Lapis Lazuli Necklace by GOOD LOOKS ARTISTRY
Artists Storefronts
Featuring: Cleopatria Peterson, Deniz Bodi, Anahí González, FOREVER Gift Shop by Agnes Wong, Gabo Studio (Ananda Gabo), Seden’s Workshop, METAL and FIRE by Priscilla Williams, and Wearable Art by Jam.
Artists Storefronts explores the storefront as a space that can delineate certain codes: a pop up, a grocery store, a fundraiser, a gift shop, a workshop. Artists offer speculations and imagine what the storefront can mean. With four week-long installations from Sept 12 thru Oct 8, artists’ projects intersect with commerce in playful, engaging, and subversive ways. We center craft and design and think about their value in contemporary art and commerce spaces.
SCHEDULE:
OPEN SATURDAYS, 1-4PM
Week 1 (Sept 12 - 17): Bestie Mart by Cleopatria Peterson, and Woven, by Deniz Bodi
Week 2 (Sept 20-24): One Side of the Loonie by Anahí González
Week 3 (Sept 27 - Oct. 1): Gabo Studio (Ananda Gabo), Seden’s Workshop, FOREVER GIFT SHOP by Agnes Wong
Week 4 (Oct 4 - Oct 8): METAL and FIRE by Priscilla Williams, Wearable Art by Jam
FUNDRAISING
As a small, but mighty team we’re experimenting with different fundraising models that are unique to Whippersnapper. With this project we are putting 15% of sales towards re-launching a community favorite program, PEERS this fall, 2023 with 85% going towards the artists. *This is with the exception of a fundraiser by Anahí González (September 20-24), where the entirety of the proceeds are going towards Migrant Workers Alliance for Change. Check back for more details on this project soon.
Sustaining Whippersnapper’s focus on peer-to-peer learning, funding PEERS will afford us a year-long deep-dive of a mentorship program for emerging artists! PEERS is for emerging artists looking to build their skills in facilitating ethical and reciprocal community engaged public art projects. We will author new tools for community art with guidance from professional artists and mentors. With about 75% of the program already covered, we are fundraising to cover the remaining costs.
See featured artists below for details on their projects and to purchase.
METAL and FIRE
Open Oct 7, 1-4pm
In my artistic journey, I have delved deep into exploring my African roots as a way to connect with my heritage. Inspired by the art of West Africa, particularly the Congo and other regions, I find myself drawn to the stories embedded within these rich cultural traditions. As I delve into archives and immerse myself in the wealth of information available, I allow the stories to choose me, guiding my creative process.
One aspect that has captivated me is the Baule culture and their spiritual practices. I am fascinated by the rituals of offering and the concept of spiritual spouses, as well as the significance of different bodies of water, practices, and prayers. The Senufo triangular art and the playful representation of ancestors through horns have also deeply resonated with me. The intricate designs and symbolism behind these works are awe-inspiring.
Additionally, I have developed a profound admiration for the Asante people and their mastery of gold and other heavy metals. Their tradition of wearing their enemies' teeth adorned with gold beads on their ankles and wrists signifies triumph over adversaries and is worn with a sense of pride. The skill and craftsmanship required to create these pieces is extraordinary, and I aspire to reach that level of mastery. My ultimate goal is to create artwork that tells deep and intriguing stories, leaving behind a legacy that resonates with viewers.
Through my art, I strive to honour and celebrate the rich cultural heritage of West Africa while infusing my own personal experiences and interpretations. I aim to create pieces that evoke a sense of connection, inviting viewers to explore their own narratives and embrace the beauty of diverse cultural traditions.
By exploring the art of the past, I seek to bridge the gap between generations and preserve the stories and legacies that are woven into the fabric of African history. It is my hope that my artwork serves as a testament to the power of storytelling, connecting people across time and space.
Priscilla identifies as a Black queer, first-generation Canadian of Caribbean descent. They specialize in Metalsmithing/Silversmithing, utilizing metals to encapsulate raw stones and earth materials, showcasing their unique beauty through the creation of handmade spiritual artifacts. These exquisite pieces can be worn as necklaces, rings, or customized to fulfill the desires of individual consumers. Working with metal allows Priscilla to engage in the alchemical process of transformation—immersing it in flames, tempering it with water, shaping it with force, and allowing oxidation to naturally enhance its texture over time.
@goodlooksartistry | website | BTS | email: goodlooksartistry@gmail.com
Wearable Art by Jam
Open October 7, 1-4pm
Owner, and self-taught artist Jamaica Bridgett paints as a means to communicate with their ancestors, spirit, self and the world. Wearable Art By Jam transforms their colouful and soulful paintings into apparel for anybody looking to free their closets and themselves from the mundanity of mass produced fashion.
Wearable Art By Jam is more than a clothing brand, it’s a movement to transition art from gallery walls, into closets and into the streets. It’s an attempt to free gender neutral clothing from the misery of shapeless grey options. It’s a movement of people seeking to express their fullest, most colourful, and most unique selves.
Jamaica (Jam) Bridgett (they/them) is a Black queer artist, writer, and educator based on the lands of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island. Jam’s work centres love, resistance, community, and intergenerational healing through an intuitive and spiritual creative process. Jamaica is the owner of Wearable Art by Jam. Find more of Jam’s work at linktr.ee/jambridgett
@wearable.jam | website
Seden’s Workshop
Open September 30, 1-4pm
Seden’s Workshop is dedicated to producing sculptures, handcrafted objects, and one-off experiments using paper as a primary medium.
My Very Own Paper World offers a glimpse into an ongoing body of work that aims to translate memories of domestic life and childhood into paper objects. Using elements like light, tension, and colour to showcase a creative range of applications found in folding paper, featured objects include hanging lanterns, pleated boxes, and paper flowers.
★ FOREVER GIFT SHOP ★
By Agnes Wong
Open September 30, 1-4pm
Souvenirs from imaginary places that do not exist, transient relics of longing.
This is my dream gift shop, forever.
All souvenirs are gently made from memory by Agnes Wong and in collaboration with dear friends.
One Side of The Loonie
By Anahí González
Open September 23, 1-4pm
“One Side of The Loonie, 2023” is a vending machine installation where when you insert a loonie into the machine, in exchange, you receive a 3 x 4.5 inches screen-printed map. "Mapa de Norte America Invertida, 2023" is a map drawn by González that takes references from two artist-made maps of the 20th century. London-born Canadian artist Greg Curnoe’s Map of North America (1972) and Uruguayan artist Joaquín Torres-García’s 1943 map América Invertida (Inverted America).
*The revenue from the vending machine is 100% donate to Migrant Workers Alliance for Change.*
González will share information about migrant rights on Saturday, September 23, from 1 to 4pm outside/inside Whipersnapper Gallery. Everyone is welcome!
Anahí González (she/her) is a Mexican photographer based in London, ON. Her practice explores visual narratives about Mexican labour for/within Canada to decenter the United States narrative concerning Mexican migration. She is a Research Associate of The Creative Food Research Collaboratory, contributor editor of The Embassy Cultural House, and an Art and Visual Culture Ph.D. candidate at Western University. Her work has been included in exhibitions and screenings in Mexico, Canada, Norway, Spain, USA, and France.
Woven
By Deniz Body
Open September 16, 1-4pm
Pop up September 12 - 16.
These yarn creations are an ode to the web of life, focusing on our interdependence and the unseen forces that tie us together. Inspired by the motif of nazar or "the evil eye", Deniz believes that feelings of care and protection can be infused into physical objects. Especially given the labour of love that often comes with handmaking goods, there are so many ways that we are woven into the textiles, fabrics, and items that swaddle us.
In recognition of the ways that "craft" is often feminized and thus devalued in comparison to the world of [fine] "art" - Deniz blurs these categories by making hanging art with traditional crochet techniques. Invoking galaxies, flowers, and cells, these woven webs invite you to situate yourself in its threads.
Bestie Mart
By Cleopatria Peterson
Opening hours: September 16, 1-4pm
Pop up September 12 - 16.
Bestie Mart explores the what if of accessibility through the lens of a grocery store. What if you could go and purchase reparations, hormone replacement therapy, safe travel and more necessities just at the store. Bestie Mart exists through a collection of print objects to encourage folks to imagine a future where our needs are easily met and capitalism does not control our survival.
Cleopatria Peterson is a non-binary trans black multidisciplinary artist and educator that writes, printmakes, illustrates and loves self-publishing. Their work focuses on themes of nature, humour, identity and above all things, love.
This project would not be possible without the generous support of Canada Race Relations Foundation. Thank you!