands-on education model that focuses on studio-based learning. TSA offers students the opportunity to work with practicing artists in a close, one-on-one environment. What this entails is a rigorous study of the arts through a challenging, tactile application of every skill set learned.

For many years, Toronto School of Art (TSA) has been an active community partner with Akin, fostering collaboration and support on both ends. A number of current Akin members are also staff members and instructors at TSA and you could be too!

Available Positions at TSA:

Office Manager

Position Type/Hours: part-time position, 4 days per week (30 hours), $20.00/hour.

Position Description:

The Office Manager supports Toronto School of Art’s operations and is responsible for ensuring and maintaining efficient, effective, and resourceful office systems and services.  This position also supports the administration of the front desk and provides skilled and friendly communication to customers/students and faculty. Reporting to the Managing Director, the Office Manager works closely with TSA staff, faculty members, student volunteers, and the Board of Governors (BOG).

Posting closes at 5pm, Friday, June 15, 2018.

To Apply: Please send a resume and cover letter in a single PDF with applicant name and job title as the subject to:  Renée Castonguay, Managing Director, Toronto School of Art, info@tsa-art.com.

Youth Art Education Assistant (Summer Works)

Position Duration: June 25 to August 17th 2018.

30 hours/week (8 weeks)

Wage: $14/hour

Position Description:

The Youth Art Education Assistant helps with the daily operations and coordination of Toronto School of Art’s summer youth art camps and intensives for students ages 11-17.

This position is funded by Canada Summer Jobs, and applicants must meet the following CSJ requirements:

• Between the age of 18-30;

• A full-time post-secondary student during the preceding academic year;

• Returning to full-time studies at a College/University in the Fall (preferably in visual arts and/or art education).

Submission deadline: 5pm, Tuesday, June 19, 2018.

 

Community Events Assistant (Summer Works)

Position Duration: June 25 to August 17th 2018.

30 hours/week (8 weeks)

Wage: $14/hour

Position Description:

The Community Events Assistant helps coordinate TSA’s presence at various community festivals and events, and facilitates special projects throughout the summer.

This position is funded by Canada Summer Jobs, and applicants must meet the following CSJ requirements:

• Between the age of 18-30;

• A full-time post-secondary student during the preceding academic year;

• Returning to full-time studies at a College/University in the Fall (preferably in visual arts and/or art education).

Submission deadline: 5pm, Tuesday, June 19, 2018.

To Apply for Summer Works positions: Please send a resume and cover letter in a single PDF with applicant name and job title as the subject to:  Renée Castonguay, Managing Director, Toronto School of Art, info@tsa-art.com.

Call for Submissions: Into the Void Magaine →

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Award-winning Toronto-based international print & online literary magazine Into the Void is accepting submissions of visual art to Issue 9. There is no theme or restrictions on style or genre, we accept everything from paintings to photography to crafts, provided they can be submitted as image files.

Deadline: June 7th 2018.

Send up to 12 image files to editor-in-chief philip.elliott@intothevoidmagazine.com

Artists accepted for publication will receive a print copy of the issue.

Into the Void is dedicated to providing a platform for world-class fiction, flash, creative nonfiction, poetry, and visual art from people of all kinds all over the world, as well as literature, music, and film reviews, interviews, and news and articles on all things arts and culture. Into the Void strives to be a home where diversity is valued and art is treasured.

Kayla Polan in the Akin Vitrine Gallery - March and April 2018

'Romance for Two: Key To My Heart or Unlockable Shackles?' by Kayla Polan - March / April 2018

We are excited to introduce our Akin Vitrine Gallery March 2018 artist, Akin Dupont member, Kayla Polan!

Calgary-born, Toronto based artist Kayla Polan is a multidisciplinary artist working across traditional and new media. She graduated from the Ontario College of Art & Design University with a BFA major in Drawing & Painting. She will be pursuing her MFA at the University of Waterloo in the fall. Her practice melds feminism and popular culture to investigate contemporary ideas about sexuality, fetishism, domesticity, queer identity, autobiography, and consumer culture through painting, sculpture, printmaking, and performance. She has received multiple awards for her work, including the Spark Box Studio Emerging Artist Award. Her work has been exhibited in several group exhibitions in Canada and Europe. 

Exploring themes of consensual BDSM practices, alternative relationship lifestyles, and fetishism, Kayla delves into ideas surrounding chastity in her installation Romance For Two: Key To My Heart or Unlockable Shackles? In this work she investigates how sexuality is bound with power and inequality in complicated ways. Chastity belts in BDSM may be used to prevent the wearer from engaging in sexual activity without the permission of the dominant, who acts as a key holder. In this romantic picnic scene, Kayla questions how philosophical issues of purity, morality, and innocence have shaped us.

'Romance for Two: Key To My Heart or Unlockable Shackles?' 
Mixed media (metal, resin, silicone, oil paint, fabric, sculpee) 
2018

Exhibition runs for the month of March in our Dupont Akin Vitrine Gallery, located in the Clock Factory Building at 1485 Dupont Street (entrance on Campbell Avenue). Find Akin Studio 215 on the second floor and follow the sign into the hallway around the corner. The building is open from 9am to 6pm, Monday to Saturday.

‘Romance for Two: Key To My Heart or Unlockable Shackles? ’ will then travel to the Akin St. Clair Vitrine Gallery and be on view for the month of April at 1747 St. Clair Avenue West. Gallery is street level and can be viewed at any time.

To contact the artist:
www.kaylapolan.com
Instagram: @kaylapolan
#Akinvitrine

For more information about Kayla Polan and her work, follow our Instagram account @akinvitrine.

Ceramics Show & Tell at the Gardiner Museum

Akin Projects is excited to present special ceramics edition of the ‘Show & Tell’ for artists at The Gardiner Museum led by artist and Akin Studio Manager, Erin Candela.

Informative, supportive and fun—this is a time for artists to show completed works or works in progress and get friendly feedback and answers from their peers in a casual (this time a museum!) setting. Feel free to bring art to share, bring a friend or two or just bring yourself. Come for the conversation about art, or just to meet other artists and makers.

Attendance is free, but please register to attend: 

This is a free program part of Ceramic Change: How to Make It, a one day workshop intensive for emerging artists and makers in the expanded field of ceramics in conjunction with the exhibition Steven Heinemann: Culture & Nature, This one-day workshop intensive will focus on the nuts and bolts of professional survival and enabling skilled connections. From building your own DIY wooden kiln to local clay harvesting, these presentations, workshops, and conversations will dig deep into what it means to pursue a sustainable maker practice in Toronto today.

About the Gardiner Museum:
The Gardiner Museum is Canada's national ceramics museum. It was founded by George and Helen Gardiner in 1984 to house their collection of ceramic art. Its permanent collection of over 2,900 pieces, includes works from the Ancient Americas, Italian Renaissance, English Delftware, Chinese and Japanese porcelain, European porcelain, and a contemporary gallery. In addition to the permanent collections, the museum mounts three temporary exhibitions per year as well as a variety of community programming. For more information visit www.gardinermuseum.on.ca

Getting There:
Subway/Bus: From Bloor-Danforth Line — St. George Station is the closest fully accessible stop to the Gardiner’s main entrance. Take elevators to street level at the Bloor Street and Bedford Road entrance. Go south on Bedford to Bloor. Then east along Bloor to Queen's Park. The Gardiner is just south of Bloor on the east side of Queen's Park. From Yonge-University Subway Line — Museum Station is the closest subway stop to the Gardiner's main entrance. This stop is not wheelchair accessible.

Accessibility: 
The Gardiner Museum is fully wheelchair accessible. The wheelchair ramp is located on the south side of the entrance. Click here for more accessibility information.  Please let us know of any other accessibility needs so that we can assist you. Email michael@akincollective.comat least one week before the event and we will do our best to accommodate you. Thank you.

Stop Thinking, Start Working: On Pattern, Repetition, Obsession, and Letting Go

If you find yourself in Oshawa in the next month, swing into the Robert McLaughlin Gallery and check out this solo show by Akin alumni Colleen McCarten. The show opens tomorrow and runs until December 3. There will be a reception is on Friday December 1, 7-9 pm and Colleen will be giving an artist talk on Saturday December 2, from 1-3 pm. 

View fullsize

Looking at the journey of the line, in regards to the similarities between thread/textile techniques and drawing, this show will explore the technical aspect of textile construction as well as the relationship that happens between minimalism and the handmade; emphasizing the techniques and textures that come through allowing and embracing ‘mistakes’.

The pieces in this show will take inspiration from minimalism, op art, and the digital age, but using traditional textile construction techniques such as weaving and sewing. This show will consist of fabric sculptures and drawings that have been created in tandem with each other in an exploratory sense and they will look at how a subtle shift in material or technique can have drastic changes to the end result of the piece.

About Colleen: 
Colleen McCarten (formerly a member of both Akin Dufferin and Akin Dupont) is an emerging Toronto-based artist whose work is based primarily in textile, weaving, sewing and other fibre-based practices, as well as drawing and collage. She uses these techniques to examine the legacy of 20th Century art movements such as Op Art, Minimalism and hard-edged abstraction. McCarten holds a Bachelors of Material Design from the Ontario College of Art and Design (OCADU), and is the recipient of the Material Art and Design Medal for her graduating year. Her work has been exhibited in group shows at Harbourfront Centre and the Textile Museum of Canada, and she has received awards for her textile-based practice, including the “Best in Fibre” award at the 2014 iteration of the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition. She has also produced artworks for commercial and retail clients, including Simons, and will be exhibiting in Angell Gallery’s Project Space this summer.

People and Trees: an art installation with Sarvenaz Rayati

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 10 19:30-21:30    DETONIA PARK, TORONTO ON

Akin Lansdowne artist Sarvenaz Rayati introduces People & Trees, a public outdoor installation created in collaboration with a number of emerging artists, with support from the Cultural Hotspots SPARK Project, The Neighborhood Arts Network, and the City of Toronto. This event takes place in the ''living greens of Dentonia park'' located just north of the Danforth. Participants Carmina Mari Miana (also an Akin member), Sohae Jeong, and Kenny Tran are several of a group of youth engaged over the summer to bring art and creativity to the East End. Rayati has been working with young artists over the past two months.

Sunday September 10 7:30-9:30 pm, is the opening night of People & Trees, involving the installation of many giant ''People'' into the folliage of the park. The goal is to bring awareness of the life of trees to the inhabitants of the city. Sarvenaz, the lead artist in the project says ''I had this idea of making human like figures with bamboo sticks and paper maché and to put them in a park full of trees. I went to one of the Cultural Hotspot's information sessions and talked to Andrea Raymond-Wong about it. She liked it and that's how it started. It was wonderful getting to know so many lovely people along the way, who helped make this project possible,  This was something I had never done before. It was challenging and satisfying.''

People and Trees is a Cultural Hotspots SPARK project in partnership with the City of Toronto.
Special thanks to: Nadira Pattison, Andrea Raymond-wong, Park People, Minaz Asani-Kanji, Councillor Janet, Davis, Sarah Buchanan, Sabra Ripley, Shwasti, Moonira Chowdhury, Zebun Nessa, Nadira Tabassum, Bain Campfire Festival, Sean Frey, Pamela Schuller, Sarah Pearson, Miles Collyer, Kieran Wright, Vibe Arts, Nadine Villasin Feldman, Sandra Mannila , Art Starts, Julian Carvajal, Bayley Nargang , East End Arts, DeSerres, Sarah Novotny, Metro & Our amazing volunteer Mijung Choi

For more information please visit:   https://www.facebook.com/peoplentrees

Akin Show & Tell #58: Ossington

Wednesday July 26 / 7-9pm / Akin Ossington - 888 Dupont St, studio 204

On the last Wednesday of every month Akin host’s a relaxed and fun ‘Show and Tell for Artists’ at one of the Akin Collective studios. This is a time for Akin members and other Toronto artists to show completed works or works in progress and get friendly feedback and answers from their peers in a casual studio setting.

Feel free to bring art to share, bring a friend or two, bring snacks or drinks or just bring yourself! Come for the conversation or just to meet other artists and makers.

This month we are meeting at our newest studios - Akin Ossington! Come see the new studios. Located at Ossington and Dupont - 888 Dupont St - Studio 204.

If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to get in touch! See you there!