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Real Life Stories: Angel

Angel knew from a child she was different, and others saw it too, but they couldn’t figure out what was “wrong” with her, she says. She was assigned male at birth, but that didn’t feel right to her. Growing up trans in a Roma Gypsy community was also difficult; there was no support for Angel when…

Wanda’s Arts Awards 2019: 3rd place winners

Ivan from Strachan House                         Kate from Strachan House               Sara from Strachan House

Wanda’s Arts Awards 2019: Geoff (2nd place winner)

Nominated every year since the beginning of the Wanda’s Arts Awards in 2015, Geoff describes his current art state as having “six fingers in six different pies.” Currently Geoff is working on multiple art pieces that make up three different series: a collection of self-portraits inspired by his interest in subatomic physics; a sequence of…

Wanda’s Arts Awards 2019: Dey (2nd place winner)

It has been over 40 years since Dey first began her pottery. A wheel sits in the middle of her apartment, surrounded by various handmade cups, bowls and plates. While Dey still works on her wheel regularly and visits the pottery studio to create ceramics, it’s her drawing and painting that has changed the most….

Wanda’s Arts Awards 2019: Tesfa (2nd place winner)

Growing up in Jamaica, Tesfa remembers painting on the walls in their home. Worried about what the landlord would say, his mother handed him soapy water and rags, and he would scrub the walls clean again only to paint them over again a few days later. “I couldn’t bear to see the walls too clean…

Wanda’s Arts Awards 2019: Valentina (2nd place winner)

When outreach workers found Valentina living in a tent in a North York park, she was surrounded by $7,000 worth of leather scrolls, each of them covered in handwritten Bible verses. She describes herself as “awakening, recovering on the other side.” For her, creating those scrolls is what made her healthy again. “The process of…

Wanda’s Arts Awards 2019: Tony (1st place winner)

A Homes First resident for nearly 10 years and a previous winner of Wanda’s Arts Awards, Tony is working on creating unique paintings that are more three-dimensional and immersive. “I’m persistent at it and I’m thinking that I learned something skill-wise in the last couple years.” Despite his colourful and sophisticated paintings, Tony hasn’t been…

Wanda’s Arts Awards 2019: James (1st place winner)

James always dreamed of being an artist. His preferred mediums are drawing and painting, though he does do sculpture work occasionally. He attended university in Uganda, majoring in photography, painting and product design, but was unable to finish when his family couldn’t afford his tuition anymore. After that, James tried to leave his artistic talents…

Wanda’s Arts Awards 2019: Clarissa (1st place winner)

Growing up, Clarissa would always watch her mother sew. She would make clothes for her and her dolls, and when they had a wedding to attend, Clarissa would visit the store with her mother and pick out the fabric for her new dress. By six, Clarissa was able to hand stitch things, though it still…