Courtesy Carrie Colton
Gallery director Carrie Colton is opening a new exhibition at Studio Sixty Six.Pottery, paintings and photography will line the walls of Studio Sixty Six later this month as gallery-goers combine their interest in contemporary art with supporting a good cause: youth programming at the Centretown Community Health Centre.
The Glebe gallery’s newest exhibition, the “Under $500 Holiday Show and Fundraiser,” is scheduled to open to the public on Nov. 27.
The charity event takes place between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m.
This is the first year for the holiday fundraiser.
Ten per cent of all art sales will be donated to the Cooper Street health centre’s special services for youth and pre-teens.
Gallery director Carrie Colton says she wanted to give back to the community and felt this was the perfect match.
“I really like the programs . . . and the emphasis on mental health support,” says Colton.
“Because I’m dealing with emerging artists, I deal with a lot of young people in their late teens and twenties. It was a really easy choice; I thought they matched well with ourselves.”
The Centretown Community Health Centre opened in 1969. It focuses on underserved groups including the LGBT community and those affected by mental illness and addictions.
The centre brings a variety of health professionals together to serve more than 13,000 residents each year. Doctors, counsellors and social workers offer a full range of services.
Now local artists are reaching out.
Studio Sixty Six is located at 66 Muriel St., between Bank Street and Fifth Avenue.
The gallery gives emerging artists an opportunity to display their work.
All of the work for sale is handmade and the one-of-a-kind pieces are produced by a wide variety of professional local artists.
Many types of mediums will be available for purchase in this holiday-themed exhibition.
Simone Thibault, executive director of the health centre, says she’s excited about the partnership.
She feels that art is an important tool in helping at risk youth.
“We don’t have any funding for pre-teens, but we cobble up some donation dollars . . . to provide workshops for that age group.”
“We found art has been a good vehicle to support youth and (make them) feel that they are part of the community,” she says.
In response to the growing problem of graffiti, the centre involved youth in order to help make a visible change in the neighbourhood.
“We’ve done about three murals around the centre. It was nice to watch people . . . walking the streets, say ‘Wow great job, I’m glad you’re doing it,’ ” Thibault says.
The murals were achieved with very little funding but had a big impact on the youth involved, she says.
Currently, most of the funding for the downtown health centre comes from the Ontario Ministry of Health.
The City of Ottawa and donations from the public also help fund the organization.
A review of the programs offered is underway. This will help to determine where more funding is needed and which demographic groups are underserved.
With more funding, a greater diversity of programs could be offered to help youth across Centretown, the Glebe and Ottawa South, says Thibault.
She hopes that the gallery event will also help raise public awareness and draw more youth to the centre.
Chelsea Felker, 20, an Ottawa-based photography artist, says art helped her discover who she was.
“It’s time that you can take for yourself and make your thoughts and feelings into something tangible. It’s a good way to (express) how you are feeling and share it,” she says.
“The best pieces of art come from people whom are struggling,” says Felker.
“You don’t have go be the best, but do it for yourself. It can help you through anything.”
The “Under $500 Holiday Show and Fundraiser” exhibition will run until the end of December.