Consider your creative process, document your work, and stand out from the rest.
Design created by Maria Pineros, 2017 ArtworksTO alumni
ArtWorksTO invites media artists who identify as Indigenous, Black, People of Colour, and/or 2SLGBTQ+ youth (ages 18-29) to participate in a portfolio development workshop. As a media maker, it’s important that your portfolio tells a compelling story about you. It’s what employers, granting agencies, or educators look at to understand your skills, interests, and passions.
Hosted by OCAD University
Dates: September 28- October 9, 2020 | ONLINE*
Deadline to apply: September 25, 2020
Learn how to:
- Write your artist bio
- Create an artist statement
- Select effective samples of your work
- Access opportunities for a portfolio review
- Apply your portfolio to employment and education opportunities
- Receive critique
Work with OCAD U instructors and practicing artists to develop your portfolio through a hands-on media art workshop.
Workshops include:
Hand-Drawn Type with Karen Justl
In this project, you will hone your technical skills and design vocabulary, while developing your personal style in your design work through the development of a concept for a book cover. First, you will learn to research and brainstorm words, which will then be illustrated or, collaged into images. Then, using this process you will learn to experiment with sketches, research various typefaces, document work, and create an original final image.
Karen Justl is an educator, visual artist, illustrator & graphic designer. Justl's artwork has been exhibited across Canada and, can be seen internationally in indie movies and in print. She divides her time between Toronto and Winnipeg. She teaches at OCAD University and the University of Manitoba.
One-Take Video Challenge with Esery Mondesir
Create a visually strong and conceptually meaningful lens-based piece using your knowledge of, skills (or intuition) in lighting, composition, and camera movement in a way that either follows the conventional rules or intentionally disrupts them to create an image that might surprise or shock the eyes or otherwise sustain our visual attention. You will be able to connect the work you create with larger ideas or questions about your personal life, your immediate environment or society at large.
Esery Mondesir is a Haitian-born video artist and filmmaker. He was a high school teacher and a labour organizer before receiving an MFA in cinema production from York University (Toronto) in 2017. Mondesir’s work draws from personal and collective memory, official archives and vernacular records, the Everyday to suggest a reading of our society from its margins. His films explore migration and exile as sites of identity formation as well as cultural resistance. Mondesir lives in Toronto and teaches at OCAD University. His work has been exhibited in Canada and internationally.
Zines and Drawing with Erin Finley
You will explore media arts and drawing principles in this project by learning about how to produce a zine for a client, and about how to network with members of the arts industry. You will begin the course by performing a common set of drawing exercises but will eventually develop original zines that harness your own personal brand.
Erin Finley is a Toronto artist and an award-winning educator at OCAD University. She has exhibited drawings internationally, most recently performing a live virtual drawing at the University of Utrecht.
*These workshopswill be conducted online and can be completed over a two week period.
Click to register by September 25 
For questions about the workshop, contact norma(at)torontoarts.org
COVID-19 Response | In adherence with COVID-19 Public Health recommendations, the Portfolio Workshop will be delivered through pre-recorded lessons with some live presentations. The course will be online for 2 weeks and participants will be able to complete the modules and assignments at their own pace.
Going Beyond Diversity | ArtWorksTO recognizes the impact that gender, ethnicity, class, immigration status, religion, sexuality and disabilities have on student success, and strives to move beyond equity to meaningful inclusion. Our staff is here to support you throughout the enrollment and completion of the Portfolio Development Workshop.
We commit to making every effort to address problems you may be experiencing – whether financially, academically, or in your personal life, to help you get the most out of this program. With the support of the ArtWorksTO Program Manager and Youth Liaison, we will advocate on your behalf, raise your concerns, and help to make the workshop as beneficial, enjoyable, and safe for you as possible.