Parkwood National Historic Site recently hosted a reception for the new Arts, Culture and Heritage action team, a sub-committee of the Durham Tourism Leadership Team.

Host and Executive Director of Parkwood Brian Malcolm and Manager of Tourism Kerri King welcomed many special guests including Township of Scugog Mayor Marilyn Pearce.

The goal of the committee is to establish and foster relationships with and between local arts organizations to build a strong network of cultural talent.

The action team is being chaired by Carey Nicholson, Scugog Council for the Arts, and will meet quarterly, reporting back to Durham Tourism on key matters.

1. Mayor Marilyn Pearce, Nina and Wayne Conrad, Kerri King. | 2. Carey Nicholson, Sue Sutcliffe | 3. Brian Malcolm, George Taylor. | 4. Donna Raetsen-Kemp, Greg Baeker, Olinda Casimiro. | 5. Lisa Weiss, Dr. Richard Marceau. | 6. Mayor Marilyn Pearce. | 7. Shashi Batia, Kerri King, Esther Forde. | 8. Chuck Byers, Greg Rist.

Contact Durham Tourism for more information on the Arts, Culture and Heritage action team.
1-800-413-0017 | tourism@durham.ca

It is becoming increasingly difficult for society to connect in any real and humanistic way. Yes, we are connecting in increasing numbers through social media as Twitter and Facebook traffic continue to explode at a mind-boggling rate. But a Tweet seldom inspires, stirs the soul or extracts an array of emotions.

So what is it that still to this day binds us all – that each and every one of us enjoys and celebrates but also does not exclude based on economic condition, race, gender, or to an extent even talent? It is the arts. And by arts I am speaking in that large umbrella term that covers fine arts, music, film, literature.

Stop and think about your daily routine or that of your child. How much time do you or they spend listening to music, drawing, reading literature, watching movies or even singing whether at home or in the car? Those artistic devices touch us constantly throughout the day. And it doesn’t matter what society as a whole thinks of our artistic talents. A small child who depicts their family with crayons is no different than a celebrated painter. Both are equally inspired and gratified by their efforts and both intended audiences are moved because in both cases the child and the artist offered a piece of themselves.

We all have the need to express ourselves. Sometimes when a child falls through the cracks it’s because they haven’t been afforded or found the right creative program that he or she needs to express themselves.

At Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences we see each and every day the need for inclusiveness. We have created an Art Gallery and Exhibition that celebrates art from the community, our patients and staff. We incorporate the arts in programs and we began the Imagine Film Festival, now in its third season, to open society’s eyes to mental illness to eliminate stigma and promote the need for tolerance and equality.

The arts community also needs to collectively find ways to open new opportunities for all citizens; programs which are blind to age, race, and socio-economic status. The Region of Durham, through the Art of Transition, opened the door to this movement. The arts community just needs to hold hands and step inside.

On March 11, the Regional Municipality of Durham, in partnership with the interim Local Diversity and Immigration Partnership Council, launched the Durham Community Immigration Portal —www.durhamimmigration.ca— an integrated web-based resource to attract, welcome and support new immigrants and businesses to the region.

The launch featured a personal story from a newcomer to the region, a demonstration of the portal, and recognition of the more than 60 service providers and community members who collaborated to develop the portal content.

To access the portal, please visit www.durhamimmigration.ca

Pictured: Fibi Assad and Regional Chair and CEO Roger Anderson.

Durham Region’s visual artists have generously contributed images of their work to support a new initiative from Durham Tourism. “My Durham Desktop” is a computer desktop calendar that serves up the beauty of Durham Region’s visual art and captivating pictures every week. Each new wallpaper is accompanied by a pop-up window about local events and happenings.

The program runs until Jan. 1, 2011 and promotes studio tours and exhibitions, arts, culture and heritage events, as well as highlighting opportunities to enjoy the natural beauty of Durham’s great outdoors.

My Durham Desktop was designed by local business Everyday Desktop and can be downloaded for free by visiting www.durhamtourism.ca.

Developing the artistic world in Durham Region requires us to open our eyes and ears to the diverse variety of art that surrounds us.

On Thursday, March 25, I attended a follow-up session to last November’s The Art of Transition Symposium. This particular afternoon the room was full of artists, gallery administrators, arts association members, city officials and others gathering to learn about the specific results of our cultural mapping process.

The symposium had left us all with a hunger to know what we could do to make the most of our unique creative capital. Curiosity and enthusiasm bubbled in the room. As we went round and introduced ourselves, I was drawn to an elegantly dressed woman who said she was Esther Forde of Cultural Expressions Gallery in the Old Pickering Village in Ajax.

During the reception later on she told me more about what she has been doing to not only capitalize on the artists of Durham Region but to expand our creative consciousness to other cultures and ethnicities. “The make up of our community is changing,” she noted. “I wanted my gallery to reflect this new diversity.”

Her sense that the time had come for this came from her own experience as a woman of colour. “I knew that I wanted to have art in my home that was culturally oriented and reminded me of my heritage. When I tried to find that in local galleries, it didn’t exist there.”

She guessed that if this was an issue for her, it was very likely to be important to others as well. “Consequently, I wanted to include the art of as many cultures as possible.”

"Emerging Spirit" By Passmore Mashaya

And that’s exactly what she has done. Almost three years since opening her gallery, she now represents artists from five continents and over twelve countries—including Canada—through a diverse collection of paintings, sculpture and jewellery.

“I wanted to do more than bring other cultures’ art here,” she declares. “I wanted to be an engaged part of this community as well.” To that end, she has invited local Ajax high school students to the gallery while a sculptor was in residence, hosted a Haiti relief fundraiser, and been an integral part of local Black History Month celebrations. She recognizes that culture comes from within our borders as well as beyond. On June 4 the gallery will be hosting its first First Nations’ celebration as part of the Ajax Arts Festival.

Colour is celebrated in many ways at Cultural Expressions. As we talked about the art she presents, Esther laughed. “If you don’t like vivid colours, this is not the gallery for you.” You can get an idea of the brilliant experience available at Cultural Expressions on her website: www.culturalexpressions.ca.