Arts Etobicoke was founded in 1973 in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada (formerly in the city of

Etobicoke Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district of, and one of six municipalities amalgamated into, the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west-end, Etobicoke was first settled by Europeans in the 1790s, and the municipalit ...

). They are an incorporated

not-for-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

arts council governed by a volunteer Board of Directors from business, the arts and the community. They serve thousands of students in their arts education programs, a membership of 50 arts organizations, 200 individual members, 60 individual artists and clients in an Art Rental program, hundreds of artists through their arts programming and exhibitions, 22 scholarship recipients, the general public and numerous project partners.

About

Arts Etobicoke endeavors to engage the people of

with the arts and artists in their own community. They provide programs and services to increase accessibility of the arts, involve diverse audiences, create broad awareness of artists through advocacy and develop partnerships to sustain local arts activities. To achieve this goal, they provide programs and services designed to increase the accessibility of the arts for residents of Etobicoke, reach and involve special and diverse audiences, create broad community awareness of local arts organizations and artists and develop partnerships and networks to foster and sustain local arts activities. Operating funding for Arts Etobicoke comes from the

City of Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

and the

Ontario Arts Council The Ontario Arts Council (OAC) is a publicly-funded Canadian organization in the province of Ontario whose purpose is to foster the creation and production of art for the benefit of all Ontarians. Based in Toronto, OAC was founded in 1963 by On ...

. This funding accounts for approximately 25% of their total income. The balance is raised through program revenues, memberships, foundations, corporate sponsorships, donations and fundraising events. Arts Etobicoke relies on a team of dedicated volunteers to promote events, help with fundraising, and assist with programs. Their current executive director is Menon Dwarka.

Programs

Smart StART Student Art Show

The "Smart Start Student Art Show" at

Sherway Gardens Sherway Gardens (corporately known as CF Sherway Gardens) is a large retail shopping mall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The mall is located west of Downtown Toronto, near the interchange of Highway 427 with the Queen Elizabeth Way and Gardiner Ex ...

is a non-juried art show displaying works of students from Grades 9 to 12 from the Toronto District School Board and Toronto District Catholic School Board. The Smart Start Student Art Show gives them an opportunity to present their artwork in a public forum, particularly in a high-traffic venue such as Sherway Gardens, where thousands of people can view their works. The program was established in 1996.

Urban Noise

A joint venture with Expect Theatre creates a platform for children/youth to speak out against violence in their communities. Established in 2006, the project includes a free Youth Training Program and Festival that promotes leadership, unity and social change in the culturally diverse communities of Rexdale/Jamestown, located in North Etobicoke. The workshops include DJing, break dancing, singing and song writing, etc. These workshops encourage youth to identify and examine the issues that directly affect them in a supportive environment through various artistic mediums. It also solicits the attention of the general public to take notice of the neighbourhoods that are suffering from racial tension, poverty, gender inequality and lack of resources - all of which can become a potential source for violence.

Art Alley

Art Alley is a project that was designed to bring poetry to Islington Village. A specially commissioned poem by

Dionne Brand Dionne Brand (born 7 January 1953) is a Canadian poet, novelist, essayist and documentarian. She was Toronto's third Poet Laureate from September 2009 to November 2012. She was admitted to the Order of Canada in 2017

(City of Toronto's Poet Laureate) has been painted on the 1000-square-foot wall in the alley immediately east of their storefront office.

Art on The Move

is a three-year mobile community arts initiative in partnership with Lakeshore Arts. The project will transform 13 vehicles into moving canvasses of art.

Scholarships

The Presidents' Legacy Scholarship Fund, launched in 1999, was established as an endowment fund with the Ontario Arts Foundation to provide financial assistance to young people from West Toronto wishing to pursue their education in the arts. Scholarships are awarded to students attending designated arts education institutions. As of 2011, approximately 75 young people received scholarships and awards from the program to such institutions as; OCAD; Royal Conservatory of Music; Kingsway Conservatory of Music; Humber College; Etobicoke School of the Arts; North Albion C.I.; Sean Boutillier Academy of Dance; and Richview C.I.

References

External links

{{Archival records, title=Arts Etobicoke fonds, location=, inventory_number=Fonds 272, description_URL=http://gencat.eloquent-systems.com/torontodetail.html?key=249236, dates=, access_conditions=
Arts Etobicoke official website
Art museums and galleries in Ontario Culture of Toronto Non-profit organizations based in Toronto Etobicoke Arts organizations established in 1973