calling mile-end.
We are planning a number of social events this spring and summer. The idea is to bring Mile-Enders together, preferably outside, around some culture, some greenery, and hopefully some ideas about what we should try and *get done* in our community.
There is already a good deal of activity in the neighbourhood, specifically in Maguire Meadow (the very beautiful, but somewhat but neglected, green space behind the big buildings on De Gaspé).
Sprout Out Loud / Le pouvoir aux pousses has every weekend booked in the meadow to continue with their Roerich Garden, undertake other guerilla gardening activities, build benches, identify plants, insects and birds, and other such nature-loving activities. As well, they are organizing a big day of activities, music and art for June 20th (Solstice!).
In between these open invitation events, we hope to hold a number of musical events (we are aiming for 6 different shows, all acoustic sets) with different neighbourhood musicians. The show will be the *event* that brings people together, but at each event we will be creating installations of different community visions for the redevelopment of Mile-End (and to start, I think specifically the part of Mile-End that is east of St-Laurent, although if people wanted to focus on the other parts of Mile-End, or even the neighbourhoods that border Mile-End, that’s totally cool too). We hope to have other installations as well that maybe have nothing to do with urbanism and politics, but simply share with others the work of our artists.
At these events, we will have people around to discuss what has been proposed or slated for construction, and we will also have people to talk about their ideas for counter-proposals. This will all take place in a relaxed, informal setting where people can ask questions, present ideas, and otherwise contribute to the building of our community.
We are hoping that the last show (in the last summer, early fall) will be a bigger get-together that could have a bigger line-up.
The reason I am going into all this detail is because we are currently looking for help putting these show/events together. Specifically, we need:
1. Artists! Are you a local musician, or do you have a friend who would love help mobilize her or his community? If so, please get in touch with us!
Again, we are looking to program pretty simple, outdoor events … so minimal PA … maybe just some vocals. That means we are looking for acts that can play without significant amplification, and who would be inspired about playing an afternoon in the sunshine with neighbours.
2. Music savvy folks! Have you put on shows before? Do you have a 100 foot extension cord? Do you have access to a simple stage-like device? If so, please let us know! We need help organizing!
3. Other artists, and culturally passionate folks. We don’t need or want this to be just about music and community. We love all art, culture and heritage. If you have ideas for other works that could be part of these installations, we could love to hear. Visions for the community certainly don’t have to be limited to politics and urban planning. A place and time to share what we do and love is vital to the future of our community, so we welcome any ideas you might have.
We think these events are crucial to the continued growth of our community, especially since the city and the developers who are trying to *sell* our neighbourhood to others constantly use the artistic nature of this place as a major selling point. They are right that artists are integral to this place, but we think our artists might have more interesting suggestions to put forward than those being put forward by these outside marketers of real estate options.
So in other words, this is an opportunity for artists to speak their mind, and contribute to the sensible redevelopment of our spaces.
You can reach us here, or at imaginemileend@yahoo.com !
Please pass this along to anyone who might have leads or ideas.
Hope to see you soon…
