In light of our 30th anniversary, we wanted to capture as many real stories about Art Starts as we could. Stories that highlight our both triumphs and our challenges. Who better to account for the challenges of starting something new than one of our own founding members: Elizabeth Cinello.
We asked Elizabeth: what was Art Starts’ greatest challenge? Her story takes us back 30 years when community arts was a new concept and local artists were struggling to be recognized.
Kim is an artist, arts advocate and cultural leader living in Toronto. Coming from an arts administrator and teacher background, Kim was hired as Administrations Manager in 2010.
She grew with the organization as our staff, communities and overall impact expanded, and eventually became Director of Operations. With Kim onboard, Art Starts transformed from a grassroots organization into a recognized leader in the community arts sector.
Ayodele Hudlin is an entrepreneur and Toronto based fashion designer who discovered her passion for teaching when she joined Art Starts in 2018.
As an advocate for the community, Ayodele has affinity for teaching the art of sewing and design to people of all ages. Her philosophy is that art can be integrated into anyone’s life as a means of expressing of oneself and as a form of healing.
Liz Forsberg began her career as a community-engaged artist and joined Art Starts in 2008 as the Managing Director. Over the next 8 years in this role Liz worked on some of our most memorable projects to date.
She was present as Art Starts was welcomed into the Lawrence Heights neighbourhood to begin what has become a long-term relationship with residents and partner organizations, as well as the Glendower Mosaic.
Katherine Earl is an artist, educator and business owner who spent 15 years growing with Art Starts.
Starting with the organization at just 20 years old, Katherine transitioned from lead artist to program manager, and eventually Program Director. She witnessed the organization’s expansion from a small storefront to serving multiple communities city-wide and the many lives that changed as a result.
A few sentences about the artist and or the item for sale.
