This is the third instalment of a series of talks Zackery Hobler has done related to his recently-published photobook Beneath Two Skies.
Sunday May 31
1pm-2pm
High Park
Walking High Park with photographer Zackery Hobler, participants will be shown evidence of prescribed burning, they will gain an understanding of how the process works, and be shown how it concretely benefits the rare black oak savannah of High Park.
Starting near Hawk Hill, the group will walk through some of the burn blocks, delineated in partnership with the City of Toronto and Lands & Forest Management, the forestry service who started the prescribed burn program in High Park in 1997, whom Hobler has partnered with for the creation of his photobook.
The walk will end near the north end of High Park next to Bloor Street where participants will see two very different aspects of the park: markers of poor forest management and markers of abundant biodiversity, the latter of which prescribed burning is fundamental.
Throughout the walk, participants will be encouraged to ask questions as we walk.
Participants are also encouraged to attend the two other events surrounding Hobler’s photobook: his book launch at the Contact Gallery on April 9 and his talk with the City of Toronto Archives on May 9. More information about those events can be found linked below.
Curated by Holly Chang
Facilitated by Zachery Hobler
This workshop is offered in conjunction with Soil Study by sarah koekkoek
cUraTor & Artist
Holly Chang
Holly Chang is a Toronto based artist, curator, and researcher. Her practice is focused on topics of hybridity, craft, and ecology.
Zachery Hobler
Zackery Hobler is a Toronto-based photographer whose practice is a means of learning about the external world and how it informs his internal one.
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
Though High Park has many paved paths and walkways, this walk will take place on unmanicured trails, paths, and moderate slopes. The paths are cleared, but uneven. Those with difficulty traversing small rocks or roots are encouraged to bring walking sticks. Wheelchair access is very limited in many parts of the trails.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
This performance does not include audio description.
“Nietzsche has expressed that very beautifully: ‘You shall become friends of the immediate things.’ And the immediate things are this earth, this life.” -C. G. Jung
Saturday May 30
3pm-4:30pm
High Park
What are earth pigments? How do we find and process them? Join us for a hands-on paint-making workshop!
In this session, the participants will learn how to process raw earth materials by grinding, washing and drying to achieve fine pigments that are suitable for paint-making. Together we will investigate both natural and waste colour sources in our surrounding area to find ochre (iron-oxide earth pigment).
During the first half of the workshop, the artist Gizem Candan will demonstrate the full process of pigment and paint-making. Then, the participants will have the chance to make their own water-colour paint using fine earth pigments and gum arabic solution.
Participants will also receive handouts with detailed explanations of the paint-making process, including a basic recipe, a list of materials, and some safety instructions.
Curated by Holly Chang
Facilitated by Gizem Candan
This workshop is offered in conjunction with Soil Study by sarah koekkoek
cUraTor & Artist
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
We will be on a paved path and picnic area within High Park.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
This performance does not include audio description.
Spending time together on the land, especially within urban city centres, is incredibly important in these trying times, and this gathering intentionally creates room to slow down and enjoy food, joy, and laughter in kinship.
Saturday May 30
1pm-2pm
High Park
Guests are invited to gather for a relaxed afternoon of visiting at High Park. Grounded in relational practices, the gathering offers intentional time for connection and community. Spending time together on the land, especially within urban city centres, is incredibly important in these trying times, and this gathering intentionally creates room to slow down and enjoy food, joy, and laughter in kinship. Alex Jacobs-Blum will share about her artistic practice and participants are welcome to share their own stories, listen, and simply spend time together without pressure or expectations…except having fun!
Alex Jacobs-Blum will share about her most recent body of work, Living and Lost Connections, which documents her return to her ancestral homelands and reflects on the responsibilities that come with carrying ancestral Haudenosaunee knowledge. The land holds memory and history, and her artistic practice has become a way of listening and paying attention to those teachings while visiting the territory of her Gayogohó:nǫʼ ancestors. Through visual storytelling, her work explores how spending time on land can guide us to remember, reconnect, and carry knowledge forward for future generations.
Curated by Holly Chang
Facilitated by Alex Jacobs-Blum
This workshop is offered in conjunction with Soil Study by sarah koekkoek
cUraTor & Artist
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
We will be visiting together on the grass so there may be uneven ground, but we will aim to find a flat spot that is close to the sidewalk. Please feel free to bring a chair or blanket to make yourself comfortable. You may also want to bring a water bottle and a hat or sun protection in case it’s a warm day.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
This performance does not include audio description.
Dance, dance to freedom. In solidarity with Iran’s enduring spirit — 47 years of ongoing resistance and the relentless pursuit of basic human rights under a suppressed regime. Here’s to that day.
Saturday May 9, 16, 23, 30
1pm-4pm
with space before and after for conversation and tea
At the Citadel Ross Centre for Dance – 304 Parliament St
Dance & Freedom is an intensive four-session workshop that blends sorcerer-inspired movement with contemporary dance practices to explore embodying resistance. Open to both trained dancers and non-dancers, the workshop examines how dance and the human body have been suppressed across cultures and how they continue to re-emerge as powerful tools for freedom.
What to expect: Each session includes learning movement vocabularies, lectures, verbal exercises, writing, structured and play-based improvisation, and discussion, concluding with prompts for the next session. Participants dance, record, watch, and reflect together while having dedicated time to build networks, enjoy themselves, and connect socially.
Time in process: The workshop consists of three 3-hour sessions and one seven-hour shooting day with professional cameras, lighting, and live music, giving participants the opportunity to experience the differences between dancing for the camera and for a live audience. A short dance video serves as the artistic outcome.
Dance & Resistance offers a unique opportunity to explore contemporary dance, creative embodiment, and somatic awareness. Participants leave with a deeper understanding of movement as storytelling, resilience, and artistic expression, while contributing to a collaborative, visually compelling project that celebrates the body’s capacity to resist, reclaim, and transform.
Creator and facilitator: Alireza Keymanesh
Director of Photography: Misha Petrenko
Musician: Ilyse Krivel
Photo: 33School – 2019; An underground somatic and dance school in Iran
Photo credit: Jeremy Suyker
Artists
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
This venue is wheelchair accessible.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
Please contact us to request an audio describer.
In partnership with
Art must not look away from suffering — it must bear witness.
Sunday March 29
2pm-4pm + volunteering after
St Luke’s United Church
Join former Danny Grossman company members to learn repertoire from Triptych (1977).
Following the workshop, participants are invited to volunteer at the Out Of The Cold community meal offered on site.
We hope that through Dance&Housing, we can pay closer attention to the various layers of ‘Art & Life’ alongside ‘Representation & Reality’. How can art play a role in how we see, understand, and empathize with others?
Participants will be led in a focused repertoire exploration of Triptych (1977), choreographed by Danny Grossman. Created during a period of heightened social awareness, the work confronts themes of homelessness, marginalization, and the stripping away of illusion to reveal essential humanity.
Triptych unfolds through three distinct yet interwoven characters whose emotional landscapes include anger, fear, vulnerability, and an urgent desire to transcend tragic circumstances.
Former company members Meredith Thompson and Eddie Kastrau will teach selected segments from all three roles, offering participants insight into the physical vocabulary, character embodiment, and relational dynamics that define the work.
Over the two-hour workshop, participants will learn and assemble a 3–4 minute excerpt, culminating in an informal sharing in groups of three. Beyond learning choreography, dancers will engage with the emotional architecture of the piece and reflect on its continued relevance.
The workshop will conclude with participants volunteering at a community meal on site, grounding the artistic experience in direct community engagement.
Artists
Eddie Kastrau
Former professional dancer turned dance archivist and arts IT consultant, preserving legacy while supporting creative organizations.
Meredith Thompson
Meredith (she/her) lives, learns, and works in Tkaronto, and has recently transitioned from professional dance artist to expressive arts therapist.
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
This venue is wheelchair accessible.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
Please contact us to request an audio describer.
In partnership with
We will write between image and word, wet and dry, light and shadow, sensing how language appears through what it omits — the negative space it’s bound to speaking.
In this workshop, we explore the alchemical potential of a mixture of practices from the repertoires of Serena Lee and Fan Wu, including: qigong, taijiquan, narrative meditation, calligraphy, poetry, and somatic translation.
We begin by grounding ourselves in space and in the presence of our bodies.
We will read and counter-read Fenollosa’s “The Chinese Written Character as a Medium for Poetry” by pushing at the limits of alphabetical languages that are traditionally considered non-pictographic.
We will follow Mei-mei Berssenbrugge, Du Fu, Ikkyu — and many others in the lineage of a supple phenomenology of attention — and compose using the density of the ordinary as an ever-replenishing raw material.
Mon April 13
4pm-7pm
Cinecycle
Artists
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
CineCycle is not yet fully wheelchair accessible. The laneway entrance beside 129 Spadina has two steps and no automatic doors. The rear entrance has no steps, but the path is uneven. Inside, the space (including gender-neutral washrooms) is all on one level. We’re working with the 401 building to improve accessibility. If you have any specific access needs or would like to arrange a walkthrough, please get in touch.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
Please contact us to request a describer.
In partnership with
How do we care for the bodies that move and move towards care for each other?
As part of our Dance& series, we invite multi-disciplinary artist & certified Acu-Detox Practitioner Nyda Kwasowsky to guide participants through movement and medicine as forms of self and community care.
Nyda will offer a movement score to explore ones own body as well as the other bodies in the space. After a break for some tea and light snacks, Nyda will share more about her practice.
The Acu-Detox originates from the Black Panthers, Young Lords and Barefoot Doctors (China) in the 70’s to attend to community care needs during the drug epidemic in NYC.
The practice is rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine and is held in a circle framework. Acu-Detox can support and alleviate stress, anxiety, grief, depression (self injury), anger, fear, sleep, trauma, addictions (mood, emotional distress, cravings, withdrawal), pain and so much more.
Come think through the way dance relates to care, both of the self and the community with Nyda and Dancemakers. Register at the link below!
Artists
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
Yes! We prioritize accessibility at all events.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
This workshop can include audio description. Please contact us to request a describer.
Hosted by
How can we creatively grow audiences for dance and live performance audiences that include the Blind and Low Vision community?
Dancemakers Guest Curators Arts Assembly hosted an introductory workshop for dancers and embodied performance artists to familiarize themselves with the foundations of audio descriptions for dance & movement practices.
Participants practised their new found skills as a whisper guide for performances in the Summerworks Festival in August 2025.
Inspiration for this includes:
Artists
Arts Assembly
Arts Assembly is a not-for-profit, community-centric arts organization that emphasizes artistic collaboration.
Amy Amantea
Amy Amantea (she/her) is a white settler on the stolen lands of the Squamish, Musqueam and Tsleil-waututh first peoples.
Annemarie Cabri
Annemarie Cabri is a Senior Teaching Artist for the National Ballet of Canada and Canadian Opera Company, along with performing and creating opportunities for the growing Silver Swans® community as a licensee through the Royal Academy of Dance.
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
Yes, the venue is wheelchair accessible including ramps into the building, elevators and wheelchair accessible washrooms.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
This workshop will teach participants how to described dance for Blind and low vision audience members (but the workshop will not be audio described).
In partnership with
For the unjustly resilient and the radically disappointed who can’t afford giving up, this lab may be for you.
In the sanitized world of the arts industry where salaries and privileges are hidden, where living wages and progress are denied, and the discourse of change is led by monied elites, this lab is a space for us to confront empty representation and what is often silenced in the presence of power and greed.
For 6 months we’ll talk about money, class and the “isms” that work for and against us. We will explore and break down how funding bodies distribute money towards low-income and precarious communities. We will analyze our relationships to class and debt. We will try to figure out what practical possibilities can emerge from our time together.
This lab is for those who:
- Identify as working class and precarious dance and/or interdisciplinary artists who do not come from generational wealth
- Seek to build economies of solidarity between working-class communities beyond the arts market
- Want to build a wider awareness of class conditions
- Wish to advocate for better labour protections and living wages with less fear
Important dates and details:
- A fee of $2000 each will be provided for up to 6 participants
- Meetings will take place twice a month
- Monday February 13, 2023 – Monday July 31, 2023
- This is an ONLINE program
- There will be a showing of our time together
We will choose the format of our sharings
Artists
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
Yes, the venue is wheelchair accessible including ramps into the building, elevators and wheelchair accessible washrooms.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
This performance does not include audio description.
Centering compassion, curiosity and the inherent wisdom of the body.
A practical 9-hour workshop offered over 3 days by Pam Tzeng, focused on resourcing our ability to cultivate one’s inner sense of consent and attend to conflict as a generative force in our everyday lives.
Centering compassion, curiosity and the inherent wisdom of the body, Pam will share insights, models and practices for expanding our capacity to meet conflict with embodied awareness, resiliency and choice.
Pre-registration required. Participants are expected to attend all three days of the workshop.
Artists
acCessibilIty
Is the venue wheelchair accessible?
Yes, the venue is wheelchair accessible including ramps into the building, elevators and wheelchair accessible washrooms.
Will the event be ASL Interpreted?
All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.
Will the event be described for Blind and low vision audiences?
This performance does not include audio description.