Booth Camp
What is ‘Booth Camp’?
Booth Camp is a series of FREE professional development sessions where seasoned artists and TOAF team share knowledge, tips, and tricks. We will cover everything you need to know to prepare for the Fair and make the experience as successful as possible. An outdoor (or online) art Fair in a new environment can seem very demanding and intimidating for even the most experienced artists, and we are here to ease the worries and share how to address the challenges and prepare for them. We want you to have the most successful experience, whether it’s your first or fifth time participating in the Fair.
Who should come?
It is mandatory for first-time participants to attend and/or review the video recordings of Booth Camps in order to prepare yourself for the Fair.
Building an Online Presence for TOAF63
May 7, 11:00 PM – 12:15 PM (EST)
Virtual on Zoom
This session is for all participating artists and will focus on Online Artwork Sales A – Z and Social Media Marketing.
An introduction to the online art Fair, learn about the rules to keep in mind, key dates, resources for artists, and what to do when an artwork sells online. The TOAF Marketing Team will also give you a breakdown of TOAF63’s marketing and public relations plan, how to use the TOAF Sharekit and how to build engaging content, grow and maintain your social media following. You’ll also hear from our seasoned artists about how to create a stellar online artist profile, curating your selection of works for your online profile, photographing and presenting your artworks in context, top tips for independent artists, and Instagram content creation. A recording will be available on this web page after the session.
This Year’s Speakers:
Heather Kerrison,
Founder of Wild Media Co.
Heather is a Toronto-based social media agency owner, running Wild Media Co with over 6 years of experience creating, growing, and managing online communities.
She has worked with many arts and culture focused brands in the city such as Toronto Outdoor Art Fair, Koffler Centre of the Arts, Now Playing Toronto, Cultural Goods Gallery, and Public Sweat by Art Spin Toronto. Having live covered numerous events across the city – including last year’s Toronto Outdoor Art Fair, the Juno Awards, Nuit Blanche, Art Toronto, ROM After Dark, and many more – she has extensive experience garnering audience attention and excitement.
Her work is inspired by her deep love for storytelling and exploring how connection, empathy, and community can lead us to discovery, change, and purpose.
Tamar P.
SoHo Art & Custom Framing
Founded in May 2004, SoHo Art & Custom Framing is part of Roncesvalles Village, in Toronto’s west end. With over a decade in business and thousands of satisfied clients they proud themselves in design levels and fair pricing.
Owner Tamar P. has extensive background in art, design and custom framing. Tamar’s years of experience ensure that you’ll get all the benefits of a skilled and knowledgeable approach to framing.
Tamar and staff enjoy the creative process of choosing and designing a frame to match your home design while maintaining the highest standard of custom work and conservation levels.
TOAF63 Nathan Phillips Square Survival Guide
May 11th, In-person at TOAF Office, 401 Richmond W.
10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
This session is for artists who are participating in the in-person Fair at Nathan Phillips Square.
The Toronto Outdoor Art Fair team and 5 seasoned artists will share knowledge, tips and tricks to get yourself prepared and ease your worries about Exclusive Online Fair at TOAF.ca. You’ll get to meet TOAF team, connect with speaker artists, and meet with fellow TOAF Fair artists. We will go over the rules, with an overview of Nathan Phillips Square map; why rent tents and what’s included in a tent rental package; how to prepare for the weather, and how to curate a stellar booth at the Fair and so much more!
This Year’s Speakers:
Corynn Kokolakis
Painter
Corynn Kokolakis is a figurative oil painter whose practice merges the often-disparate roles of mother and artist.
Influenced by motion and materiality, her work explores memory, childhood development, and caregiving. Her current research considers how people learn how to see and practice care and she approaches her emerging teaching practice with the same curiosity. She is looking forward to working through these ideas (in paint) at an upcoming residency at Vermont Studio Center.
Corynn completed an MFA in Visual Arts from York University where she held a SSHRC, CGS Master’s Scholarship. She earned a BFA in Drawing and Painting from OCADU, where she was awarded the Akin and JumpStart Career Launchers.
Anu Kalra
Artist
Anu Kalra is deeply inspired by the rich history and tradition of Indian miniature painting.
Her work is characterized by intricate details, vibrant colors, and a focus on storytelling. She uses a variety of materials and techniques, including acrylic paints, gouache, gold leaf, and fine brushes, to create works that are both visually appealing and meaningful.
Anu Kalra has a BFA in Graphic Design from The College of Art, Delhi, India and studied at George Brown College. She worked as a graphic designer and Art Director for Discovery Magazine. She has held solo exhibitions and Participated in TOAF and the Artist network, Richmond Hill Studio Tours and Art Fairs.
Ebrin Bagheri
Artist
Ebrin Bagheri is an Iranian/Canadian visual artist currently living and working in Toronto, Canada. Bagheri has completed a Masters of Fine Arts degree at York University, and holds visual arts degrees from other Canadian institutions, including a Bachelor of Fine Arts from OCAD University and an arts diploma from George Brown College.
Working primarily in drawing and painting, Bagheri has been exploring issues pertinent to culture and identity. Greatly invested in Persian literature and poetry, Bagheri’s large-scale drawings have a historical element reminiscent of Persian miniature paintings in their details and intricacies. Using these poetic and literary tropes in conjunction with elements of Persian visual culture, Bagheri’s work complicates notions of Persian culture, contemporary Iranian identity, and the conflicting themes of gender and sexuality that might arise at their intersection.
Daniel St-Amant
Mixed Media Artist
Hailing from Eastern-townships, Melbourne, Quebec, Daniel’s background in Fine Arts is apparent in his work, where he employs a diverse range of mixed media, including mosses, dried flowers, sticks, stones, and crushed cement, to create mesmerizing textures and depth in his pieces.
Through his use of color and composition, Daniel transforms his canvases into windows into worlds that are both beautiful and ominous.
His works evoke emotions ranging from awe and wonder to a sense of foreboding, as if the creatures he depicts are the last remnants of a world in the process of disappearing.
Saskia Wassing
Textile Artist
Saskia is a textile artist, designer and educator trained in Embroidered & Woven Textiles at Glasgow School of Art, Scotland.
For nearly 30 years, she has been creating colourful embroideries that express the imagined and the fanciful. Her art is grounded and informed by her experiences, memories and observational drawings.
Saskia has exhibited her work extensively. She has designed and produced custom furniture, textiles, embroidery and prototypes for individuals and industry. She has taught workshops to groups and individuals of all ages and levels. Saskia lives with her family in Toronto.
