360º of
Awesome
Arts program for Lowertown
MASC Awesome Arts | Arts en folie is a free
community-engaged arts program.
Participants experiencing how the arts can be a
powerful tool of exploration and expression.
The goal is to draw the community together
through creative and artistic process with a
free final showcase for the community.
In 2015, Awesome Arts en folie ran a
successful residency program in Lowertown
involving 200 participants ranging in age from
five to 95. On March 27th, 2015, more than
350 people crowded into Patro d’Ottawa to
partake in the Awesome Arts en folie Festival.
There were performances in dance, theatre,
song, poetry, murals and a number of
impressive videos. The energy and joy in the
hall was palpable.
The Festival was the culmination of
a three-month program which was
funded in large part by the
Department of Canadian Heritage.
It was the first time that Awesome Arts
en folie was offered equally in French
and in English. The participants
examined the importance of linguistic
and cultural duality. Anglophone
children learned French songs with Pier
Rodier; Francophones worked with
Anglophones to create murals; Francophone
seniors told stories that were then
transformed into bilingual animation movies
by Anglophone children with Tina Le
Moine; and, a group of Anglophone youth
wrote a bilingual rap.
Intergenerational programs brought together
youth and seniors to create and bond through
art. Senior participant Glenna, was thrilled
with the Spoken Word program led by Jamaal
Rogers. “Each week it was like being brought to
another world. A wonderful new world, filled
with young people, ideas and art.” CBC’s All in
a Day featured one of the poems.
The participants blossomed at the Festival.
When asked what she enjoyed most, one
young participant exclaimed, “I really
liked myself.” Another was proud that she
and her friends had created and performed a
song “that was excellent!” with musician Mehdi
Hamdad.
Five finished 4’x8’ murals, created with artists
Nicole Bélanger and cj fleury, have been
permanently installed in the 40 Cobourg Ave.
community building. “I tell all of my friends
that I helped make those murals!” said one of
the proud participants.
Awesome Arts en folie also offered an
internship program for youth aged 18 to 25
thanks to the City of Ottawa’s Youth
Internship Program. Intern Sarah Mussa
expressed that, “The mentorship program has
helped me see the importance of creatively
working together as a community.”
MASC is pleased to work with such rich and
diverse communities such as Lowertown and
Sandy Hill.
Micheline Shoebridge,
Awesome Arts Director
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Photos: Martin Lipman
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