Upcoming Webinar: Creative Space Projects & COVID-19

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Join us on December 8th at 1 pm (EST)for our upcoming webinar on navigating creative space capital projects during a pandemic! Panelists will share their experiences and advice around capital projects in pandemic times, focusing on successes and challenges with project planning, timeline/adjustments, contingencies and risk management, funding, and overall recommendations for creative space project development.

Panelists include:

  • Janis Monture, Executive Director of Woodland Cultural Centre
  • Paul Fujimoto-Pihl, Project Manager at the Grand Theatre

Please note that the second portion of the webinar will serve as a mandatory check-in point for mentors and mentees of ABO’s Creative Spaces Mentoring Network (CSMN) 2021-22.

Once the second portion of this webinar begins, we ask that all mentors and mentees of the CSMN program remain on the Zoom call.

Register now!

PANEL

About the Speaker

Janis Kahentóktha Monture is Mohawk Nation, Turtle Clan from Six Nations of the Grand River. Janis returned as the Executive Director of Woodland Cultural Centre, one of the largest First Nations- run cultural centres/museums in the country. Previously, Janis was appointed the Director of Tourism and Cultural Initiatives for the Six Nations of the Grand River Development Corporation. Janis attended the University of Western Ontario where she attained a Bachelor of Arts in History and received a Museum Studies diploma from Algonquin College. Janis continues to volunteer in her community at Six Nations and in Brantford.

About the Woodland Cultural Centre’s Capital Project

Save the Evidence is a campaign to raise awareness and support for the restoration of the former Mohawk Institute Residential School, and to develop the building into an Interpreted Historic Site and Educational Resource. As a site of conscience, the final goal is to create a fully realized Interpretive Centre that will be the definitive destination for information about the history of Residential Schools in Canada, the experiences of Survivors of the schools, and the impact that the Residential School system has had in communities. After the Mohawk Institute closed in 1970, it reopened in 1972 as the Woodland Cultural Centre, a non-profit organization that serves to preserve and promote First Nations culture and heritage.

About the Speaker

Paul Fujimoto-Pihl is currently serving as Project Manager at the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario. He has been with the Grand since 2012, and was previously Technical Director and Interim Production Manager. Prior to the Grand, he was Technical Director at Tarragon Theatre and The Blyth Festival. He has mentored five Apprentice Technical Directors while at the Grand, and is proud to be part of a ‘teaching theatre’. Paul sits on the Program Advisory Committee for Humber College’s Theatre Production Program, is Chair of the Ontario Section of the Canadian Institute for Theatre Technology, and is director of PMArts.

About the Grand Theatre’s Capital Project

The Grand Theatre is nearing completion of a $9.5 million renovation to its front- and back-of-house spaces. The work over the past year has completely transformed the interior of the theatre. The 2020-21 year allowed for the theatre to undertake significant renovations including more accessible bathrooms, upgraded lighting and sound systems, upgraded HVAC controls, refreshed artists spaces and more.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Amy Poole, Program Manager, at amy@artsbuildontario.ca or 519-880-3670 x 102.

Information Session: Making Cultural Spaces Safe During COVID-19 Initiative

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About this event

ABO is pleased to host an upcoming information session on November 22 at 1:00 PM on the Making Cultural Spaces Safe During COVID-19 Initiative from the Canada Cultural Spaces Fund, Department of Canadian Heritage.

The Initiative will provide 1-time project-based support to arts and heritage organizations to upgrade their space to safely reopen. The Initiative seeks to increase the number of cultural facilities able to re-open safely to the public.

In this information session, Regional Manager of Arts Programs Valerie Hopper and the Canada Cultural Spaces team will share further details on the Initiative, including project examples, eligibility, and timeline. Following the presentation, there will be time for Q&A with participants.

The presentation and Q&A will be offered in both English and French.

Register here!

For any questions about this information session, please contact ABO Executive Director Alex Glass at alex@artsbuildontario.ca or 519.880.3670 ext. 103.

ArtsBuild Ontario’s Vaccination Policy

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Effective September 22nd, 2021, all staff, short-term renters and visitors of ArtsBuild Ontario will be required to be fully vaccinated in order to access our rented spaces within 44 Gaukel Creative Workspace. Proof of vaccination status will be required and must show the individual to be fully vaccinated* a minimum of fourteen (14) days prior to accessing the building. Proof of vaccination must be in the form of a Ministry of Health official form or a vaccination passport once they come available.

*Fully Vaccinated – Full vaccination status is defined as receiving two valid doses of a Health Canada recognized COVID-19 vaccine. Note that full vaccination status may be subject to change based on changes in the Ministry of Health guidelines.

ArtsBuild Ontario Staff

All staff at ArtsBuild Ontario must be fully vaccinated in order to report to work. Staff who require an accommodation under the Human Rights Code, that has been approved by the Executive Director, will be required to undergo regular antigen testing taken within 48 hours of reporting to work. Only staff members who receive a negative result will be permitted to work.

The cost for this testing will remain free of charge to the staff member or volunteer only as long as the tests are provided free of charge by the Government of Ontario, once they are no longer being provided free of charge, the individual will be responsible for the cost of the test.

All staff are required to take the passive screening test at the entrance of 44 Gaukel Creative Workspace each day before entering the building.

Renter Access

All renters and their attendees of ArtsBuild Ontario’s rental spaces, within 44 Gaukel Creative Workspace, will be required to be fully vaccinated for a minimum of fourteen (14) days prior to accessing the building. The renter or organizer is responsible for ensuring their guests are aware of and in accordance with the ArtsBuild Ontario’s Vaccination Policy. Attendees will be required to show proof of full vaccination along with photo identification upon entering the building. Those who cannot provide proof of vaccination will not be permitted access.

In the absence of proof of full vaccination status, we will require those who wish to access the building to provide proof of a negative antigen test within 48 hours of attending the event. This negative test result will be required to be shown along with photo identification upon entering the building.

All renters and their attendees are required to take the passive screening test at the entrance of 44 Gaukel Creative Workspace each day before entering the building.

Children 11 Years of Age and Younger

Effective September 22nd, 2021, children not yet eligible for vaccination may access 44 Gaukel Creative Workspace as long as they are accompanied by parents who have provided their own proof of vaccination. Children 11 years of age and younger are also exempt from antigen testing. Parents are asked to closely monitor their children for COVID-19 symptoms and must submit that they have self-screened their unvaccinated child prior to entering 44 Gaukel Creative Workspace.

All parents of children not yet eligible for vaccination are required to take the passive screening test at the entrance of 44 Gaukel Creative Workspace each day before entering the building.

Accommodations

ArtsBuild Ontario will comply with its human rights obligations and accommodate visitors who are legally entitled to accommodation under the Ontario Human Rights Code. Any visitors being accommodated in this manner will be subject to face-covering rules indefinitely. We will also require those who are unable to get vaccinated to provide us with proof of a negative antigen test result within 72 hours of attending 44 Gaukel Creative Workspace.

If you should require accommodation, please send an accommodation request to alex@artsbuildontario.ca. This request must include one of the two supporting documents:

  • A letter on letterhead from your Primary Care Physician indicating that there is an underlying medical condition that deems it unsafe for you to receive the vaccine.
  • A letter on letterhead from your religious leader indicating that your faith disallows you to receive the vaccine.

For the period between September 22 and October 12, 2021, in accordance withprovincial regulations, people accessing ArtsBuild Ontario’s rental spaces will be able to provide a negative rapid antigen COVID-19 test from no more than 48 hours beforethe event as an alternative to proof of vaccination. Once supporting documentation is received your request will be evaluated by the Executive Director for approval.

Privacy Statement
ArtsBuild Ontario takes the privacy of its renters, visitors and staff seriously and will take appropriate steps to comply with applicable privacy laws. An individual’s vaccination status is personal information that will not be shared with individuals outside of those authorized to have access for the purposes of enforcing the Vaccination Policy.

Mapping Northern Creative Spaces

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In Fall 2020, ArtsBuild Ontario (ABO) partnered with NORDIK Institute for the Mapping Northern Creative Spaces study. ABO and NORDIK Institute completed detailed case reports on four northern communities – Wawa, Kenora/Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls, Sault Ste. Marie, and Timmins. These reports focused on the creative space needs of the communities and identified potential capital projects. The four regions included in this study are a sampling of the vast artistic and cultural potential of northern communities. There is a clear need identified in the reports for more designated space for the continuation of cultural development.

The economy of Northern Ontario has been largely based on resource extraction. This focus on resources like forestry and mining contributed to prosperous economic development. For a long time, other local assets and resources, such as community and cultural development, were not part of community development initiatives. ABO and NORDIK Institute decided to explore the potential of northern areas to better understand what these communities are missing. While each community report is unique, there are several key underlying connections among all four regions. All of the organizations and individuals who participated in the study surveys felt under-resourced, undervalued, underdeveloped and underutilized. All communities also felt isolated as though they are a separate community within the broader whole. Due to a lack of funding, their northern location, and politics, these communities feel that they are unable to fulfill capital projects to develop their creative spaces.

Having a physical space for operations allows for the continuum of creative processes and allows for networks to emerge and grow. The physical space and operationalizing are what drive this sector forward. With these reports, we hope that a framework for developing future capital projects can be considered and used to support the arts and culture sector in Northern Ontario.

We would like to thank our program partners at NORDIK Institute for their collaborative efforts with each community and ABO throughout the project. Thank you to all the communities involved in this project.

This program was supported by the Canada Council for the Arts. 

 

The Beat Goes On!

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With the pandemic taking the forefront of our lives and conversations, many of us have felt a loss of inspiration and a fatigue of continually being faced with the unknown.  In order to reinvigorate your creative space energy, ArtsBuild Ontario has created a playlist just for facility managers and your creative workspaces!  If you are looking for 56 minutes of songs about buildings, check out this playlist.

What music have you been listening to for inspiration?

Playlists

Spotify: Spotify – ArtsBuild Ontario Playlist

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/ca/playlist/artsbuild-ontario-playlist/pl.u-jV899JLsbzeD7y