Collage with us! Join us to create colourful stripes, funky blobs and wild splashes. Tie it all together with a fancy silhouette topping to make your masterpiece POP out!
Suitable for ages 3+
Free admission, no registration required.
The Robert McLaughlin Gallery is a proud participant in Ontario Power Generation’s Power for Change Project, supporting the areas and people where OPG operates.
Update: Due to weather, this program has been canceled
This family day, explore the portraits in Resistance, then join us in the studio to create your own! There are many ways to do things in a unique way. Your self-portrait will be weird and wacky.
Suitable for ages 3+
Free admission, no registration required.
The Robert McLaughlin Gallery is a proud participant in Ontario Power Generation’s Power for Change Project, supporting the areas and people where OPG operates.
“Make Art. Feel Better.“
Presented in partnership with PeaceLove and Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences, join us for an Expressive Arts Workshop focused on how art can promote mental well-being. The evening will start with a tour of the exhibition Breakthrough featuring the art of Jack Bush who found healing and joy through his art. The workshop will provide a safe space for participants to share, self-reflect, grow and heal through artful collage. No art experience is required. All materials and aprons will be provided.
Registration is required.
About PeaceLove
PeaceLove promotes mental wellness by using creativity and expression to inspire, heal, and communicate. We believe everyone deserves a safe space to share their emotions. Our workshops are a place to create fearlessly and honestly without judgement. A place to be vulnerable, celebrate, and empower each other.
About Ontario Shores
Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences is a leader in mental health care, providing a range of specialized assessment and treatment services for people living with complex mental illness. Patients benefit from a recovery-oriented environment of care, built on compassion, inspiration and hope. Ontario Shores engages in research, education and advocacy initiatives to advance the mental health care system.
The gallery invites you to join us for artmaking and community connection in The Neighbours Art Hive between 12-3:30pm every Friday from January 10 to February 14, 2025. Passionate and helpful volunteers from the LivingRoom Community Art Studio will be onsite to support your creative explorations and cultivate a warm and welcoming environment for all. Participants are welcome to take their projects with them or hang them up for everyone to enjoy!
The Neighbours Project, installed at The Robert McLaughlin Gallery (February 2024).
What to expect:
Everyone is welcome; no art experience required.
These drop-in events are free.
You’re welcome to come and go as you please.
Coffee, tea, and light snacks will be served.
What is an art hive?
Art Hives are safe, accessible spaces that enable people of all ages to participate in free public relaxation. In an Art Hive, traditional hierarchies, processes, and ways of being can be deconstructed and re-imagined in playful, personal, and compassionate ways.
The Neighbours Project, installed at The Robert McLaughlin Gallery (February 2024).
The Neighbours Art Hive is a temporary installation at the RMG that transforms the gallery into an active studio space with help from the LivingRoom Community Art Studio. Outside of these facilitated sessions, we also invite all our neighbours to drop in any time during operating hours to make use of the free art materials on their own time. The RMG is located at 72 Queen Street, Civic Centre in Oshawa, across from the McLaughlin Branch of the Oshawa Public Libraries. The Neighbours Art Hive is in Gallery A, which is located on the lower level of the RMG. It is accessible by stairs or elevator. Between the elevator and Gallery A, you’ll pass our public washrooms. We have an accessible single-stall washroom as well as gender-inclusive multi-stall washrooms. Read more about our facilities here.
Upcoming Sessions:
Friday January 10, 2025
Friday January 17, 2025
Friday January 24, 2025
Friday January 31, 2025
Friday February 7, 2025
Friday February 14, 2025
Presented by The Catherine and Maxwell Meighen Foundation.
This event will be held on Zoom. It is free and open to everyone, but registration is required.
Contemporary visual art exhibitions are well poised to contribute to conversations about climate change, yet too often they are part of the problem they critique. Independent Curator Katie Lawson will present reflections on both practical and theoretical considerations of how exhibitions are shaped by climate change discourse and address key knowledge gaps that remain in creating, caring for, and presenting art in sustainable ways. As a team member of the Centre for Sustainable Curating, Lawson will share accessible resources to lessening the environmental impacts of exhibition making. A question and answer period will follow.
Closed captioning and live transcription will be available through the built-in Zoom CC and Transcription features. ASL Interpretation can be arranged upon request. Please contact Hannah Keating at [email protected] to submit an interpretation request by October 16, 2024. All efforts will be made to fill a request, but if an Interpreter cannot be secured, we will let you know before the event takes place.
Is there anything else we can do to support your participation? Please reach out to Hannah at [email protected].
About the presenter:
Katie Lawson is a curator and writer based in Toronto. She has curated exhibitions for City of Barrie (2024); Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery (2024); Images Festival (2023); Toronto Biennial of Art (2022 + 2019); MacLaren Art Centre (2021); the Art Museum at the University of Toronto (2018); the Art Gallery of Ontario (2018); Y+ Contemporary (2017), and RYMD Reykjavik (2017). Lawson was awarded the Hnatyshyn Foundation Fogo Island Arts Young Curator Residency in 2023.
Katie is a graduate of the Master of Visual Studies Curatorial program at the University of Toronto, where she previously completed her Master of Arts in Art History. She is currently working towards a PhD in Art and Visual Culture at Western University, and a team member of the Centre for Sustainable Curating. She contributes to a range of print and online publications. She was the Editorial Lead for the Toronto Biennial’s double catalogue Water, Kinship, Belief (2022) and was the Art Editor for the Hart House Review (2016-2019).
The Artist Professional Development Workshop series is generously sponsored by the RBC Foundation’s Emerging Artist Project.
This event will be held on Zoom. It is free and open to everyone, but registration is required: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0ld-qgqz4rHdG2xKxA30ZO5KuknnSluwr5.
As the role of the curator becomes increasingly diffuse and expansive, Katie Lawson will reflect on the exhibitions she’s worked on recently to explore the questions, challenges, and best practices that have informed her work as an Independent Curator. Sharing examples from personal experience, she will explain how she has cultivated collaborative relationships with artists, with a focus on new artwork commissions that have been iterative and/or site-responsive. Following Lawson’s presentation, audience members will invited to contribute to a guided discussion period.
Closed captioning and live transcription will be available through the built-in Zoom CC and Transcription features. ASL Interpretation can be arranged upon request. Please contact Hannah Keating at [email protected] to submit an interpretation request by October 16, 2024. All efforts will be made to fill a request, but if an Interpreter cannot be secured, we will let you know before the event takes place.
Is there anything else we can do to support your participation? Please reach out to Hannah at [email protected].
About the presenter:
Katie Lawson is a curator and writer based in Toronto. She has curated exhibitions for City of Barrie (2024); Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery (2024); Images Festival (2023); Toronto Biennial of Art (2022 + 2019); MacLaren Art Centre (2021); the Art Museum at the University of Toronto (2018); the Art Gallery of Ontario (2018); Y+ Contemporary (2017), and RYMD Reykjavik (2017). Lawson was awarded the Hnatyshyn Foundation Fogo Island Arts Young Curator Residency in 2023.
Katie is a graduate of the Master of Visual Studies Curatorial program at the University of Toronto, where she previously completed her Master of Arts in Art History. She is currently working towards a PhD in Art and Visual Culture at Western University, and a team member of the Centre for Sustainable Curating. She contributes to a range of print and online publications. She was the Editorial Lead for the Toronto Biennial’s double catalogue Water, Kinship, Belief (2022) and was the Art Editor for the Hart House Review (2016-2019).
The Artist Professional Development Workshop series is generously sponsored by the RBC Foundation’s Emerging Artist Project.
“We can only learn about creativity through our own experience of it.”
Shaun McNiff
The RMG and the LivingRoom Community Art Studio welcome all of our neighbours to help us activate The Neighbours Project ART HIVE. This is a drop in art studio. There are tables and chairs and lots of free art supplies. We have areas for folks to leave their artwork if they want to, or they are welcome to take what they make home with them. As a warm invitation to participate, we have hired Mary from the LivingRoom Community Art Studio to facilitate six sessions on Friday afternoons. With nearly a decade of experience under their belt, the LivingRoom is well equipped to offer fun and accessible art experiences for everyone.
The Neighbours Project ART HIVE is part of The Neighbours Project. To learn more about the project, please visit the exhibition page.
This event will be facilitated at the following times:
What to expect:
The RMG is located at 72 Queen Street, Civic Centre in Oshawa, across from the McLaughlin Branch of the Oshawa Public Libraries. The Neighbours Project ART HIVE is in Gallery A, which is located on the lower level of the RMG. It is accessible by stairs or elevator. Between the elevator and Gallery A, you’ll pass our public washrooms. We have an accessible single-stall washroom as well as gender-inclusive multi-stall washrooms. Read more about our facilities here.
What is an art hive?
Art Hives are spaces that enable people of all ages to participate in free public relaxation. They are safe, accessible spaces that support creative community development through art-making experiences that foster connection and personal well-being. In an Art Hive, traditional hierarchies, processes, and ways of being can be deconstructed and re-imagined in playful, personal, and compassionate ways.
“At the center of everything we call ‘the arts,’ and children call ‘play,’ is something which seems somehow alive.”
Lynda Barry
The Neighbours Project ART HIVE will be facilitated by The LivingRoom’s Mary Krohnert and the RMG’s Hannah Keating and Erin Szikora.
Mary is an actor, art therapist and social arts practitioner with over 25 years of experience in intersectional community engagement through the arts. Founder of the LivingRoom Community Art Studio, she is a graduate of The Toronto Art Therapy Institute, Toronto Metropolitan University, and has studied Art Hives at Concordia University under the founder of the movement, Dr. Janis Timm-Bottos. Her work is driven by a deep appreciation of the human story, and the many ways it can be communicated, acknowledged, and honoured in our efforts to live, learn, work, and engage with greater authenticity, sustainability, and joy. The LivingRoom and its related projects offer practical opportunities for citizen artists of all ages, abilities and walks of life to explore how processes of creative self-expression can be integrated into day-to-day life for the benefit of all.
Hannah is an Associate Curator at The Robert McLaughlin Gallery where she coordinates the RBC Emerging Artist Residency program, curates exhibitions and public programs, and works with community partners. She holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Art History from Carleton University and has previously worked at Artspace, the Winnipeg Art Gallery, the University of Manitoba School of Art Gallery, and the Art Gallery of Peterborough. Hannah is curious about relationships of all kinds and passionate about supporting artists. She is a writer and deep thinker who believes in the power of art to forge connections, provoke conversation, and hold deep truths about the human condition.
Erin is an Associate Curator at The Robert McLaughlin Gallery. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Fine Art and Art History from the University of Toronto and a master’s degree in Art History from OCAD University. She has previously worked at the University of Toronto, Art Gallery of Guelph, Art Canada Institute, OCAD University, the McMaster Museum of Art, and Brock University. Her work is motivated by a deep interest in how personal storytelling can lead to collective liberation. She believes strongly in the power of art to change the world and is excited to live into the future we dream up together.
Visit The Neighbours Project exhibition page to learn more.
We want to express sincere gratitude to our partners and collaborators for their support: The Back Door Mission, The Gap Committee, The LivingRoom Community Art Studio, April Hind, and Selena Hind.
Do you have any questions? Please get in touch by emailing [email protected] and [email protected].
This event will be held on Zoom. It is free and open to everyone, but registration is required. Click here to register.
Deciding how much you should charge for your artwork can feel like a shot in the dark, but artists Chrissy and Kyle of Spark Box Studio have developed a pricing system that dives into the nitty gritty. In this workshop, they will share how they determine fair prices for their work. With appreciation for the nuance of this complex topic, you’re invited to join our conversation. Chrissy and Kyle will answer questions about applying this system to your own practice and offer tips for talking about the value of your art with others.Â
About the Facilitators
Thirteen years ago Chrissy Poitras and Kyle Topping opened Spark Box Studio, a social enterprise, artist residency and community printmaking studio; committed to addressing cultural and social needs by fostering, supporting and promoting individuals working in the arts.
They created a practice rooted in resource sharing and collaborative exchange. They built a safe, nurturing environment that has hosted over 450 artists from around the world and brought together hundreds of community members to expand their understanding of creativity and professional practice.
Since the pandemic they have been re-envisioning their creative practice and learning how to nurture the shared sense of place virtually that was created in their studio and residency. They have been doing so through a variety of online programs: Artist Confessional, Flat Files, The Art Discourse and Love Letters. All of these video series open up the doors of their studio to the public, encourage collaborative exchange and build connections with artists in their community.
In addition, they are multidisciplinary artists who work collaboratively on community art installations and public art projects; most notably with organizations such as Crazy Dames, The Department of Illumination, Kick Start Arts, Critical Mass and the Gladstone Hotel.
Closed captioning and live transcription will be available through the built-in Zoom CC and Transcription features. ASL Interpretation can be arranged upon request. Please contact Hannah Keating at [email protected] to submit an interpretation request by November 8, 2023. All efforts will be made to fill a request, but if an Interpreter cannot be secured, we will let you know before the event takes place.
Is there anything else we can do to support your participation? Please reach out to Hannah at [email protected].
The RBC Emerging Artist Residency Program at the RMG is generously supported through the RBC Foundation’s Emerging Artist Project.
This event will be held on Zoom. It is free and open to everyone, but registration is required. Click here to register.
Artists Chrissy and Kyle of Spark Box Studio have experience presenting their work in all sorts of conventional and unconventional settings. From community engaged projects to murals to pop up events, they have collaborated with other artists and each other to bring their work to different audiences. Offering tips and answering questions, they will facilitate a reflective conversation to share some of the experiences they’ve had and the lessons they’ve learned installing artwork in various settings.
About the Facilitators
Thirteen years ago Chrissy Poitras and Kyle Topping opened Spark Box Studio, a social enterprise, artist residency and community printmaking studio; committed to addressing cultural and social needs by fostering, supporting and promoting individuals working in the arts.
They created a practice rooted in resource sharing and collaborative exchange. They built a safe, nurturing environment that has hosted over 450 artists from around the world and brought together hundreds of community members to expand their understanding of creativity and professional practice.
Since the pandemic they have been re-envisioning their creative practice and learning how to nurture the shared sense of place virtually that was created in their studio and residency. They have been doing so through a variety of online programs: Artist Confessional, Flat Files, The Art Discourse and Love Letters. All of these video series open up the doors of their studio to the public, encourage collaborative exchange and build connections with artists in their community.
In addition, they are multidisciplinary artists who work collaboratively on community art installations and public art projects; most notably with organizations such as Crazy Dames, The Department of Illumination, Kick Start Arts, Critical Mass and the Gladstone Hotel.
Closed captioning and live transcription will be available through the built-in Zoom CC and Transcription features. ASL Interpretation can be arranged upon request. Please contact Hannah Keating at [email protected] to submit an interpretation request by November 8, 2023. All efforts will be made to fill a request, but if an Interpreter cannot be secured, we will let you know before the event takes place.
Is there anything else we can do to support your participation? Please reach out to Hannah at [email protected].
The RBC Emerging Artist Residency Program at the RMG is generously supported through the RBC Foundation’s Emerging Artist Project.
This event will be held on Zoom. It is free and open to everyone, but registration is required. Register here.
In this virtual gathering, RMG Associate Curators, Hannah Keating and Erin Szikora, will provide an overview of the RBC Emerging Artist Residency Program application, sharing tips for preparing your own application and talking through strong samples from past applicants. This guidance will be applicable to the RMG’s active call for residency applications, but will also have broader relevance for other exhibition or grant opportunities. Following a short presentation, we’ll answer questions from the audience.
Closed captioning and live transcription will be available through the built-in Zoom CC and Transcription features. ASL Interpretation can be arranged upon request. Please contact Hannah Keating at [email protected] to submit an interpretation request by May 16, 2023. All efforts will be made to fill a request, but if an Interpreter cannot be secured, we will let you know before the event takes place.
Is there anything else we can do to support your participation? Please reach out to Hannah at [email protected].