Ready for Change: Workman Arts

By Patrick Callan, Communications Coordinator

After more than a decade working offsite in an old Dufferin Street church, Workman Arts is moving back to CAMH’s Queen Street site and into the new McCain Complex Care & Recovery Building.

“We’re really excited because we see how wonderful the new facilities are and how much they will benefit our members,” says Kelly Straughan, Executive Artistic Director, Workman Arts. “The auditorium has state-of-the-art equipment. Our members will now have a sound studio. The art studio is beautiful. It’s right up against Queen Street, so there’s lovely light in that room.” 

Workman Arts is a multidisciplinary arts organization that promotes a greater understanding of mental health and addiction issues through creation and presentation. It supports more than 450 member artists with lived experience through peer-to-peer arts education, public presentations and partnerships with the broader arts community.

Founded in 1987 by Lisa Brown, a former psychiatric nurse at CAMH, Workman Arts operated out of CAMH’s Queen Street site until 2009, when it moved to the old church as work began on the Queen Street Redevelopment Project.

Workman Arts currently offers between 20 to 25 classes per week, and will be able to add evening and weekend classes thanks to its homecoming in Phase 1C.  

“We have been really limited in this building because things could only happen between the hours of 9 am to 5 pm, so some of our artists with day jobs found it hard to engage with our classes and training programs,” she says. 

Another benefit of moving into a new state-of-the-art facility will be increased accessibility for members with mobility issues. 

“We tried to make this old church accessible, but we just couldn’t, so we have some members who have not been able to engage with us almost the whole time we’ve been here,” says Kelly. 

In addition, Kelly is looking forward to connecting further with CAMH staff and patients at Queen Street, and showcasing all the great work happening at Workman Arts. 

“This is such a great opportunity to embed Workman Arts in the wider West Queen West community and increase the visibility of our really fantastic events and initiatives,” she says. 

The two flagship events Workman Arts holds each year are the Rendezvous with Madness Festival and the Being Scene Exhibition. 

Rendezvous is a festival about reducing stigma and stereotypes towards people with mental health and substance use problems. The Being Scene exhibition showcases the work created by Workman Arts artists. 

In addition, the popular Art Cart program—a partnership with Workman Arts and Gifts of Light where instructors with lived experience teach art to CAMH patients—has expanded significantly in recent years. 

“There’s that really powerful link between people with lived experience and current patients to create something together,” says Kelly.  

Workman Arts also helped assess the CAMH Therapeutic Art Project, a donor-funded art competition that sourced 10 structurally-integrated installations and 24 stand-alone pieces for our two new hospital buildings. 

Some of the winning pieces were created by Workman Arts artists and CAMH patients, including Simon Shimout’s 18-foot Algonquin limestone carving in the lobby of the McCain Complex Care & Recovery Building.

“Engaging in art takes you outside yourself for a moment. You’re focusing on what is happening in that moment, trying to find the right paint colour, or during an improve class it’s all about listening and reacting in the moment,” says Kelly. “There’s also the benefit of reducing social isolation and coming together as a community that has positive health benefits.”

Kelly says being part of an art community is a great way for people with lived experience to redefine themselves. “They can start to re-label themselves as an artist and part of a community,” she says. 

Kelly, who holds a master’s degree in theatre directing, says Workman Arts staff all come from the arts sector. 

“I think that is really powerful because when they come into this space and the conversation is all about what are you going to create today, what are you working on and how can I help you in your career, it reframes the conversation in a really healthy way,” she says. 

Kelly admits some members have expressed concern about Workman Arts returning to the Queen Street site, but she thinks they’ll be thrilled once they see the new space. 

“It’s a huge help that’s it a new building,” she says. “Some of our members have seen pictures and are really excited for the move.”