ComanandBrian

I have lived at Arcadia, an artists co-op in lakeside Toronto, since 2015. Arcadia is one of the oldest co-ops for artists in Canada and one of the more robust in terms of in-house amenities/shared physical resource for artists. Artist members and residents have free access to a duo of a public-facing white cube/gallery & a multi-use creation/rehearsal/tech residency presentation-ready theatre/dance studio as well as a range of co-op facing facilities (analog photography dark room, makers space/carpentry shop, bike repair room, clay studio and kiln room and a sound-insulated band practice studio). Many have additionally set up home studios inside their housing units. It’s a compete luxury and privilege, especially in the context of what artists in increasingly unaffordable Toronto have access to/can afford …and the setup beats all the other live-work studios and make-shift home studios I have worked out of! Many of us progressive and community/ecology-minded practicing artists are keenly aware of this ‘have more and have less’ discrepancy and strive to find ways to share the in-house resources some Arcadians take for granted with others. Despite being often met with liability insurance bureaucracy and hierarchal ‘Arcadian-centric’ tendencies, we make effective punctures and find ways to foster a culture of artistic exchange, community-widened curiosity and reciprocity. TIAF (Toronto Inter-Arts Residency) was an initiative Brian and I started this year. Neighbouring artists Alexandra Gelis, Jorge Lozano and Mike Hoolboom continue to run the lauded/proudly hosted and audience-curated ConverSalon out of their home/gathering space regularly. The upcoming installation, performance and artist talk featuring Colombian-Canadian artist Nancy Ospina and curated by Arcadian Alexandra Gelis is a continuation of this hopeful tide. I hope you can make it out. This project is made possible by support from the Toronto Arts Council and Arcadia Art Gallery.