City of Peterborough Selects Artist For Miskin Law Community Complex Public Art Installation

First Nations artist Vanessa Dion Fletcher has been awarded a commission to create artwork for the Miskin Law Community Complex including a twin-pad arena and a library branch.

Dion Fletcher is a Lenape and Potawatomi neurodiverse artist; her family is from Eelūnaapèewii Lahkèewiitt (displaced from Lenapawking) and European settlers. She graduated from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (2016) with a Master of Fine Arts in performance and holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from York University (2009). Photo courtesy of the City of Peterborough.

Dion Fletcher will create the focal point for the impressive two-storey atrium, featuring an east-facing, floor-to-ceiling window at the main entrance to the Miskin Law Community Complex at Lansdowne and Park streets.

The artwork will build on the City’s commitment to create awareness of Indigenous cultures, peoples, and heritage. The commissioned work will provide insight into First Nations teachings, ethos and spirit of sport and the role sport plays in building relations. 

The new work, entitled Analogous Harmony (working title), is composed of three hoops or rings, painted with the visual texture, pattern and colour of quillwork. The rings are abstract forms that invite the viewer to see their experience with sport. The circular form evokes balls, tracks, hoop dancing, and the earth.

“I began by engaging with lacrosse sticks, hoop dancers, and canoes as forms of inspiration. I related these images to the feelings of movement that are evoked by my two-dimensional quillworks…,” said Dion Fletcher. “I now see my quillwork as an invitation to look and see what is within one's own heart and spirit.”

The artwork unveiling will coincide with the grand opening of the community complex this fall.

“Whether it was learning to ride a bike, paddle across a lake, run cross country or playing soccer, for me, sport is a conversation with oneself, the environment, and the creator,” said Dion Fletcher.

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Holy Cross Secondary School Brings Literature to Life With Production of 'Shakespeare In Love The Play' For Three Shows

The students of Holy Cross Secondary School in grades 9 to 12 are putting on the production of 'Shakespeare In Love The Play' for three dates on Feb. 28, 29 and March 1.

Photo courtesy of PVNCCDSB.

The play is based on the screenplay by Marc Norman, and Tom Stoppard was adapted for theatre by Lee Hall.

It is being produced by Holy Cross teacher Serena McKenna as it is her 24th production.

“There are a number of staff members and students involved behind the scenes which speaks to the supportive relationships that exist at Holy Cross,” she said. “Shakespeare said a good heart never changes and I see this in the staff and students here. We can always count on each other.”

Ella Doris is taking the female lead in playing the role of Viola DeLesseps.

 “Having been involved in the previous productions at Holy Cross, I am very excited to see how this show is evolving and being involved in a performance of this size is an overwhelmingly tremendous experience,” she explained. “I am looking forward to opening night and feel proud and grateful of the work that has been put in by the cast and crew.  This has been a great experience to have in my Senior year.”

Only one Grade 9 student has an acting role in the production as this play is Xy Pascual's first-ever time taking the stage.

“Being the only Grade 9 in this play is a bit stressful but thankfully I have formed a new relationship with my castmates and I have been made more comfortable in stepping out of my comfort zone,” she said “I am already excited to be involved in the next Holy Cross Production.”

The play is open for the public to watch for all three dates with ticket prices at $20 for adults and $15 for students at the door.

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Hometown PTBO: Jason Wilkins On His Historic Projects and Upcoming Work With the Peterborough Memorial Centre

This week on Hometown PTBO, Pete Dalliday talks with artist Jason Wilkins about some of the big projects he's done throughout the years, seeking input for a new mural at the Peterborough Memorial Centre and his business, the Jason Wilkins Factory.

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Peterborough Theatre Guild Announced December Production 'The Enchanted Bookshop' For Eight Shows

Peterborough Theatre Guild is putting on a production of Todd Wallinger’s famed story of ‘The Enchanted Bookshop’ slated for eight dates in December.

Photo courtesy of Colton DeKnock and PeterborougH Theatre Guild.

Four matinee shows at 2 p.m. and evening shows at 7:30 p.m. are running throughout the first two weeks of December.

Show dates run on the follow dates: Dec. 1, 2*, 3*, 5, 7, 8, 9* and 10*.

*denotes matinee performances

The production is about the used bookstore ‘A Likely Story’ where characters inside the books come alive at night. Famed characters such as Dorothy Gale, Robin Hood, Pollyanna, Sherlock Holmes, Heidi and Tom Sawyer help Margie, the scatterbrained owner, save her struggling store. The come-to-life characters cannot leave the building or be seen by human eyes. A pair of smugglers comes looking for a stolen necklace hidden inside one of the books putting the characters in a dilemma.

The show features additional appearances that include Queen of Hearts, Long John Silver and Doctor Dolittle.

Tickets are $15 and can be purchased by calling (705) 745-4211 or visiting Peterborough Theatre Guild’s website.

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Market Hall Is Back To Provide Uplift Spirits With "Cancer Takedown" For Cancer Care

Market Hall is back for the second Annual Cancer Takedown as a 'spirit-raiser' for anyone touched by cancer for Nov. 9 at 7 p.m.

Photo courtesy of Market Hall.

The night shines a light on the mental burden of cancer and unites people through song, story and solidarity. All proceeds go to Cancer Care at the Peterborough Regional Health Centre.

Performances will be done by Melissa Payne, Kate Suhr, Linda Kash, Megan Murphy, Anthony Bastianon, Rob Phillips and Pol Coussée. It also includes people sharing their cancer stories.

Husband and wife team Rick and Amy Kemp founded the event. Rick has been a patient of PRHC since 2019 when he was diagnosed with metastatic kidney cancer. In May 2021, his battle doubled as he was diagnosed with a second primary cancer, CNS lymphoma.

“The mental battle of cancer is as tough as the physical battle. Some days, even tougher,” said Rick. “Let's find more ways to help more people get through the mental part.”

Donations can be made at the event or online.

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Missy Knott Becomes First Curve Lake First Nation Resident Appointed to Ontario’s Art Council

Missy Knott has become the first person from Curve Lake First Nation to be appointed to Ontario’s Art Council (OAC) announced on Monday.

It has been more than fifty years since there was an appointee from the riding of Peterborough-Kawartha, with Missy Knott being the first ever from Curve Lake Frist Nation. Photo courtesy of MPP Dave Smith.

The OAC is the province’s primary funding body for professional artists and art organizations, made up of a 12-member volunteer Board of Directors according to a press release. They are community leaders with a variety of expertise in the arts, all appointed throughout the province. They foster the arts – both in creation and production- to enrich Ontarians' lives, communities and economy. The OAC's grants and services to professional, Ontario-based artists and arts organizations support arts education, Indigenous arts, community arts, crafts, dance, Francophone arts, literature, media arts, multidisciplinary arts, music, theatre, touring, and visual arts.

Knott is a singer/songwriter who gained popularity for her unique style and has released music since 2009. She uses her experience of growing up in Peterborough and her relations to Curve Lake First Nation and infuses the two community experiences into her music. She has returned to Curve Lake First Nation for her latest journey of starting a not-for-profit record label, Wild Rice Records.

The record label began in 2018 and helps with youth outreach, mentorship, recording and community connections. Missy uses her record label to guide Indigenous youth to follow their passions and talents. In providing the support she wished she had when she entered the music scene, she continues to inspire and promote the next generation of local artists. She has been active in Indigenous music, using her songs to speak to the matters close to her and her community. In 2017, she was nominated at the Indigenous Music Awards for EP My Sister’s Heart.

“I had the privilege of first working with Missy in the lead up to the Special Hockey International Tournament in Peterborough back in 2017,” said Dave Smith, Peterborough-Kawartha MPP. “I am so happy that someone who has used her talents to give back to our community as a positive role model is be appointed to the Ontario Arts Council.”

“It is an honour to sit on the Ontario Arts Council Board of Directors,” said Knott. “It is and has always been important to me to foster a creative vision and help artists realize their voice and their passions. Success is not an individual achievement but the result of learning, engaging, collaborating and hard work. The same is true of communities, and I am so happy to be a part of this one.”

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Three Artists Selected For City’s New Change Makers Artist Residency Program

Three artists-in-residence have been selected for the Change Makers Artist Residency Program which will create opportunities for artists to innovate and contribute to municipal projects, particularly Climate Change Awareness, Adaptation and Sustainability-related initiatives, announced by the City of Peterborough on Friday.

Ox and the Fox and the Kangaroo by Ann Jaeger. Photo courtesy of Ann Jaeger.

Ann Jaeger, Dimitri Papatheodorou and Josh Morley have been selected as the artists-in-residence. During their three-month residency, each artist will be provided an artist fee as they explore the work in the City’s Asset Management and Capital Planning Division and develop project proposals according to a press release.

“An Artist Residency Program is envisioned to amplify communication around climate-related vulnerabilities, especially those due to flooding but also to begin earnest conversations about climate change risks in general,” said James Byrne, thee City’s climate change Coordinator. “Artists help us to think, to remember and to see things in different ways. What changes can we make by facing challenges together?”

Jaeger is a multi-disciplinary artist whose eclectic work intersects literary, theatre and visual arts. An honours graduate of OCAD, she has presented solo exhibitions of painting and sculpture in the Peterborough area, most recently at Evans Contemporary and the Arts and Culture Centre of Warkworth.

Her textile art was featured in the 1982 Visual Arts Ontario publication Art in Architecture. In addition to writing articles on regional arts and culture for her blog Trout in Plaid and for local media, she has published poetry in the League of Canadian Poets, Cornell University's Epoch Magazine, and the Capilano Review.

Papatheodorou is an artist pursuing hybrid forms of expression through painting, sculpture, music, and architecture. Born in Toronto, he is an Adjunct Faculty at Toronto Metropolitan University and operates from a rural studio in Warkworth.

Morley is an Anishinaabe artist working in screen printing and mural work in Peterborough. His work explores regional ecological issues, his relationship with nature and his ancestral connection to the land. 

The Change Makers Artist Residency Program is administered by the City’s Public Art Program and developed in partnership with the Asset Management and Capital Planning Division.

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$57,423 In Grants Given to 24 Recipients in Individual Artists Program

The Grants for Individual Artists program has given twenty-four artists a total of $57,425 to bring dozens of new plays, paintings, sculptures, albums, writing and performances to life in Peterborough announced on Wednesday.

Victoria Yeh. Photo by Jordan Cooper.

The grant was funded jointly by the City of Peterborough and Electric City Culture Council (EC3) and administered by EC3.

“Peterborough is home to a vibrant community of exceptional artists and it’s important to make these types of investments in the creative economy,” said Councillor Alex Bierk. “Art and culture help to make Peterborough a special place and grants like these are important to sustain this part of our City’s identity.”

“There is an impressive range of art being supported by this year’s Grants for Individual Artists program,” said Councillor Joy Lachica. “From visual art, to performing art, music and the written word, these talented artists will engage and inspire our community.”

“These investments in the work of our very talented and hardworking artists means more artists can realize their visions, contribute to our cultural, economic and social well-being, and make Peterborough a more vibrant, dazzling place for all of us,” said Su Ditta, EC3 executive director. “New books, poetry, concerts, plays, exhibitions, albums and performances of all kinds will touch our hearts, minds, and imaginations. The projects supported by these grants explore love, climate change, beauty, community connection, disability, forgotten histories and more.”

The Grants for Individual Artists (GFIA) program has two components:

• Component One: Mini Development Grants for Individual Professional Artists provide up to $1,500 each for research, development, workshopping etc., of original new works, as well as for professional training and mentorship opportunities.

• Component Two: Project Production and Presentation Grants for Individual Artists provide up to $3,500 each for the production and presentation of specific projects and support costs such as artist fees, production materials, venue rentals, technical equipment, costumes, printing, etc.

The Grants for Individual Artists program receives $50,000 from the City of Peterborough through the Arts and Culture budget according to a press release.

The program’s open call for artists was available to those working in every discipline and medium including multi-disciplinary or community-based arts practice, in traditional or contemporary forms. A five-member peer assessment jury reviewed a total of 50 applications. Grants were awarded to 24 artists, including 13 in Component One (total $19,500) and 11 in Component Two (total $37,925).

2023 Recipients of Grants for Individual Artists

COMPONENT ONE: Mini Development grants for Individual Professional Artists

Melissa Addison-Webster: Earth Within Earth

An exploration of Land Dancing, building on collaborations with Heryka Miranda.

Kate Alton: Divining Laurence (working title)

A new dance/theatre project inspired by legendary author Margaret Laurence.

Dreda Blow: My Underground

A program of movement research to create a dance solo exploring themes of hope, love, oppression, regret, and resilience.

Samantha Chiusolo: Children’s Book

Research, writing, illustration planning, development, and artist fee to create a children’s picture book 'dummy.'

Garrett Gilbart: Sculpture-Based Performance

Professional development and experimentation for sculpture-based performance practice.

Brooklin Holbrough: Zine Development

Developing skills as a zine and printmaker, and the production of planned zine publications.

Elizabeth Jenkins: Healing From Those Who Love You

Support for writing and research for a book series, about love, race, and blurred boarders in exploring relationships and culture.

Charlotte Kennedy: The Stilt Walker Story-Poem

A video of creative collaboration, artist fees for a writer/project coordinator, an illustrator, and a videographer/musician, to bring original story-poem into a new dynamic medium.

Shannon LeBlanc: text-tile

Artist fees for creating 10 textile art pieces and a fee payable to an artist for their intellectual property.

Zoe Litow-Daye: Time for a Transition

Transitioning from digital art to producing physical works (e.g. paintings on canvas).

Nicole Malbeuf: Dance Training

Regular dance training in ballet, tap and fusion to advance artistic movement practice in aerial arts and physical theatre.

Holly McGillis: Processing Autistic Burnout Through Pottery

Transitioning to a new medium, pottery, and developing skills while adapting worsening disabilities.

Esther Vincent: The Loneliness of a Long-Distance Daughter

Artist fee for the revision of a suite of poems written in the last months of my mother’s life.

COMPONENT TWO: Project Production and Presentation Grants for Individual Artists

Calvin Bakelaar: Untitled ‘Vancamp’ Album

A folk-rock album challenging the traditional notions of masculinity I grew up with as a queer person in a small town.

Shannon Culkeen: Shannon Culkeen Debut Album Production Project

Artist fees to compose, rehearse, and produce an album of songwriter material at Sadleir House in June 2024, released November 2024.

Michael C. Duguay: Content

Artists fees to contribute to a site-specific, immersive field-recording and music project about community, wellness, and home for release in Autumn 2024.

Jon Hedderwick: Bubie’s Tapes

Artist, technical, promotional and travel fees and tour a play exploring antisemitism using stories left by my Bubie Sarah in cassette recordings.

Ryan Kerr: Death in Reverse: Project Baroness

A new performance project navigating the liminal territories between past and present, activating possibilities for personal and political transformation.

Justin Million: After Monomania

Artist fees and venue costs, to compose and present a text-based art installation based in the postmodern poetic tradition.

Stan Olthuis: Interconnected – A Touring Immersive Experience

Artist fees for a choreographer, three dancers, costume designer, art fabricator and musician to produce an immersive, multi-disciplinary exhibition about Sacred Geometry presented at the Art Gallery of Peterborough.

Laurel Paluck: Symbiosis

Five local artists (artist fees) create artworks based on exploring the concept of climate change, for exhibition at Ludmila Gallery.

Jill Staveley: Focus

Artist fees to work with a collection of local musicians to support arranging and enhancing original songs not yet fully developed.

Kate Story: Anxiety

Artist fees, materials costs, and venue costs for a remount and adaptation of a one-person show “Anxiety” preparatory to touring it to St. John’s, Newfoundland. “Anxiety” explores Beowulf, the current rise of white supremacy, language, my childhood, and my father’s work as a Newfoundland lexicographer.

Victoria Yeh: Timeless

Artist fees to produce and present a concert of violin music through the ages and around the world.

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