“Robin Sutherland is an emerging arts manager and community artist who has recently moved from Toronto to her home community of Algoma, Northern Ontario, to establish Thinking Rock Community Arts, a new organization that will seek to engage and build community along the North Shore of Lake Huron. This blog will follow her journey along that path.
Robin overseeing a mini performance at Jumblies Artfare Essentials Training (photo: Katherine Fleitas)
After reading my first blog post, a friend of mine asked a pretty obvious question: why did I decide to move back to Northern Ontario to start a community arts organization? I thought hey – that’s a fairly basic question that I should probably answer! So, here is my best attempt at doing that.
I have always known I wanted to return to Algoma. This is an incredibly beautiful area of the world, and I’ve always considered it to be my home. My life partner and family are also here, which adds to the appeal. At the same time, my life work is also very important to me. Since leaving Algoma to pursue a degree in Arts Management and Theatre at the University of Toronto at Scarborough, my personal passion, academic background and professional career have brought me to the intersection of the arts, community development and social change. This work is a hugely important to who I am, and plays a central role in my life. I’m lucky to be part of a community of practice where I’m surrounded by artists, organizers, activists – young and old – who are doing amazing, important work in building communities, and who inspire me daily.
Continue reading “Inspiration and Trepidation: Starting a Community Arts Organization “Where It Started” (Algoma, ON)”
ArtBridges/ToileDesArts 