MABELLEarts

This summer, in partnership with the City of Toronto's Cultural Hotspot project, MABELLEarts ​is hitting the road, bringing our brand of art making, story sharing and public space transformation to neighbourhoods across Etobicoke!

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Mobile MABELLE was at the Montgomery's Inn​ Farmer's Market a few weeks ago - Thanks to Shane from Snapd Etobicoke​ for capturing our time there on camera and to the City of Toronto's Cultural Hotspot​ project for supporting us being there! Check out Snapd’s Coverage of the event at: https://etobicoke.snapd.com/event/858654#/

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This summer, a group of Mabelle Youth have taken on amazing leadership as Workshop Facilitators, travelling with the ‪Mobile MABELLE‬ Trailer to sites across Etobicoke to share the experience they have gained over years in the Mabelle Park. We are so proud of the hard work they have done; our summer would not have been possible without them.

Last Friday, we took Tasmeen, Tauhid, Osama, Omar, Iqra, Maria and their families to Camp Naivelt to celebrate an amazing summer together and reflect on what we have made happen - while looking forward to continued projects and emerging leadership roles in the future.

Thank you to the City of Toronto's Cultural Hotspot Project for helping fund our Youth Volunteers and the Mobile MABELLE project this summer!

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Final re-painting touches!

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Braids made at the West Mall Park with Mobile MABELLE become hanging baskets, created by Nahila Dib at the Mabelle Sewing Room! These baskets are based on a rug-making method that Nahila learned from her mother that she has adapted into 3 dimensions and been teaching to us over the summer. 

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‎Mobile MABELLE‬ at the West Mall Park: Completing our ceramic mosaic tiling for the Trailer's Kitchen - created from ceramics found at the Mabelle Avenue Goodwill. Mabelle Community Youth Leaders Osama, Omar and Tauhid working with Parker Dirks at the West Mall Park last week!

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At the West Mall last week, we completed the Flipbooks that Fiona Clarke has been working on with residents, artists, community leaders and passers-by all summer. Each book contains text generated on the experiential walks that Fiona has been leading through the West Mall Park and surrounding site, as well as images collected by various photographers that capture first perceptions and impressions of the Park and travelling workshops. These flipbooks will be displayed in the ‪‎Mobile MABELLE‬ trailer and we are so excited to get to share them now that they are completed!

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here it comes! 

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We had an amazing time showing off the Mobile MABELLE Trailer-Turned-Art-Studio at the Montgomery's Inn Farmers Market yesterday with artists Fiona Clarke and Parker Dirks  - and our team of Mabelle Youth Leaders. Thanks to Fiona for these photos and to Montgomery's Inn for once again hosting us at their beautiful space!

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AND here are the new sheer curtains, showing Mabelle Kids in the field, silkscreened by Parker Dirks!

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New curtains for the ‪‎Mobile MABELLE‬ trailer! These beautiful curtains were indigo dyed by youth from the RAY, and embroidered by Marianne Alas, Faten Toubasi and the Mabelle Sewing Circle. This beautiful addition to our Mobile Art Studio was installed today by Parker and Farah! 

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Looking back at the RAY Summer Bash August 15: amazing performances, delicious food, and displays of Rathburn Area Youth’s trailer contributions. Thanks so much to Cultural Hotspot and the RAY’s amazing staff for making this event possible! We had such a wonderful time! (bottom two photos by @fionarclarke)

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An amazing drawing of the MobileMabelle Trailer by Hyesoo Kim from Cultural Hotspot! Thanks so much! 

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The MobileMABELLE Trailer will be at the Montgomery's Inn​ Farmer's Market this Wednesday between  2 and 6 p.m. Come by 4709 Dundas Street West to say hello and peek inside our Mobile Art Studio - see all the things we've been creating with Etobicoke neighbourhoods this summer! Thanks to The City of Toronto's Cultural Hotspot for making these workshops possible!

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‪#‎TBT‬ Our Youth Volunteers grew up in Mabelle Park and were once tiny painters, puppeteers and gardeners - now grown up and taking their experience with them to new neighbourhoods and parks! ‪

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Meet another member the MABELLEarts Summer Team, Dani Mailing, our Director of Development and Delivery:

With a deep connection to environment, the arts, and social justice, Dani Mailing has over a decade of experience in the philanthropic sector. Dani has held management roles at Roy Thomson Hall, Massey Hall, EcoSpark, and Small Change Fund, and currently divides her time between her role as Program Officer at the Catherine Donnelly Foundation, and Mabelle Arts. Dani currently volunteers her time as a program committee member at the Canadian Environmental Grantmakers Network, and as treasurer on the planning committee for Be Good Be Social, a free social media conference for non-profits. Dani holds a BFA from York University in Visual Arts and Womens’ Studies.

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We have two more Thursday Workshops at the West Mall Park this summer!

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Osama Jibril is one of our amazing hard-working Youth Leaders this summer:

Osama was almost six years old when he took part in Jumblies TheatreBridge of One Hair in 2007. Since then, him and his family have become an essential part of MABELLEarts’ work in the Mabelle Neighbourhood. Osama is now fifteen years old and just finished his first year of highschool. He plays basketball, does Taekwondo and break dances. In the park, Osama has been volunteering in the summer and helping with all of the hands-on tasks we have been tackling. Last summer he became our foremost expert at wood-working and de-barking the painted sticks in the Park. This year, he has been an essential assistant to the trailer renovations, and in his spare time has founded OB Ground Control: a teen-run Landscaping business, using the gardening and construction skills he's become experienced in at MABELLEarts.

Osama’s favourite part of MABELLEarts is learning how to use tools and working with his hands; he hopes to keep learning more about building and machinery, and to get to take on the role of Fire Keeper and Trailer Driver one day. When asked what he wants to see in the park in the future, Osama says: “I wish more people would go there – not just for MABELLEarts – but just to have fun and see all the great stuff that’s there.”