Assembly: A holding space for culture

‘Assembly’ is an exhibition–workshop–gathering that asks an urgent question: how do we hold space now to build the cultural spaces we need next? It brings artists, designers, neighbours, & creative change-makers of all kinds into a shared environment for co-designing these very spaces & thriving within them.

What You’ll See:

1. A Collective Exhibition: the Monolith by Daem Arthouse, paintings by Izzy Paez, weavings by Sharon Santiago Quijano, select ceramics by Alycia Shanika and more
2. Mixed-media Installation: Suspended collages & large-format photography from Lore & Collective Futures, and digital installation from Book Club Toronto documenting cultural spaces & community heritage
3. Magazine & Zine Library: A collective table of archives, references and final publications
4. A Drop-in Space: Reconfigurable seating designed for dialogue & hanging out
5. Interactive stations: Note-hanging exercises & hands-on workshop tables
6. Live programming: Artist performances during celebratory events

‘Assembly’ brings together community, artmaking, co-learning, and spatial design in one place. It’s designed as a space to collaborate, share knowledge, develop tools for cultural production, and map ideas for future community-led spaces in Toronto.

What to Explore at ‘Assembly’s’ Workshops:

1. Two-part mask-making workshop: How to create little fantastical masks (Alebrije figures) to watch over our spaces and bring positive energy into a room.
2. Creative publishing basics: From zines to art books, hands-on skills in layout, sequencing, image integration, & bringing a publication to life.
3. Spatial literacy: How design, global connections, and policy influence who gets to gather, create, and belong in a city.
4. Community mapping: A grounded look at networks, ecosystems, & relationships that sustain artist-led spaces in Toronto & a collective identifying of needs, gaps, and opportunities within cultural ecosystems.
5. Tools for co-design: Practical methods for imagining, shaping, and prototyping future cultural spaces with your community.

‘Assembly’ is a call to gather, drop in & hang out, test your ideas, and contribute to new forms of cultural infrastructure.