CJRU, The Scope

Sameer Cash brings community together with This City colouring book

With the pause on performing, Sameer Cash has been finding new ways to express himself as a musician. On Nov. 24 he announced his Toronto-specific colouring book on Instagram and it sold out within a day. CJRU spoke with Cash about the messages behind the project, plans for restocking the sought-after book, and why it has captivated so many people already.

Music Gallery fosters spirit of creative collaboration in Exquisite Departures

The Music Gallery is keeping the spirit of creative collaboration alive with their Exquisite Departures project which premieres on Nov. 20. They brought together 15 musicians and five video artists for a special, socially-distanced music video project inspired by the age-old game, Exquisite Corpse, popularized by French surrealists in the 1920’s and 1930’s. CJRU speaks with curator Tad Michalak and video artist, Vanese Smith about the inner workings of the project, what the public can expect during Friday night livestream on Nov. 20 and the Bandcamp and cassette releases that will follow.

Nia Centre is building Canada’s first Black arts centre

Since 2008, Nia Centre has been supporting, showcasing, and promoting Toronto’s Black artistic community. The charitable organization recently announced a renovation project that will completely transform their Little Jamaica facility into first professional, multi-disciplinary centre for Afro-diasporic art in Canada. Alica Hall, executive director of Nia Centre, tells CJRU about the significance of this project and what the community can expect once it’s complete.

Archiving Asian-Canadian stories with Quarantine Qapsule

Quarantine Qapsule (QQ) is a digital archive of the Asian Canadian experience during the COVID-19 pandemic. QQ is accepting submissions until Oct. 23 from Asian-Canadians who are over 18 and living in Ontario. The project believes that art is created anywhere in any style and submissions are meant to be a low-stakes opportunity for creative expression. CJRU spoke with some of the folks making QQ happen, creator Nightingale Nguyen and Tea Base’s co-creative director Christie Carrière.