C/O: ProcrastiKnitters Exec Team

By: Esther Liu, Contributor

What inspired you to found the Procrastiknitters?

Valencia Gomes: We wanted to create a community at Mac for knitting and crocheting to bring people together. Knitting and crocheting is a skill but you can get a lot out of it: you can make things related to characters you like or just things you're interested in. So we're hoping even though our club is just knitting and crocheting, it would help people to meet others who have similar interests. We also want to meet people who have this interest and we knew already that there are a lot of students who were interested or already did knit or crochet. So we knew it was something that would work. It isn't just me facing two other people! This club needs to happen. So, who else to do it then both of us?

Valencia Gomes pictured here. C/O ProcrastiKnitters Exec Team.

We also want to meet people who have this interest and we knew already that there are a lot of students who were interested or already did knit or crochet. So we knew it was something that would work. It isn't just me facing two other people! This club needs to happen. So, who else to do it then both of us?

Mahimah Reancy: We also want to donate items, to give back to the community through things that we actually make. So I think that the members can feel accomplished from this hobby that they just started to actually help other people in different ways. We both went to high school together and joined this knitting and crocheting club. We would knit blankets and hats for homeless shelters in Toronto and give them out during the coldest days of winter. So we thought it was kind of weird that we haven't seen something similar at McMaster. There hasn't really been a knitting or crocheting club at all.

How are you finding running the club online?

Reancy: I think it got a lot harder because of COVID. We originally had so many plans at the beginning of March, but then everything's online, making it all a level harder. So far, there are minor difficulties that we're overcoming but everything is still running smoothly.

I think it got a lot harder because of COVID. We originally had so many plans at the beginning of March, but then everything's online, making it all a level harder. So far, there are minor difficulties that we're overcoming but everything is still running smoothly.

Mahimah Reancy pictured here. C/O ProcrastiKnitters Exec Team.

Gomes: I think as we're teaching people a skill, it's really hard to do over Zoom. When we're using the needles, you have to show people what you're doing and when people need help they need to show you what they're doing. That has definitely been the hardest part. Like a week ago, we had our first instructing event where we showed beginners how to knit and crochet. It actually went pretty well but I was expecting the worst, because how do you show someone how to do something so hands-on through a camera? Nobody's a professional YouTuber so no one had a camera to show all the different sides and angles. So in that sense, it was hard to get over that. But our instructors were really great and they adapted and found ways to overcome those barriers by showing their work through the camera. 

What are you hoping members will get walking away from this experience?

Reancy: We want them to be able to knit and crochet and be able to express themselves through something that makes them happy to do. I mean, there are so many possibilities with knitting and crocheting.

Gomes: We hope that this is a step into the knitting and crocheting world. Since we do have a lot of beginners, we're hoping that this will be the push they need to get into it and learn the basic skills so they can continue and make their own projects. We've actually had like a couple of people message us on Instagram and send us pictures of what they're making. There are people in the comments saying that they didn't realize the time passing, that they just had a midterm or have been studying all day and that it's so relaxing. That is definitely one of the points of having this type of club in a school atmosphere – it's to relieve people from their stress of school and like whatever other stress we may have by knitting and crocheting. So, I hope at the end of the year they can find that knitting and crocheting can help them destress or cope.

Members of a BIPOC running group stopped by police while viewing Indigenous red dress installation

On Oct. 7, three runners from the Air Up There Run Crew were completing their weekly run when they were suddenly stopped by two police officers outside of the central Hamilton Police Station on 155 King William St.

The Air Up There Run Crew is a running group specifically for Black, Indigenous and People of Colour. The group meets every Wednesday and provides a safe space where BIPOC folks can empower themselves through running and sharing experiences amongst the group. 

That day, the group had slowed down during their run to look at red dresses that were draped on trees outside of the station. The red dresses are meant to raise awareness about missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, symbolizing the number of disappearances that have been occurring over many years. 

The runners decided to take some pictures and record videos of the installation before continuing on their run. As they were about to resume their run, that is when they were stopped from doing so by two police officers.

https://twitter.com/MohamadJBsat/status/1313991702143815680

They were told that the police were responding to reports of suspicious activity in front of the station. A spokesperson for Hamilton police told CBC News that the officers were flagged down by a citizen who reported the group for suspicious activity outside of the station.

One of the runners, Mohamad Bsat, took to Twitter to write about his frustration regarding the issue. Bsat had asked the police if they were detaining the group and the officers said no. 

“What suspicious activity, two brown people and a black person looking at an art exhibit. It shook us to our core . . . We left. Angry, confused, belittled and dehumanized. They infiltrated our BIPOC run,” wrote Bsat. 

“What suspicious activity, two brown people and a black person looking at an art exhibit. It shook us to our core . . . We left. Angry, confused, belittled and dehumanized. They infiltrated our BIPOC run,” wrote Bsat. 

https://twitter.com/MohamadJBsat/status/1313990945638174721

Following the incident, when he spoke to a police representative, Bsat was told the service would not issue an apology. Instead, they directed him to file a complaint with the Office of the Independent Police Review Director, which handles complaints about police in Ontario, or ask for the officer's supervisor to speak with them about the interaction. Bsat has now filed a complaint with the OIPRD. 

Along with the complaint, Bsat refers to this incident as a part of a greater battle against systemic racism and advocates to defund the police.

https://twitter.com/MohamadJBsat/status/1313991111099191297

“These streets are as much ours as any resident. We will not let the system hold us down . . . We were the victims of racial profiling because a culture of systemic racism and oppression exists within the Hamilton policing institution. This is not an American problem. This is #hamont.” 

“These streets are as much ours as any resident. We will not let the system hold us down . . . We were the victims of racial profiling because a culture of systemic racism and oppression exists within the Hamilton policing institution. This is not an American problem. This is #hamont.” 

Students shouldn’t feel the need to “hold on” until reading week in order to be okay

Fall reading week has come and gone this year and I don’t know about you, but it felt like a blur.

Many Canadian universities, including McMaster University, have introduced a fall reading week in response to increased stress and mental illnesses in post-secondary students. Although introducing a week-long break from classes seems ideal in alleviating school-related stress, a 2018 study conducted at McMaster found that supporting students’ mental health is a bit more complicated than that. The study, which was conducted in 2015 when the fall break was introduced, found that although students had fewer stressors after reading week, they felt higher levels of stress overall. 

Although introducing a week-long break from classes seems ideal in alleviating school-related stress, a 2018 study conducted at McMaster found that supporting students’ mental health is a bit more complicated than that.

Many students commented that because of the added break, a shortened semester resulted in them having an increased number of midterms and assignments that occurred right after the break. So even though there was a break from classes, reading week is often spent studying or worrying about upcoming assessments.

Although this study was conducted five years ago, much of the data is still relevant. Since first-year, I’ve been fortunate enough to have a full reading week for the fall and winter semesters, but each year I’ve felt the need to catch up on work that was either overdue or prepare for a hectic week of assignments after the break. Reading week is simply not enough to support students’ wellbeing — and it is especially not enough if instructors just condense the work we have to do to “make up” for lost time during the break.

The university has a lot of work to do in order to give us an actual, restful break that helps improve our mental health. Second-year hit me hardest in terms of stress and as a result, I deferred two fall exams. As a result, I had to write two exams during the winter reading week. This meant that on top of taking my full course load, I had to prepare for two final exams right in the middle of the semester when many of my winter courses also had midterms or major assignments' deadlines coming up. While these week-long breaks are supposed to be for our mental health, the winter break exacerbated my stress that year. 

This past reading week seemed even less restful, which was likely due to online classes and the pandemic. As our whole semester has been spent at home, spending another week — well, at home — didn’t really offer me with that mental pause in work and assignments. Yes, I didn’t have any synchronous classes to attend, but due to part of my course load being asynchronous, I already had fewer classes that I needed to attend synchronously this semester.

What I did have this reading week was a lot of work to catch up on or prepare for next week. This tends to be the norm for students every year, but with the anxieties surrounding COVID-19, being isolated from your friends and family and not being able to go out many places, this week was a lot more exhausting for me. Since in-person social interaction was limited and I was at home for the entirety of the week, every day I felt like I needed to do work and be productive.

I had a paper that was due right before reading week and four assignments due the week after — so of course, right after I finished my paper, I wanted to start working on the assignments so that their deadlines didn’t loom on the horizon.

Student mental health is more than just having a mid-semester break from classes and assignments. Many students like myself find that we just need to hold on until reading week; to simply finish our work and that as long as we don’t burn out until then, we will be okay. But once it’s reading week, we are allowed a moment to breathe before we must pick ourselves up and dust ourselves off again and continue working until we finish our exams — the light at the end of the tunnel. Then this cycle continues for the winter semester until summer break — unless you have spring or summer courses or work a job, of course. In that case, there are even fewer breaks that allow you to take a breather and actually, truly relax.

Student mental health is more than just having a mid-semester break from classes and assignments.

Giving us a reading week is a band-aid solution to a much larger problem. Students shouldn’t feel the need to “push through” to reading week and then “push through” to the end of exams. 

If McMaster wanted to ensure students had a restful break, fall exams wouldn’t be deferred to a break meant for our mental health. If McMaster wanted to ensure students had a restful break, we shouldn’t be overloaded with midterms, assignments and papers right before or after reading week.

I don’t have all the answers or solutions on how to improve student mental health. But what I do know is that if we want to truly support students, we need to do more than just providing two reading weeks.

This sponsored article is brought to you by the Student Success Centre. The Silhouette newsroom was not involved in the creation of this content.

Are you planning for grad school, medical school, law school or another further education program type? If so, you might be wondering how schools and programs are adapting to provide quality learning opportunities during COVID-19. 

Will everything be online? Will I still be able to complete a work placement? Is the application process different now?

The answers to these questions are likely different for each school and program. That’s why the Student Success Centre’s hosting the Online Further Education Fair on October 21 and 22, 11:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. More than 70 schools and programs are attending this year’s fair, so you can drop in and connect directly with representatives who can answer your questions and offer guidance related to a specific program or field. There will be representatives from graduate programs, professional schools, graduate certificate programs and further education programs abroad. 

Get registration details and explore all the participating schools and programs on the SSC website.

Additionally, with COVID-19 impacting the current job market, SSC career counsellors note that many students are choosing to pursue further education as a way to be more thoughtful about their career path. This could mean that programs are even more competitive than usual.

So how do you set yourself apart in your application? 

This is another question for the program representatives at the Further Education Fair. These representatives are eager to meet McMaster students and offer insight and tips on preparing a successful application.

Here’s what some of this year’s representatives have to say.

Choose an opportunity that works for you.

The advice from recruiters, “choose the graduate program you love!”  And search for a program that offers work-integrated learning (co-op, placements, practicums) if it fits with your further education plan. 

Do your research.

Gathering as much information as you can will help with your application. When attending the fair, the representatives encourage you to “have great questions ready!”

Include references who will back you up.

“Solid academic references are key to any grad school application.” Choose people who believe in you!

Make it personal.

Recruiters want to know what makes you different. “Be yourself! Don’t try to tell programs what you think they want to hear, be honest and authentic about who you are and your personal story.”

Apply early.

Some programs are extremely competitive, but “applying early will give you a head start.” Applying early also gives you the most scholarship options.

Get more application tips and resources on the SSC website.

A brief overview of activist action in Hamilton

CW: mentions of violence and racism

2020 has been a rough – albeit transformative – year for everyone. From the pandemic to the racial injustices across North America that gained media attention to global emergencies such as the Beirut explosion or worsening of the Yemeni crisis, the world has lived through some of its worst times in recorded history.

However, in the midst of the anger and sadness, there have been sparks of spirit and action as activists took the summer of 2020 as a time to enact social change. From rallies to sit-ins, activists across the country, even at McMaster, have advocated for change. Whether it be fighting for a home country’s autonomy and nationhood, empowering marginalized communities in Canada or reclaiming land that was lost to colonization, summer 2020 was full of activism.

Pushing for Autonomy: Hong Kong’s Fight

In June 2019, protests took place across Hong Kong in response to plans to allow citizen extradition to mainland China. Although the bill that would allow for the extradition to occur was withdrawn in September, demonstrations continued as people demanded democracy and inquiries into police actions against protestors and activists. As police brutality against the citizens of Hong Kong became increasingly violent, many pro-independence activists are now seeking asylum in Canada as refugees. Canada has begun accepting these refugees into the country. 

The events unfolding in Hong Kong are heard here, on the other side of the globe, through media and first-hand accounts. Despite the physical distance between us, these issues directly affect and involve us, including students at McMaster.

McMaster Stands with Hong Kong is a student activist group that was founded last October. The mandate of the organization is to support and bring awareness to Hong Kongers in their fight against Chinese occupation, police brutality and to support all refugees seeking asylum in Canada. This past summer, the organization engaged in multiple acts of activism.

In May, Mac-HK opposed the Student Success Centre’s decision to post a Hong Kong police job on their student website, which yielded significant results as the Student Success Centre quietly deleted the post. In August, Mac-HK co-organized an event in downtown Toronto with other universities that called out Chinese influence and actions in Hong Kong and the need for Canada to protect Hong Kongers’ safety here. In September, Mac-HK co-organized a rally for Status for All, a rally focusing on giving status to international students, refugees, farmers and workers, who were all particularly affected socially and financially by the pandemic. 

These acts from McMaster students are a reminder that what happens across the world affects us right here in Canada and at McMaster. 

Fighting Social Injustice: Black Lives Matter

Black Lives Matter: this sentence and movement have been gaining traction since its use as a hashtag on social media after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin in July 2013. This year, the movement reached a peak in traction and recognition following the shootings of Black men and women, including the murder of George Floyd in May.

An international fight against systemic racism and police brutality in the form of rallies, protests and petitions took center stage. In response to police brutality, many organizations seeking to fight systemic racism and police brutality in North America have emerged, some of them right here in Hamilton.

HWDSB Kids Need Help is an organization that was formed by Hamilton students, including some who currently attend McMaster University. The organization seeks to support the rights of high school students, particularly those from marginalized communities, in the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board and oppose police presence.

In February 2020, HWDSB Kids Need Help assisted in a report that requested the termination of the HWDSB police school liaison program. The program supported the presence of six officers at 38 secondary schools and five officers in a partnership with 158 elementary schools. This presence was meant to prevent crime, but HWDSB Kids Need Help researched and outlined the impact of the program. After a summer of activism, the motion to terminate the police school liaison program was passed

Reclaiming Land: Land Back Camp

Today, Indigenous people continue to face systemic oppression as a result of colonialism in many forms. In response to this, many movements fighting against land occupation have come about.

One example is Land Back Camp, which was set up in June in Kitchener’s Victoria Park. The camp was set up to reclaim land that was once a central hub of activity and life for Nations such as the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe peoples.

Beyond existing as a way to reclaim land and send a political message to authorities, the camp is said to connect young Indigenous adults to their culture and offer youth and two-spirited people a place where they feel more at home.

Movements like Land Back Camp that occur so close to home offer an opportunity for students to reflect on their role in supporting Indigenous communities.

Although social issues can often appear abstract or distant, it is important to remember that our neighbours and peers are actively shaping and defining change in our society. Large-scale issues manifest in one way or another within our school and communities and it is important not to disregard them, but to rather acknowledge the efforts local activists are putting in catalyzing change.

This article is the first in a series on the many acts, events and movements of activism from summer 2020.

Mother-daughter duo’s travelling tea trailer continues to deliver tea and comfort during COVID-19 

Autumn is the season of change. Leaves begin to change to brilliant, bright and beautiful colours and the warmer temperatures give way to cooler, wintery weather. This is also the season of good company. It is the time to sit down with a friend, share a pot of tea and enjoy good conversation. While gatherings may look different this year, taking place often over Zoom rather than in person, businesses like the mother-daughter-run Tea Amo are still finding ways to bring people together.

As part of a big Irish family, tea has always played an important role in Marian Peter’s life. This love of tea is something she passed down to her daughter, Heather Peter. In 2013, Heather purchased a vintage trailer with the intention of setting up a tea service. When Marian retired from her job as an English as a Second Langue teacher, the mother-daughter duo went into business together, selling tea out of the trailer at parks and private events.

“Having tea with people [is] a lot about [the] memories that you have around tea and making new memories. I think a lot of people have that nostalgia [towards tea] and they already love the memories around afternoon tea, so they want to bring that back,” said Heather.

“Having tea with people [is] a lot about [the] memories that you have around tea and making new memories. I think a lot of people have that nostalgia [towards tea] and they already love the memories around afternoon tea, so they want to bring that back,” said Heather.

Many of the loose leaf teas that they offer are made in-house. As their business continues to grow, the duo hopes to blend more of their teas themselves to create new flavours. Those not made in-house are sampled and then carefully selected from importers. All of their blends are free of artificial flavours, preservatives and added sweeteners.

Tea Amo sells their teas and a number of thoughtfully selected tea-related products on their website. These include traditional products such as teacups and teapots, as well as novelty items, such as perfume oil and teapot-shaped earrings. The latter they opted to include because they felt these items would make nice gifts for tea lovers. Many of these products are locally made.

[media-credit name="C/O Heather & Marian Peters" align="none" width="2048"][/media-credit]

However, the pandemic has forced them to pivot their approach. Many of the events they would have attended are now on hold and they can no longer bring the trailer around to parks as they had previously done.

In conjunction with their online store, the duo is now offering afternoon tea boxes. Each afternoon tea box includes finger sandwiches, cookies, fruits and vegetables and two bags of loose leaf tea. These boxes are created in-house and delivered weekly in the trailer. 

Especially during this time when many are having socially distant gatherings, the afternoon tea boxes are fitting because everyone can have their own box. As there is no need to share food, individuals are still able to gather safely. For those connecting via Zoom or other video platforms, the tea boxes are also convenient in that they can be ordered individually and then enjoyed together during the call.

[media-credit name="C/O Heather & Marian Peters" align="none" width="1944"][/media-credit]

 

“[W]e're bringing happy to people. So many people have sent this afternoon [tea] box to a friend that's been depressed or a mother that’s sick . . . Or just to themselves with a couple of friends, distancing. So it was just a perfect idea for this time to do the afternoon tea box. So, we're doing quite well with that and enjoying it. It's like a feel-good kind of service for sure,” said Marian.

"So many people have sent this afternoon [tea] box to a friend that's been depressed or a mother that’s sick . . . Or just to themselves with a couple of friends, distancing."

In these trying times, Tea Amo continues to spread the warmth and comfort customary of tea. They are also bringing people together, reminding them of better times as well as providing them with the opportunity to create bright, happy memories that they will look back on fondly for years to come.

With the season being up in the air, Forge Football Club still prevails in the end.

Forge Football Club, Hamilton’s team in the Canadian Premier League, won their back-to-back championship after scoring two-nil against the Halifax Wanderers Football Club in the title game of the 2020 season.

A typical season consists of 28 matches lasting from April to October; however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the season was shortened. It has become known as the Island Games, comprised of seven matches between the eight teams in the first stage, utilizing a round-robin format. Afterwards, the tournament goes into the group stage, in which the top four teams compete against one another. The top two teams advance and compete against each other for the title.

Kyle Bekker, the captain and player with the highest score on the team, understood that he had to bring the team together to get the morale high to compete at such great levels. 

“We spoke about it just being a business trip and knew what guys were giving up and the sacrifices people are making to go make a tournament happen and going away from family and loved ones for a significant time. If we’re going to do this, we’re coming back home with the trophy at the end of the day . . . It became militant at times. It was a battle every single day. We got [to the final game] and we achieved that . . . There’s obviously good days and bad days in the bubble. We just have to get on with it,” said Bekker. 

“We spoke about it just being a business trip and knew what guys were giving up and the sacrifices people are making to go make a tournament happen and going away from family and loved ones for a significant time. If we’re going to do this, we’re coming back home with the trophy at the end of the day . . . It became militant at times. It was a battle every single day. We got [to the final game] and we achieved that . . . There’s obviously good days and bad days in the bubble. We just have to get on with it,” said Bekker. 

David Edgar, former Premier League player for Newcastle United Football and centre-back on Forge FC, echoed similar sentiments as Bekker. Edgar exclaimed that carrying the mentality before the pandemic into the bubble is what propelled them to the championship, despite having to leave a young family for such a long time. 

“This [tournament] was extra hard. But in all honesty, I attacked it like a prison sentence, where you mentally focus and lock in for one job only. Yeah, you miss certain things and meals. But winning it makes it worthwhile,” said Edgar. 

“This [tournament] was extra hard. But in all honesty, I attacked it like a prison sentence, where you mentally focus and lock in for one job only. Yeah, you miss certain things and meals. But winning it

Edgar went on to say that the bubble was very unique and acted as a family with other teams there. “It’s also not the friendliest of places, lots of testosterone running around with the competition. You go about your business and hold yourself to certain standards,” said Edgar. 

Despite the team having won a championship the previous season, they knew the pressure of a title game doesn’t change. 

“We definitely felt the weight of it being a championship game. We were lucky enough to have a core group from our first year come back and be a part of this, which definitely helped . . . But going into that final game, the excitement will always be there. Definitely, a feeling of we been here and we know what was expected of us,” said Bekker. “It felt more unique. Overall, we won both now and that’s the hardest thing to do. We won in a league and tournament football and you can’t afford to lose in a tournament,” said Edgar of repeating as champions.

“We definitely felt the weight of it being a championship game. We were lucky enough to have a core group from our first year come back and be a part of this, which definitely helped . . . But going into that final game, the excitement will always be there. Definitely, a feeling of we been here and we know what was expected of us,” said Bekker.

After their championship victory comes their first match of the 2020 Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football League, having qualified from winning the 2019 season of the CPL, playing in El Salvador. The team will play against Municipal Limeño of El Salvador. Bobby Smyrniotis, head coach of the team, says that with the El Salvadorian league commencing Oct. 10, it gives them two matches to view their opponent’s playstyle to prepare for the match. “[I] gave the [players] a full week off to decompress then back [to] work at Tim Horton’s Field, six days a week . . . Looking forward to another opportunity to compete continentally for our club. The guys really relish the opportunity to play,” said Smyrniotis.

“[I] gave the [players] a full week off to decompress then back [to] work at Tim Horton’s Field, six days a week . . . Looking forward to another opportunity to compete continentally for our club. The guys really relish the opportunity to play,” said Smyrniotis.

Their match against Municipal Limeño will happen on Thurs, Oct. 22 at 8 p.m.

Hamilton Artists Inc., Factory Media Centre and Centre[3] for Artistic + Social Practice continue to bring creativity to the community during COVID-19

By: Sharang Sharma, Contributor

James Street North is known as the hub for Hamilton’s arts scene. Artist-run centres such as Hamilton Artists Inc., Factory Media Centre and Centre[3] for Artistic + Social Practice have made it their mission to make art accessible to everyone in the local community. However, this has become a more difficult task due to the COVID-19 pandemic and physical distancing protocols. Nonetheless, these three centres have found ways to push forward.

In March, Hamilton Artists Inc., Factory Media Centre and Centre[3] had to close their physical locations and cancel planned in-person exhibitions and workshops due to the Stage 1 lockdown. The first few months were especially difficult because some of the centres experienced a decrease in funding.

In March, Hamilton Artists Inc., Factory Media Centre and Centre[3] had to close their physical locations and cancel planned in-person exhibitions and workshops due to the stage one lockdown. The first few months were especially difficult because some of the centres experienced a decrease in funding.

“Our rentals don't really make up a big amount of our revenue . . .  For that reason, we didn't lose enough funding to qualify for any of the grants that were available. But our membership is also mostly comprised of emerging artists and working-class artists, including myself before I worked there. So we noticed a decline in membership renewals and obviously equipment rentals because people either weren’t get[ting] paid to make work for people . . . or they were anticipat[ing] having to tighten their budgets and save money . . . So the first months from an organizational standpoint were really a little bit worrisome,” explained Kristina Durka, the operations coordinator at the Factory Media Centre.

Despite these initial challenges, these artist-run centres have found ways to move their workshops, exhibitions and other programming online. In June, Centre[3] presented the work of the students who would have been involved in its annual Art Education and Community Arts Exhibition on their website. In July, Hamilton Artists’ Inc. moved its annual outdoor summer screening series to a Facebook livestream. Centre[3] and Factory Media Centre have continued to host Artist Talks, the most recent one at Factory Media Centre being livestreamed on Facebook on Oct. 8.

Despite these initial challenges, these artist-run centres have found ways to move their workshops, exhibitions and other programming online.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CE9VjDsg1G9/

“For example, we have a program called 360[4]Youth . . . and we teach soft skills to the youth using arts-based programming . . . [O]ne of our programs is to do filmmaking and that wasn’t possible but we translated it to stop motion animation. So we actually dropped supplies off to the youth . . . [and] we could still have the same lesson, the same workshop . . . because a lot of our work, a lot of lessons are about collaboration . . . You could still have a group working on a collaborative project,” said Julie Shea, the operations director of Centre[3].

The centres also found new ways to use their physical spaces. Hamilton Artists’ Inc. is currently hosting the Hamilton-based contemporary dance company Aeris Korper as their performers-in-residence. They have also continued to activate the exterior of their space, such as billboards on Cannon Street and the two exterior walls of their building. Factory Media Centre is hosting a video series on a screen inside their street-level window. By using their space in new ways, the centres are giving artists a space to engage with their art in these trying times.

At the same time, this challenging year has also enabled the creativity of the artists at these centres to flourish in a new way as they explore possibilities outside of what they traditionally have done. For example, Factory Media Centre ended up with around 500 people watching one of their Cell Phone Film Festival screenings, many more than they could fit in their 42-person capacity gallery. Hamilton Artists’ Inc. is also hosting new special projects, which are activities that are not regular exhibitions and instead can be one-off or off-site projects.

“[T]he [special project] that we did most recently was our colouring book that was derived from a program that we had called Incoming. So we are able to print colouring books, with different artists’ drawings in them and then we get those out for free to the public with some art supplies. So that was a creative way that we engaged with our community but it wasn't about physically attending an exhibition in our space,” explained Julie Dring, executive director at Hamilton Artists Inc.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CGSbuy8gkel/

As the second wave of the pandemic hits Ontario, each of these centres is preparing to continue their new and modified programs. Factory Media Centre is planning to continue with remote residencies such as the one they currently have with artist and McMaster PhD student, Luis Navarro Del Angel. Centre[3] is currently working on an audio booth to make it more accessible for artists to record podcasts and engage with audiences virtually.

Art and community are two facets of everyday life that have been hit hard by the pandemic. However, Hamilton’s artist-run centres have demonstrated the benefit of working with a group of creative people in this strange time. These artists have found ways to turn this strange moment into artistic community events that they otherwise would not have imagined.