Event showcases emerging artists

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This article was published 12/10/2023 (1082 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Total Girls Foundation organized a workshop and competition for female emerging artists in Brandon to mark the 2023 International Day of the Girl Child on Wednesday at the Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba.

The event drew participants from École secondaire Neelin High School and Prairie Hope High School, with the goal of fostering creativity and self-expression among these budding artists.

“The art competition, which encompassed a diverse range of categories such as painting, knitting, Indigenous and drawing, was a testament to the potential and innovation of these young girls,” Total Girls Foundation founder Tinuola Eze told the Sun. “It was particularly fitting that the students had submitted their remarkable artworks in the weeks leading up to Oct. 11, the International Day of the Girl Child, which falls on a Wednesday this year.”

Eze said that the goal of the foundation is to empower young girls through creative expression, motivate the girl child and encourage them to be the best of themselves and the best they could be.

“We just want to give them the opportunity to showcase their creativity because for you to even put a painting together, you must have thought about what you’re doing,” she said. “We’re trying to tell them that whatever they imagine, they can make it a reality.”

Art instructor Chris Reid explained that the event was not just about art, but was a holistic experience that explored the relationship between music and visual art.

Reid said that she engaged the young participants by discussing the works of famous abstractionist Wassily Kandinsky, known for his ability to “hear” colours due to synesthesia.

“The idea is that they have to listen to the music and associate different kinds of marks and colours with the sounds they’re hearing,” Reid told the Sun. “Some of the girls’ artworks are really strong pieces. Look forward to seeing emerging artists come out of this event today.”

AGSM curator Lucie Lederhendler was impressed by the depth and thoughtfulness of the girls’ creations.

“The real power of girls at this age is how much they think about what’s going on inside their hearts,” she told the Sun. “For every single person who submitted art today should not stop making art. Most of the time, people that do it will come back to it, maybe in their 70s, and they’ve just wasted 50 years of their life not making art.”

The winners of the art competition stood as a testament to the immense talent within these young girls. Prairie Hope students Katie Dornn (painting), Amina Tushabe (knitting), Breanna Smith (Indigenous) and Alma Alamrou (drawing) emerged victorious. Neelin’s Olivia Chambers also made a strong showing, coming in second place in the painting category.

Eze also highlighted the important role of partnerships in making this event a success when she said that the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation, AGSM and Brandon University were among the valued collaborators who supported this initiative.

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