Community Display: Centre for Art and Wellness

Art Windsor-Essex respectfully acknowledges that we are located on Anishinaabe Territory – the traditional territory of the Three Fires Confederacy of First Nations, comprised of the Ojibway, the Odawa, and the Potawatomi. Today the Anishinaabe of the Three Fires Confederacy are represented by Bkejwanong. We want to state our respect for the ancestral and ongoing authority of Walpole Island First Nation over its Territory.

AWE’s Centre for Art and Wellness is an interdisciplinary mental wellness portal that uses creative programming to foster community well-being. Through partnerships with local organizations, the Centre for Arts and Wellness provides engaging and accessible wellness programming for our community members.

Crafting Connections: United Way/Centraide Windsor-Essex County

AWE, in partnership with the United Way/Centraide Windsor-Essex County, hosted art workshops led by artist Catherine Hois for 16 youth from four priority high schools in Windsor. The program focused on enhancing wellness, self-confidence, and social support through art. Participants engaged in diverse activities, including poetry, journaling, abstract art, printmaking, and stop-motion animation, which emphasized the process and enjoyment of art-making over the final product. The workshops fostered a sense of community and collaboration among students, who shared and celebrated their work in a safe, supportive environment.

Healing & Wellness through Indigenous Wear & Fashion: Can-Am Indian Friendship Centre

In partnership with the Can-Am Indian Friendship Centre, Indigenous youth participated in 8 fashion and design workshops at Art Windsor-Essex, culminating in a complete head-to-toe look displayed during a community fashion show. Facilitated by Indigenous mentors, the workshops connected artistic techniques to life skills. This project fostered connections with the arts, promoted potential career paths in fashion and design, and highlighted the importance of youth wellness and mentorship.

The Teen Arts Council

The AWE Teen Arts Council is a group of teens aged 14-17 from across Windsor-Essex who have come together to create programs for teens, by teens. Reflections is a group display by members of the Teen Arts Council. Members of the TAC explored different aspects of themselves and their environment through the lens of Reflections.