Queer Art Crawl - #16 Chinatown
Kelc (they/them)
I have run Queer Art Crawl since April 2023. I learned about Jane Walk's recently and I decided to share. Queer Art Crawl is a monthly walk club that highlights mural artists and public art in Toronto through an activity club made by and for 2SLGBTQIA+ folks and their allies. Years ago I start QAC to fill a hole in queer community group spaces; I wanted to developed an active, art focused, outdoor activity that was as accessible as I could make it for queer folks around Toronto. All of my crawls put focus on physical accessibility (wheel chair accessible) and financial accessibility. (free/pay what you can)
This specific crawl planned for May 3rd features 12 murals in Chinatown. Happening during Asian heritage month, this crawl features 20 artists, 10 of whom are Asian artists of a variety of backgrounds. All of the murals feature Asian iconography, scenery and history. The crawl stops (photos of murals and artist handles) will be released on Instagram and Queer Art Crawl's Google Maps link in the coming days.
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1rUbqTg-1Fr2AYMJCpVlUu4hBZ_uoeOU&usp=sharing
QAC Crawl #16 Artists and Stops:
Stop 1: Rowdy Rad Rat
Stop 2: With Good Reason
Stop 3: Art of Phade
Stop 4: Hoang Duc
Stop 5: Ekwal
Stop 6: John Nobrega & Haven Hughes
Stop 7: Wenting Li
Stop 8: Allan Bender, John Nobrega, Jesse McCuaig, Azadeh Pirazimian, Chris Brown, Frannie Potts & Mohammad Jaberi
Stop 9: Jieun June Kim & Curtia Wright
Stop 10: Allan Bender, John Nobrega, Azadeh Pirazimian and Jieun June Kim
Stop 11: Alexa Kumiko Hatanaka & Aaron Li-Hill
Stop 12: The Clandestinos: Shalak Attack & Bruno Smoky
As a mural painter of 6 years, I share insight about each piece I feature giving biographies about each artist and talking about how the pieces are painted and why. I talk about painting techniques and share my knowledge on street art culture. If I get enough donations, I hire artists to come speak about their own pieces and share their experiences. Attendees have shared that their intrigue and knowledge about murals and graffiti around Toronto have grown after attending my crawls.
Walk Start:
Chinatown (College and Spadina)(5 Oxford St)
Baldwin Village (Baldwin & McCaul)(45 Baldwin St)
Walk End:
Date:
Start Time:
Saturday, May 3
2:00:00 PM
Duration:
2:00:00
Language:
English
Theme:
Arts and Culture, Lived experiences and personal perspectives, People and Communities, Transit and Accessibility, diversity (all kinds of people, styles of art and skill level)
Accessibility:
Uneven terrain, Busy sidewalks, Dog-friendly walk, Family-friendly walk, I release a map before the crawl showing the route, including all of the stops as well as seat options along the way in case someone needs one.
Attendees Identify You:
I will have a bright yellow tote bag with a fried egg on it.