New Year's Wishes to All!

On behalf of the board of directors and staff, we wish you all a happy, healthy, and arts-filled new year. We also want to thank all of our supporters, sponsors, funders, performers, artists, volunteers and of course, the audiences of our very successful 2011 Festival — it would not have been the unforgettable celebration it was without YOU!

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS | BOARD CHANGES | UPCOMING JANUARY EVENTS

2011: What a year...what a festival!

This has been a particularly rich and productive year for us, creatively. We welcomed over 2,000 individuals to our Nuit Blanche opening night event at the Carlton Cinema Gallery. I See What You Mean invited audiences to engage with a masterful portrait series by Vincenzo Pietropaolo and add their own self-portraits to a dialogue about representation and point of view. Be sure to check out the dizzying array of photos on our website. And the Carlton Cinema proved to be a wonderful venue for our 2 day media series.

Our children's festival entertained over 600 children, youth and teachers over two days of performances. Next year, we are committed to expanding this programme so we don't have to turn away so many others for lack of space as we have for the last few years!

And this year's piece de resistance was our closing event which attracted full houses to the Betty Oliphant Theatre for The Neat Strange Music of Ahmed Hassan. A collaboration with Peggy Baker Dance Projects (see info about upcoming PBDP event below), Neat Strange featured Canada's top musicians, choreographers, dancers and media artists, in rich and memorable tribute to the legendary artist whose work has inspired so many.

This year we also realized our long-standing ambition to balance our annual festival with ongoing professional development opportunities for artists with disabilities. Our pilot series of five workshops called "Full Spectrum" generously sponsored by TD Financial, addressed artistic, technical and business skills enhancement; and drew upon a stellar line-up of partners and presenters from across the private and public sector. Look forward to our announcements regarding Full Spectrum 2012.

And welcome to 2012!

Abilities Arts Festival will celebrate its 10th Anniversary! We are hard at work planning a 10th festival that will launch our second decade in style. We look forward to telling you more about these plans over the coming months.

Launching our 10th Anniversary Year.....

Calling all Disability-Identified Photographers!! Abilities Arts Festival invites applications for a workshop series in photography called "Frames of Reference" produced with the support of the City of Toronto through Toronto Arts Council.

What: A 10-week master class in photography for disability-identified artists
When: Saturdays during March-May, 2012
Where: Sessions will take place in and around 401 Richmond Street West, Toronto

Frames of Reference is a hands-on workshop led by acclaimed social documentary photographer and author, Vincenzo Pietropaolo, and fellow photographer and Abilities Arts Festival board member Steve Kean. The master class will focus on both the meaning and the technical aspects of digital image-making. Photography is above all, a language of communication, and this master class is designed to support and strengthen participants' understanding, skill and confidence in their artistic vision. The workshop will stress the importance of the in-depth photo essay and culminate in the production of a group exhibit. There is no fee, or other requirement for the workshop but space is limited. Admission will be based on portfolio review and space availability.

Applicants are asked to submit:
1) Expression of interest, indicating briefly (1 or 2 pages max) why you are interested in participating in this workshop series. Comment on your experience in digital photography. Let us know what kind of camera you have – point and shoot, DSLR? This will help us in formatting the course.
2) Samples of work or portfolio of 10-15 photographs, 8x10 in.

Submission deadline: FEBRUARY 15, 2012

Send to: 401 Richmond Street West, Suite S-21, Toronto, ON M5V 3A8
For further information, email: admin@abilitiesartsfestival.org or call 416-593-9475.

Download our call for applications PDF here.

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You'll Want to Know...Abilities Arts Festival News

New & Departing Board Members...

We are thrilled to welcome two new members to the Abilities Arts Festival Board: Charles Silverman and Judy Gladstone; and we are sorry to see a dedicated Board member depart from the Board, Andrea Nemtin.

Charles Silverman

Charles has been in the adaptive technology field for almost 30 years. For the last 10 years his main focus has been accessible media on the web, specifically captioning and descriptive video. He is co-director of Inclusive Media and Design Inc (www.inclusivemedia.ca) a company that provides captioning and video description services as well as tools and consulting on issues related to media accessibility. Charles teaches at Ryerson University’s School for Disability Studies where he focuses on accessibility, technology, and Inclusive and Universal Design. He has worked with the ATRC at the University of Toronto, CAST in Boston, and has collaborated with the National Center for Accessible Media (NCAM) at WGBH. He has served on the Access2Entertainment advisory board and is currently on the Board of Directors at the Centre for Independent Living in Toronto (CILT). He is also a member of an advisory group for a GAATES project on Information and Communication that is being developed in conjunction with the Accessibility Directorate of Ontario. We are excited to welcome Charles to the Board of the Abilities Arts Festival.

Judy Gladstone

Judy Gladstone has been the executive director of Bravo!FACT (Foundation to Assist Canadian Talent) since 1997. Bravo!FACT was established in 1995 by Bravo! and CHUM Television to provide grants for the production of Canadian short films and videos covering a wide range of arts disciplines. From 1993 to 1995, Ms. Gladstone was coordinator of the CIDA-funded Canada Fund for Dialogue and Development, providing grants enabling Israelis and Palestinians, Jordanians and Egyptians, to work together on cultural and other projects. As cultural attaché at the Canadian Embassy in Tel Aviv from 1991-1993, Judy was in the wonderful position of presenting the best of the Canadian cultural scene to a foreign audience. Born in Montréal, Ms. Gladstone’s university education includes a B.A. (from Laval Université, Québec City, Québec), and a graduate degree (from the Sorbonne, France). We are thrilled to welcome Judy to the Board of the Abilities Arts Festival.

... and we say au revoir to departing board member and former executive director, Andrea Nemtin who made an indelible contribution to Abilities Arts Festival over the last 5 years marking its transition to a year-round festival and securing its charitable status. Andrea has made a major transition in her career as the founding ceo/president of the S-VOX Foundation, and we wish her the very best in this exciting new venture. Though we will miss her daily presence, we know that she will continue to be a close friend and ally to AAF.

Friends of the Festival Upcoming January Events

DON'T MISS....... the sound and feel of it
Peggy Baker Dance Projects presents...
Tickets for the world premiere of the sound and feel of it are on sale now, the much-anticipated January program from the acclaimed Peggy Baker Dance Projects. As a special offer to Abilities Arts fans, book by phone or online using the promo code PEGGY2012 to purchase $20 tickets! The event features stunning dancers, live music, choreography and dancing by cherished Canadian dance icon Peggy Baker. the sound and feel of it premieres at the Betty Oliphant Theatre January 20-22 & 25-29, 2012. Accessibility seating is available, and complimentary tickets are offered to attendants. To book your tickets, visit www.peggybakerdance.com or call 1-888-222-6608.