A.T.C. Heirs Promotions

Trini celebration at Toronto's City Hall on Sat and Sun. Here is the schedule for Saturday, Sept. 7:

One-day exhibit of the five final Caribbean Carnival Arts’ Mural designs

Blackhurst Cultural Centre is providing a unique opportunity for the community to see, review and share opinions on the five final designs for the Caribbean Carnival Arts mural to be installed at the new Mirvish Village. On Thursday, June 8, all five final designs will be on exhibit throughout the day at Blackhurst Cultural Centre, 777-779 Bathurst Street in downtown Toronto. That same night from 6 - 8 pm, the five finalists will be in attendance to talk about their respective mural’s concept. This event is free, and all are welcome to attend. Also, it will be live streamed at www.Facebook.com/BlackhurstCulturalCentre.

This exhibit completes a process of community consultation that began in Summer 2022. A formal call was put out in March 2023 for “expressions of interest” that garnered 18 applications for this Caribbean Carnival Arts mural. In April 2023, a selection jury chose five finalists. In no particular order, they are:
• Phillip Saunders
• Jabari Elliott and Pascal Paquette
• AstroSankofa Arts Initiative
• Curtia Wright and Krystal Ball
• Walter Elliott and Elicser Elliott

The mural’s theme will celebrate the contribution of the Caribbean Carnival Arts to Canada. This monumental work of art will be painted on an outdoor laneway wall in the new Mirvish Village at Bathurst and Bloor Streets. It will be Canada’s first public mural tribute to calypso & soca music, masquerade costumes, and the steelpan.

Blackhurst Cultural Centre, in partnership with Westbank Corp. and the City of Toronto’s StreetARToronto (StART) program, expects a bold artistic statement. Additionally, the mural is intended to serve as a billboard of information about the Caribbean Carnival Arts culture in Canada, and to become a Toronto tourist destination.

Toronto’s “Caribbean Carnival Arts” Mural starts Stage Two

TORONTO – The first stage of Blackhurst Cultural Centre (BCC) outdoor Carnival Arts’ mural project has now closed. BCC received 18 Expressions of Interest (EOI): 11 solo submissions, five pairs, and two collectives (comprising three or more members). While most of the submissions came from Toronto, others came from Hamilton, Milton, Edmonton (Alberta), Barbados, and one pair who live in France and Spain respectively.

“I’m very pleased that our community stepped up with so many submissions,” says Roger Gibbs, BCC’s Mural Project Manager. “We expected to get submissions from Toronto but are really pleased about submissions from other cities in Ontario and Alberta, along with foreign submissions from Barbados and France/Spain. I feel confident that amongst the 18 EOIs received, we will find a wonderful candidate for our mural.”

A jury of seven will review the 18 submissions and choose five finalists for the second stage of the selection process. Each finalist will receive a design fee of CAD$1,500.00 to prepare and submit their design to the jury for final consideration.

Finalists will be evaluated on the following criteria: artistic experience, artistic merit, and suitability of proposed design (50%); integrity, thoroughness, and feasibility of the project (25%); and capacity for meaningful and engaging mentorship opportunities (25%). The winning design will be announced this spring at BCC in Toronto.

The mural theme is the contribution of the Caribbean Carnival Arts to Canada. This monumental mural will be located on an outdoor wall of the laneway that bisects the new Mirvish Village located at Bathurst and Bloor Streets. It is to be a tribute to the seminal roles that calypso & soca music, masquerade costumes, and the steelpan have played in Canada’s Black and Caribbean community. The chosen design must offer an enduring legacy statement on the Caribbean Carnival Arts in Canada and visualize its evolution – its beauty and meaning.

Blackhurst Cultural Centre, in partnership with Westbank Corp. and the City of Toronto’s StreetARToronto (StART) program, seeks a candidate to make a bold artistic statement. This mural is a unique community engagement project intended to serve as a billboard of information about the Caribbean Carnival Arts culture in Canada, and to become a tourist destination. Also, ex*****on of the chosen mural must include a mentorship component.

“Prior to launching this project in February 2023,” says Gibbs, “we got good feedback from the public regarding what they would like to see in a Carnival Arts’ mural. We incorporated many of their suggestions in our mural’s criteria. However, it’s not too late for interested persons to still step forward and share their ideas to [email protected].”