In Our Nature, A City of Toronto Cultural Hotspot Signature Project
In our Nature is a community-minded multidisciplinary public art project that celebrates Women of Colour in the Scarborough community through five mural panel installations and musical performances. The murals will spotlight BIPOC women in Scarborough, who are active in community work, and feature them in a green space, changing the narrative around this group’s access, perceived safety and sense of belonging in public spaces. The artwork will purposefully degrade over time to reveal the underset images of the featured individuals beneath the greenery – their faces will be seen emerging from the ground. This is a 2021 City of Toronto Cultural Hotspot Signature Project in partnership with Mural Routes, the E.W.O.C. Project, the Community Arts Guild and the Toronto Zoo.
Each of the 5 panels feature portraits of Women of Colour who are community workers, social activists, mentors and artists from Toronto, who are making change in their communities. Not all forms of community work happen at the same scale and we believe that all acts of care for your community are valuable. To reflect that, we are featuring racialized women doing that work in all capacities.
The portraits have been painted over with floral and greenery to submerge the portraits in nature. From the Launch in September until the Reveal in October, the floral and greenery will fade away to reveal the portraits underneath. Viewers are encouraged to experience a sense of joy and celebration when engaging with this public art installation and to further interact with the panels through prompts to access the Scarborough-based Community Arts Guild choir on their headphones or by taking selfies with the panels.
Visit the Cultural Hotspot website to see all the amazing 2021 projects.
Follow along! #CulturalHotspot, #CultureTO and #ShowLoveTO
Be sure to tag @MuralRoutes anytime you go view the installation. You can also join us in person for the following events:
Launch Day: September 11th, 2021 from 2pm-4pm at the Toronto Zoo.
Join us to celebrate the unveiling of the mural panel installations! There will be musical performances and a chance to listen to the artists and featured Women speak about the creative process and relevance of this project.
Capacity is limited so make sure to register to guarantee your spot. Registrants will be asked to complete a health check in order to attend.
Reveal Day: October 16th, 2021 from 2pm-4pm at the Toronto Zoo.
Join us to celebrate the reveal of the mural panel installations! There will be musical performances by the Community Arts Guild Community Choir, sidewalk chalk activation with the In Our Nature artists, grab bags and more.
Capacity is limited so make sure to register to guarantee your spot. Registrants will be asked to complete a health check in order to attend.
***Please register to attend the event to help us ensure Covid safety and adhere to health guidelines. Spaces are limited due to Covid restrictions***
