FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 19, 2015
Mural Symposium will reflect on current state of murals: funding, graffiti, copyrights, and Toronto’s history of mural making
Join mural artists, administrators, educators and mural enthusiasts this weekend for three days of inspiring and informative sessions about public mural art at the 17th National Mural Symposium.
Toronto – From 32-storey high-rises to underpass skate parks, Toronto’s public walls been transformed into canvases for mural art. Keeping pace with an expanding public wall art scene, local arts service organization Mural Routes will be hosting influential figures from the mural art world during the 17th National Mural Symposium in Toronto from October 23 – 25 at Harbourfront Community Centre and The Strathcona Hotel.
The gathering promises three inspiring and informative days of creative, technical and administrative conference sessions about public wall art. It also offers second-to-none networking opportunities with the most knowledgeable muralists and project administrators in the field.
On Friday, Graffiti art/Graffiti vandalism – Changing the dynamic will look to ignite a discussion about effective solutions to graffiti vandalism. In partnership with Mural Routes, StreetARToronto will look to tackle the difficult notion between graffiti art and graffiti vandalism. A panel of selected stakeholders, from business owners to graffiti artists, will discuss the difficulties and differences between art and vandalism.
Municipalities – Mural funding, programs and policies will feature speakers from cities such as San Francisco and Montreal, providing context for Toronto’s scene. Guest speaker Susan Cervantes, a 40-year veteran of the San Francisco community mural art movement, is the founder and director of the Precita Eyes Muralists Association in the city’s Mission District. Cervantes is responsible for more than 400 collaborative community murals considered some of the finest in the Bay Area such as “Maestrapeace” San Francisco Women’s Building. Elizabeth-Ann Doyle is the cofounder and general manager of MU, a charitable non-profit organization, which supports and promotes public art in the greater Montréal region.
On Saturday, Preserving your legacy / protecting your assets will address the legal issues that can seem daunting and are often overlooked in the arts with lawyer Paul Sanderson. Expanding on this topic Mark Locke from IFP Group will discuss insurance issues in mural making while Ryan Mayberry from ArtMoi will discuss the importance of documentation and the cataloguing of ones work.In the afternoon, join us for a mural tour of east downtown Toronto including the urban revitalization murals that transformed Underpass Park’s over 20 transformed concrete pillars.
Full program information here
Register online here
Contact: 416-698-7995 • julien@muralroutes.com
Operational Support by: Toronto Arts Council
Symposium Partners: City of Toronto, StreetARToronto
Mural Routes is the only member-based not-for-profit arts service organization in Canada dedicated to the creation, development and promotion of public wall art.
For 20 years, Mural Routes’ National Mural Symposium has hosted a weekend of learning, sharing and networking with the best in the field of mural art. Don’t miss this year in Toronto!