Underground arts funders launch group exhibition in abandoned convenience store:
Opening event: July 12 7 p.m. to midnight
1181 Queen Street West, Toronto
Exhibition runs July 12 – July 27 (Wednesday to Sunday, 12 -7 p.m.)
Toronto—CUE is a radical arts initiative dedicated to funding and supporting emerging artists who live and work on the margins in Toronto. Margin of Eras marks CUE’s 3rd annual group show, where artwork funded over the past year will be exhibited. The pop-up gallery opens July 12 at 7 p.m. at 1181 Queen St. West in a repurposed convenience store, and will also feature a live New Orleans jazz band.
“Soon this building will be demolished, making way for new development,” says project coordinator, Zanette Singh. “This show is our last kiss to an older neighbourhood before the big money drives us all out. It’s this kind of trend that pushes artists further to the margins.”
Margin of Eras features a diversity of artists, spanning multiple mediums, and disciplines: Performance artist Eshan Rafi traveled to Pakistan to work with traditional fabric-dying techniques, beader Jennifer Jones mixed traditional Aboriginal bead work with hip-hop culture symbolism, multi-disciplinary artist Lisa Petrunia worked with found animal skeletons to create new life forms. Works by over 20 CUE-funded artists will be on display.
ABOUT CUE: Since 2008, CUE has provided over $140,000 in grants to support the creation of 130 art projects by new generation artists who live and work on the margins, and face barriers when connecting with mainstream funding opportunities. In June 2013, CUE was a finalist for the Mayor’s Arts Awards Lunch hosted by the Toronto Arts Foundation. CUE is a non-profit initiative working in shared-platform partnership with SKETCH Working Arts.