Giving young artists a voice
The members of Speak Up! (left to right): Lauren Floers, James Plowman, Julie Simmons, Jamie Mcfarlane, Eric Huntington, Rachel Wilde, Colleen Rose, Mike Vahey, and Brooklyne Crites.
By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express
A new initiative is looking to give young artists in Oshawa a chance to be seen.
Speak Up!, a project started by a group of 10 Durham College art majors, is looking to gather art from youth around Oshawa to be showcased in an exhibit at the Robert McLagughlin’s Gallery A.
“We were just really inspired by the idea of Oshawa youth just talking about what matters to them and giving them a voice,” explains project coordinator Rachel Wilde. “We find conceptual art really interesting and it’s not always about creating something beautiful, but expressing an idea. So we really wanted to give the youth an opportunity like that.”
Drawing involvement from high schools across the city, Wilde explains the drawing and paintings will adorn the walls of Gallery A this month, with a juried show to be held on April 10 at 6:30 p.m., which will give the young artists a chance to be critiqued and win prizes.
“It’s just to give them a little taste of what the art world is like and see if that is something they want to pursue,” Wilde says.
With no submission fee, Wilde says the show is a great opportunity for young artists who may otherwise feel intimidated about sharing their work, especially at a place like the RMG.
“This is a great fast forward, so to speak, for them,” she says.
Wilde says it can be hard for young artists in Oshawa.
“I don’t think it’s necessarily that people don’t care. There’s just no real avenue in Oshawa for the youth to express their opinions about things,” she says.
She hopes the Speak Up! initiative will find new legs after the group has moved on from Durham College.
“I really hope the RMG will see how the youth respond to the show and I really hope it’s something they keep up,” she says.
Speak Up! runs at the RMG from March 31 to April 11.