This is My City: Homeless Make Art, Stake Claim in Calgary

A series of performances and exhibits this week will showcase the artistry of Calgary's homeless.

This is My City began last year, as a municipal-led program engaging homeless citizens in art-making. Theatre, photography, music, and visual art instruction was introduced at local drop-in centres and shelters by artist-mentors. Now, those creative expressions and more will be on display as a part of High Performance Rodeo, a month-long festival of the performing arts.

"Theatre is a self-esteem builder and a communication builder," explains Aviva Zimmerman, an artist-mentor and the project coordinator for This is My City, "Those are skills anyone should have; to look someone in the eye and speak clearly, to be confident in their ideas. It also feeds the soul. Art provides meaning for our lives and creates a sense of community."

Good art has long been a powerful ally to Calgary. While cowboy hats and oil rigs have become iconic symbols of this boomtown, a thriving - and expanding - cultural sector has provided space for dialogue and diversity. Giving voice to those who are most often silenced, or simply silent, is a driving force behind this project too.

"It was never meant to be a solution to the problem," Zimmerman explains, noting the disparity between Calgary's "paved with gold" image and the "overwhelming number" of people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

It will, though, draw some much needed attention and validation to a growing population in crisis. "It's overwhelming to see hundreds and hundreds of people who are in misery," adds Zimmerman, "Especially in one of the richest cities in a country with such a high standard of living. It is a crises in evey major urban centre in Canada."

This is My City includes the interactive "Power Play," whereby members of the audience may step into a role and attempt to change the show's conclusion. There is also a free art exhibit at the Epcor Centre and Glenbow Museum, a musical performance of the Land's End Chamber Ensemble and The Drop-in Singers at the Grace Presbyterian Church, and a showcase cabaret of various performers tomorrow, January 20 at the WR Castell Library. The week ends with a free symposium on art as a form of social justice, led by the Right Honourable Michaelle Jean and her husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond.

A full listing of This is My City events can be found at www.hprodeo.ca/2010/this-is-my-city.

Published on The Ampersand, January 19 2010