Creative Works Studio | Newsletter...

Creative Works Studio | Newsletter 2015www.creativeworks-studio.ca • 416.465.5711 • 793 Gerrard St. East, Toronto, ON M4M 1Y5

Creative Works Studio (CWS) is part of the Inner City Health Program at St. Michael’s Hospital, and operates in partnership with Good Shepherd Non-Profit Homes Inc. The studio is an arts-based occupational therapy program that helps individuals living with mental health challenges and/or addictions to

heal and cope through the power of artistic expression.

The studio is open four days a week and accepts clients from mental health agencies across the city. All members are encouraged to reach their highest potential through art projects and

workshops, which helps them return to active and meaningful lives within the larger community. We host 2,400 visits and serve 70 clients per year.

We welcome your interest and involvement in our organization as a participant, supporter or volunteer!

INSIdEMark your 2015 Calendar .........................3Art Shows .................................................4Songwriting ...............................................4Bowlathon .................................................5In Memoriam .............................................5

Art Gems Auction ......................................6Art Products ..............................................7Donations .................................................7Becoming a Member or Volunteer ............8Contact Info ..............................................8

Ceramic pots made by CWS members; photo by Marlena Zuber

Lawrence Rutherford at a watercolour workshop; photo by Marlena Zuber

BackGrOuNd aNd aBOuT uS

Mixed media art work by Tatjana Blinja; photo by Tatjana Blinja

2 | Creative Works Studio | Newsletter 2015

It is so good to finally embrace spring after a cold, long winter. Despite the weather, Creative Works Studio continues to flourish in 2015.

Last year we presented our program at a wide range of conferences, including the Canadian Art Therapy Conference in Nelson, B.C. and the Canadian Collaborative Mental Health Conference in Toronto. We continue to present our knowledge translation film, What’s Art Got To Do With It? to a variety of audiences. We now offer hands-on creativity labs that feature the film as part of the Interprofessional Arts and Humanities curriculum at the University of Toronto - inspiring medical students to think about how to use the arts in their future practices. And in May, I’ll be teaming up with Janet Parsons from St. Michael’s Hospital’s Applied Health Research Centre and several CWS members to present the film and facilitate a creative activity at the American Psychiatric Association Conference in Toronto, where 13,000 international attendees will be present.

Thanks to the Ontario Arts Council’s Artists in the Community/Workplace grant, we’ll be recording our first-ever CD of original songs this year. Named by CWS members, our band The Social Mystic Project is looking forward to working with one of Toronto’s most cherished musicians, Don Kerr, who is a professional recording engineer, producer and drummer.

We hope our creative community will be able to inspire more health-care professionals and individuals to enhance well-being through artistic expression. Our program couldn’t thrive this way without the commitment of our caring staff, artists, volunteers, students, Steering Committee members, donors and patrons.

Gratefully,

Isabel Fryszberg OTReg.(ONT.) B.Sc Creative Lead

OpENING rEMarkS 2015

Photo by Declan AcostaThe Social Mystic Project rehearsing with Don Kerr, Isabel Fryszberg, volunteers and members; photo by Marlena Zuber

Newsletter 2015 | Creative Works Studio | 3

Isabel Fryszberg Chair, Creative Lead and Occupational Therapist, Creative Works Studio

Marlena Zuber Creative Works Studio Assistant

Jennifer Carroll Administrative Assistant, Creative Works Studio

Vino Vijayaratnam Clinical Leader Manager, Inner City Health Program

Edmund Wong Business Manager, Inner City Health Program

Ginny Leuty Director, Art Gems

Judy Allen Incoming Director, Art Gems 2016

Josette Lamoureux Assistant Director, Art Gems

Myra Cridland SVP & Head BMO Private Banking, Canada and Asia, BMO Financial Group

Stewart Hunt Managing Director and Co-Head, Portfolio Advisory Group, ScotiaMcLeod

Yang Gao Senior Database Officer, St. Michael’s Hospital Foundation

Vicky Stergiopoulos Psychiatrist-in-Chief, St. Michael’s; Associate Professor and Director, University of Toronto

Shelley Yampolsky Former VP Marketing; Current Visual Artist

Lawrence Rutherford Creative Works Studio Member

Mark YOur 2015 calENdar April» Art Gems Fundraiser: Tuesday,

April 28 at the Berkeley Church

May» Making A Scene, our installation

and costume project, at Chester Station as part of the Artists Newstand project: Friday, May 22 - Sunday, May 24

June» Riverdale Art Walk: Saturday,

June 6 - Sunday, June 7 at Jimmie Simpson Park

September» Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition:

Friday, Sept. 18 - Sunday, Sept. 20 at Nathan Phillips Square

december» Our Annual Art Show: Early

December at Creative Works Studio, 793 Gerrard St. East

Dates To Be Determined, but stay tuned for:» Toronto Urban Photography

Festival (TUPF) – a community mapping photography project

Get information on upcoming events at www.creativeworks-studio.ca/site/upcoming-events

cWS STEErING cOMMITTEE

FuNdErS aNd paTrONSArt Gems, Bell Let’s Talk, Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, Schachter Family Fund, Toronto Community Foundation, BMO Financial Group, The Al Green Gallery, Scotiabank Group, The W. Garfield Weston Foundation, Lundbeck, Sharna Foundation, Long & McQuade Musical Instruments

Photo by Katie Cooper

Watercolour painting by Suzanne Gorenflo


Last year we were proud to participate in three new external shows in our community: the Riverdale Art Walk, Toronto Urban Photography Festival and In the Round (Graven Feather Gallery). We also participated in Toronto’s largest and longest running outdoor art fair, the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibit. We always feel proud when our artists are shown amongst professional artists - their beautiful work holds up well. When one of our members makes a sale, their self-esteem skyrockets and creates a ripple effect in the Studio. Participation in these events was made possible in part by the generosity of the Sharna

Foundation and through Art Gems. We do however need more sponsorship to continue to participate in these shows - please contact us if you can help.

Our 2014 Annual Art Show was called Thriving. One of our members, Pierre, wrote “Together we are thriving” on a piece of paper in early 2014 and we put it up on the wall. The words resonated with members, and it became the seed for our show. And the title held up - we had an amazing celebration and record-breaking sales. We were delighted to see so many people from fellow organizations and our neighbourhood

at the show. Councillor Paula Fletcher purchased a painting for her office and took a photo with artist Rita, who was very flattered.

♫ Chill in the Air ♫by The Social Mystic Project

Hold on to thoughts of springWait for the birds to sing

Blossoms will bloom againOh sweet spring

Sweet sweet spring

“ Acknowledging the setbacks and acknowledging the imperfectly perfect – that’s just part of the journey. Yet when you take a step back to see the bigger picture, you’ll see you’ve thrived into the exclusive YOU today.” — Cavelle “Coco” Wilson

“ When I’m slogging through the days, merely surviving, it seems as if thriving—engaging in the whirlwind of life—is beyond my reach. Then, suddenly I am there—joking with a neighbor in the elevator, helping an elderly woman with her walker, and buying some

fresh flowers to bring home to paint. You can thrive in small ways.” — Eileen Koyama

“ At dawn, when the city is half asleep, a window in a tall building is lit. Her never ending thirst to thrive begins.” — Declan Acosta

“ A single silver tree is said to thrive at the base of a large mountain range. If seen, it can provide hope in the darkest of times.” — Jennifer Boyle

SOME STaTEMENTS FrOM MEMBErS ON ThrIvING

arT ShOWS

SONGWrITING

Coco Wilson and her painting for the Thriving show; photo by Katie Cooper

Photo by Katie Cooper

Inna Kalinovskaia with her beautiful ceramic work; photo by Katie Cooper


We’ve been bowled over by the success of our first-ever Bowlathon Fundraiser that happened on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2015. We filled Bathurst Bowlerama with 16 bowling teams and surpassed our $10,000 fundraising goal by 160 per cent - achieving a final total of $16,008! Our talented member, Gustavo, gave an excellent speech at the event and kept participants moving with a fun DJ set. Imagine: lanes full of people tapping their feet in between bowling and snacking, while dressed up in all sorts of costumes from the Strikeologists’ lab coats, to The Alley Cats’ painted faces, to member Lawrence in his

bear costume. Stay tuned for our 2016 Bowlathon!

A huge thanks must go to our hard-working Bowlathon coordinator, Sarah Vincett (all volunteer work) and our amazing administrative assistant, Jennifer Carroll. And thank you to all who participated, raised funds and donated money or prizes. All funds will go into sustaining and growing our programming.

If you are interested in participating at the next event, please contact [email protected].

BOWlaThON 2015

Thank you to our generous prize donors:

ThOMaS WIlSON It was with great sadness that we lost a dear friend and member artist last year. Thomas Richard Wilson was born on July 24th, 1961 and died April 24th, 2014. He was talented, generous, and was the studio’s very own rock star with his long hair, throaty chuckle and black leather jackets. Thomas could paint, sew, play guitar and make a mean meal. We miss Laughing Black Dog but his memories live on.

You can find his obituary at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thestar/

Activating Health Centre | Creative Works Studio members | Isabel Fryszberg | Jodi Pape, The UKE Connection | Lawrence Rutherford | Marlena’s Maps | Paul Webster

The Strikeologists at the 2015 Bowlathon; photo by Shuang Shan

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Art Gems is the amazing annual art auction and fundraiser in support of Creative Works Studio. In 2014, the event raised $154,000! On April 28, 2015, we are hoping to raise $150,000 at the 9th annual show.

Mary Deacon, chair of Bell Let’s Talk mental health initiative, will be the guest speaker at the 2015 event. The Live Auction will feature fabulous artwork from 44 professional artists including Tony Scherman, Edward Burtynsky, Melanie Authier and Charles Pachter, as well as an exclusive portrait session with famed Canadian photographer

Christopher Wahl. Highlights of the Celebrity Silent Auction include works by Chris Hadfield, Nelly Furtado and Patrick J. Adams. Beautiful paintings by CWS member artists are also featured in the Silent Auction, which is sure to see some bidding wars at the end of the night!

The Art Gems auction helps to spread the word about the value of art in mental health programming to a larger community in Toronto. It helps CWS raise funds to expand its facilities and services for those most in need. A huge thank you to the Art Gems team and to everyone who contributed artwork,

donated money, or bought a ticket in support of this incredible fundraiser.

Ar T Gem S 2016 The 10th annual art Gems

art auction will take place on Tuesday, april 26, 2016

Email [email protected] to be added to the mailing list

for event information.

Website: artgems.cacall: 416-575-4890

arT GEMS arT aucTION

Gustavo Aguirre in front of his piece at the Art Gems Preview; photo by Marlena Zuber

John Davison with his Making A Scene costume; photo by Marlena Zuber

Artist Maggie Flynn working with Declan Acosta on her costume; photo by Linda Monteith Gardiner

Art Gems Art Auction & Fundraiser at Berkeley Church; photo by Coco Wilson.


We make beautiful unique gifts, including greeting cards, silk-screened tote bags, t-shirts, magnets, ceramic artwork, pottery, journals and more! We take orders, too. They aren’t just great gifts. All proceeds go into programming at the studio - when you buy from us, you’re being a socially conscious consumer.

Special thanks to Declan Acosta, our member and dedicated sales person who runs a table at St. Michael’s Hospital every Tuesday.

We accept monetary and physical gifts. Every little bit counts.

Note: We issue charitable tax receipts for monetary donations of $20 or more. In some cases, we can issue charitable tax receipts for physical/non-monetary gifts. Please inquire within.

Charitable Registration Number: 12296-3663 RR0001

Please make cheque payable to: St. Michael’s Hospital Foundation (with Creative Works Studio in the memo)

Please send cheque to: Creative Works Studio 793 Gerrard St. East, Toronto, ON M4M 1Y5

Another option is to donate online! Go to our website and click on the blue DONATE button in the top right corner of our homepage. You can’t miss it!

http://creativeworks-studio.ca/

Our WISh lISTLarge items:» multi-media projector» photocopier in good repair» laptops (capable of running

graphics software programs such as Photoshop)

» refurbished or gently used computers or computer gear

» fax machine» small portable washing machine

Ongoing program supply needs:» general art supplies» magazines for collage projects» canvas and stretcher bars» passes to museums, galleries,

theatre shows and events» TTC tokens» coffee» healthy snacks

cWS arT prOducTS dONaTIONS

You can find our Art Products at these locations:

creative Works Studio793 Gerrard St. East (East of Broadview Ave., at Logan Ave.)

St. Michael’s Gift ShopVictoria Street entrance of St. Michael’s Hospital

Every Tuesday at St. Michael’s hospital (look for declan!)Across from the Gift Shop from 10:30am – 3:00pm

Holiday cards; photo by Katie Cooper

Ceramic horse by Rick Franken; photo by Katie Cooper

Tatjana Blinja on the wheel; photo by Marlena Zuber

CREAt IVE Wo Rk S Stud Io

www.creativeworks-studio.ca

793 Gerrard St. East, Toronto, ON M4M 1Y5 | 416.465.5711

https://www.facebook.com/creativeworksstudioTO

https://twitter.com/creativeworksTO/

cONTacT uSFeel free to contact us with any questions or inquiries.

Isabel Fryszberg, ot Reg (o nt) Creative Lead Responsible for program direction, development and facilitation. [email protected]

Marlena Zuber Studio Assistant Responsible for program coordination and vocational assistance. [email protected]

Jennifer Carroll Administrative Assistant Responsible for general admin; event, project and funding proposal support. [email protected]

- sherri Wood, toronto sun

www.rendezvouswithmadness.com

TO BEcOME a MEMBErReferral forms can be downloaded from our website at www.creativeworks-studio.ca/site/referral-information. Referral forms are submitted to Creative Works Studio’s Creative Lead and Occupational Therapist, Isabel Fryszberg OTReg.(ONT.) B.Sc. You can submit forms by mail at the address below with attention to Isabel Fryszberg or by email to [email protected].

Please Note:» Referral forms must be filled out and

submitted by a health care practitioner who sees the client regularly

» There is a waiting list and priority is given to clients of St. Michael’s Hospital

» You do not have to have a background in art to apply

» When a spot opens, the client will be contacted by Isabel Fryszberg and asked to attend an intake interview

» If you would like a tour, contact us to book an appointment

TO BEcOME a vOluNTEErWe are always looking for volunteers to:» teach workshops» give art presentations» become a Steering Committee member» help with design and layout work» help with administrative work» raise funds» participate or volunteer for our

Bowlathon Fundraiser» do various errands and tidying

in the studio» stretch canvasses

To become a volunteer, follow these steps:1. Fill out a volunteer application from the

St. Michael’s Hospital website: http://www.stmichaelshospital.com/volunteer/apply.php. If you would like to teach a workshop, please email a proposal to Isabel.

2. Isabel will set up an interview with you. Please bring your CV.

parTNErS

Photo by Linda Monteith Gardiner

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