theSKETCHstudio

On her mixtape, The Dynesti ReWrites Vol 1. I was never fully satisfied with the project and how...

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 16:57:36 -0400

On her mixtape, The Dynesti ReWrites Vol 1.

I was never fully satisfied with the project and how it turned out. It was released on November 16, 2012 and it proved to be a serious learning experience for me. I lacked professionalism and self-discipline and I rushed it, but it served a greater purpose. From it I was able to self-reflect, work on some flaws, and grow. The project showed potential, and for that reason, it is worth listening to. Now I am working on my LP entitled “I Am Me” and the upgrades in quality, performance, and overall professionalism should be undeniable.

*Click the picture to download mixtape

What inspires you? I’m inspired by how beautifully messed...

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 16:57:32 -0400

What inspires you?

I’m inspired by how beautifully messed up the world is, how beautifully messed up the people in this world are, and how beautifully messed up I am. I believe there is an art to the chaos of the universe and it comes together in a beautiful way that deserves to be noticed.

Describe your art? I try to ensure that my art brings forth some form of joy and/or healing. I...

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 16:55:24 -0400

Describe your art?

I try to ensure that my art brings forth some form of joy and/or healing. I believe that world healing begins through self-reflection and self-acceptance, so I try to create art that allows people to accept/love themselves and others. I believe many people are afraid to be who they are because they care so much about titles, definitions, religion, class, etc. I would like my art to allow people to fall in love with themselves, flaws and all, so I speak the truth without apologies.

How did you get started as an artist? I started singing when I was around 7-years-old, and I...

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 16:54:10 -0400

How did you get started as an artist?

I started singing when I was around 7-years-old, and I wrote my first song at age 8. Music was my first talent and through it I got into acting, dancing, spoken-word poetry, rapping and whole bunch of other art. I knew from a young age that I wanted my life to revolve around art, and it has.

Welcome to the first installment of SKETCH’s Featured...

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 16:42:29 -0400

Welcome to the first installment of SKETCH’s Featured Culturemaker for 2013. Dynesti is one of our multi-talented Community Artists. Over the next couple of weeks, we will share her thoughts on her art, what inspires her and her experience with SKETCH.

New Year, New Sounds

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 16:57:39 -0500

Enjoy new music from SKETCH musicians Mozes Black, Peter Bones and Insufferable Noise Machine! Recorded at our very own recording studios, click each pic to listen and support!

How did you get started as an artist? “Everyday life, I...

Tue, 27 Nov 2012 16:24:00 -0500

How did you get started as an artist?

“Everyday life, I guess. Sometimes I get stuff from my emotions, but I also like being inspired by the materials that I get ‘cause most of the stuff that I work with is like recyclables or stuff that people have thrown out that they don’t need anymore so that also kind of inspires what I’m going to do. So if I find beads I’ll work on something that incorporates beads, and if I find leather then I’ll come up with something that will be like what I found.”

- SKETCH’S featured artist Susan

What inspires you? “Well, growing up I guess art was...

Tue, 27 Nov 2012 16:00:00 -0500

What inspires you?

“Well, growing up I guess art was everywhere, ‘cause if you need like a doll or something, you have to make it yourself, you need a ball to play with, you find stuff and make it yourself. I guess that influenced, kind of made me want to work with my hands. At the school, the school system I went to in Kenya had like these emphases on indigenous types of art and we had compulsory lessons where we had to take, we had to do these crafts and get tested on it, yeah, pretty much. Here, there’s like a whole bunch of different types of art that I came and saw and wanted to try so that was another way I kind of picked up the kind of stuff that I do.”

“My art is kind of weird, hard to explain, because I don’t do...

Mon, 20 Aug 2012 17:47:39 -0400

“My art is kind of weird, hard to explain, because I don’t do one specific thing, I kinda meld them, like leather, natural fibers, plant things – knitting, sewing, accessories, stuff like that. I don’t know if that’s an explanation [laughs] but …” – Susan, SKETCH Featured Culture Maker

This is Susan, SKETCH’s Featured Culture Maker. Over the...

Thu, 16 Aug 2012 13:00:02 -0400

This is Susan, SKETCH’s Featured Culture Maker. Over the next few weeks we’re going to share some of her work with you, as well as her thoughts on art and SKETCH.

What inspires you? “Change inspires me a lot and that’s...

Mon, 18 Jun 2012 15:45:07 -0400

What inspires you?

“Change inspires me a lot and that’s probably why I got involved with this. Change, my environment – of course, I am partially a product of my environment, but I like affecting my environment if I can too. I find myself to be […] an optimistic person, but at one point in my life I wasn’t an overly optimistic person so at this point […] I like the fact that I can be a part of change but I can also be a part of what’s happening around me. You know what I mean?” — Mark, SKETCH Featured Culture Maker

Image: possible album art for the Grizwald Project What has your...

Mon, 04 Jun 2012 14:13:00 -0400

Image: possible album art for the Grizwald Project

What has your experience with SKETCH been like?

“It’s been awesome, it’s been really really good. I was introduced to SKETCH from a good friend of mine, I’ve known him for fifteen years, his name is Mozes, he was one of the featured artists, we went to public school together in Sudbury, Ontario. And between his back and forth Toronto scenario I got a chance to get a feel for the city over the years and this year I kinda decided I was going to make it a more permanent stay. And after kind of watching what I was doing with the programming that is at SKETCH already the people that were there were like ‘you know what, you should probably just get on board with us for a little bit.’” — Mark, SKETCH Featured Culture Maker

What kinds of artwork do you do? “I’m predominantly a musician,...

Mon, 28 May 2012 13:57:14 -0400

What kinds of artwork do you do?

“I’m predominantly a musician, but I do get involved with visual arts for my music projects … I produce, so I play a multitude of instruments. I play bass, I play guitar, I play keyboards, and I also deal with synthetic drum kits and stuff like that, so I kind of do a mixture of, I guess you could call it, like, traditional song writing or like folk or rock but it’s got a very digital edge to it at points too. The stuff I’m doing right now with the Grizwald Project, which is the name of the demo that I’m putting out right now, it’s more acoustic-driven and more of a return to more traditional song writing ideas.” — Mark, SKETCH Featured Culture Maker.

This is Mark, our new featured culture maker. Over the next few...

Tue, 22 May 2012 16:05:16 -0400

This is Mark, our new featured culture maker. Over the next few weeks we’re going to share some of his work with you, as well as what he has to say about his experiences with SKETCH.

“It’s gonna to be crazy, it’s gonna to be, like, dubstep and...

Fri, 18 May 2012 16:13:51 -0400

“It’s gonna to be crazy, it’s gonna to be, like, dubstep and samba, like really getting your body moving and feeling things.” Alicia discusses her CUE grant for her arts project, a healing album. CUE offers grants to youth who may have difficulty securing funding from traditional arts-grant programs.

What do you do as part of your role? Just inspiring creative...

Tue, 01 May 2012 12:32:40 -0400

What do you do as part of your role?

Just inspiring creative space.

I also start the music jams, singing , rapping, playing an instrument. We make food in the morning for everybody, for a while I was creating ideas for the meals, going out and getting the supplies we needed.

What inspires you?

What inspires me the most is inspiration itself. Seeing other people get inspired. Having other people around me trying something, doing something, playing and seeing other people get really into what they’re doing. As well as community, and a feeling of family. I’m part of a music community that’s really tight-knit.

-Alicia, community artist and SKETCH featured culture maker.

Tell me about your art. What kind of work do you do on your...

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:58:00 -0400

Tell me about your art. What kind of work do you do on your own?

Music, drawing, I’ve been drawing for a long time. I’ve taken years and years of pottery. For a while I was teaching pottery on the wheel, and the pottery studio that Sketch runs, at the brickworks.

Right now, I just got a Cue grant to do an album, I’m really excited about it. I really had to ask myself what I’m meant to be doing in this life, why I’m here. I’m a healer, and all my clients come to be with emotional issues. It seems like all of their emotional issues come down to these little core things. I’ve found processes that I use to help people move through that stuff, but I want to help more people move through their issues. I thought music was a great way to do that. I’m working on the first track today.

-Alicia, community artist and SKETCH featured culture maker.

For more information about Cue, a radical, youth-led, high-access arts support initiative, click HERE.

Why are organizations like SKETCH so important? It gives a...

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 10:19:28 -0400

Why are organizations like SKETCH so important?

It gives a temporary home to those who don’t have one. A temporary safe, loving space. This is unconditional love from everywhere. All these people who have had struggles and difficulties all coming together and creating this posative space for each other to exist in, and creating a community and creating family, and growing things, literally, growing things. Creating together in such a gorgeous way where everyone is in it, and it doesn’t feel uncomfortable.

-Alicia, community artist and SKETCH featured culture maker.

Tell me about your experience with Sketch, how you got...

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 10:59:29 -0400

Tell me about your experience with Sketch, how you got started.

I did school training for a year, doing shiatsu, but I was at Sketch all the rest of the time. I just loved the community and the vibe, and being able to do any kind of art form, because that’s totally who I am. Being at Sketch, I can make clothes, and then I can do silkscreening, and then I can record.

I spent a lot of my time at Sketch. I did volunteering, teaching classes here and there, life drawing and stuff like that, helping people out and hanging out. They offered me a CA position, which was awesome. Getting paid to do what I love, and be where I love, and help out people, of course!

-Alicia, community artist and SKETCH featured culture maker.

This is Alicia, our featured culture maker. Over the next few...

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 14:15:04 -0400

This is Alicia, our featured culture maker. Over the next few weeks we’re going to share some of her work with you, and hear what she has to say about her experience working as a Community Artist with SKETCH.