Céline Klein is originally from Vierzon, France and is a local photographer and videographer. She studied audiovisual production management and documentary direction before moving to Kingston. She started her own company Jamstone Productions in July, 2019 and is now working with local artists and organizations. Her work has been featured in the past at the Kingston Canadian Film Festival where she has won two Awards, for her first documentary and a music video, and Best Technical for a short film she worked on for the Digi60 Filmmakers’ Festival in Ottawa. She is currently writing and working on her next documentary, focusing on the mental health of local artists. 

Chantal Thompson is a jazz vocalist/composer and multidisciplinary artist from Kingston.

Deb St Amant, Bezhig Waabshke Ma’iingan Gewetigaabo, is bear clan and Métis from Penetanguishene and Ojibwe from Henvey Inlet First Nation.  She was brought up tri-lingual speaking French, English, and Ontario Michif.  She is learning Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe) and Kanienké:ha (Mohawk) at the Kingston Indigenous Languages Nest. 

Elizabeth Morris is a Culturally Deaf artist and a professional Deaf actor (member of ACTRA and CAEA). She was the first Deaf actor at the Stratford Festival. She is also an American Sign Language instructor/coach and a Deaf Community Consultant for theatre and film and has worked as a Deaf Interpreter in the theatre. She gained her master’s degree (MDes) in Inclusive Design from OCAD University in Toronto and has worked to make the theatre more accessible for the Deaf and hard of hearing. Elizabeth’s brother, Alistair Morris supported this project through photography. Alistair Morris is Culturally Deaf and Autistic. He is a talented stained glass artist and was “artist of the month” in October of 2019 at Montello”s Gallery in Kingston. He is a member of Kingston’s Community Living and H’Art Centre. After being awarded an arts’ grant from the Ontario Arts’ council he took photography lessons from a professional photographer, Chris Miner and is thoroughly enjoying this art form. 

Eric Williams’ illustrative style is characterized by abstract concepts under a shroud of cartoon imagery. As an up-and-coming muralist his use of bold colours and sharp lines function to please the passerby while conceptual undertones reward those who take the time to stop and look. Eric is the founder and operations director of Dead On Collective.  

This project was born out of collaboration. Collaboration on the choice of words and the imaginings of shapes, visuals, etc. To go anywhere from here, we must do it collectively and consider who is being left out. Collaborators include: Ron MacLean, Georgina Riel, Lisa Figge, Brett Babcock, Erin Ball, Lavie Williams, Kathleen Ruck, Lily MacLean, Annie Peace-Fast, Tracey Guptill, Michelle Girouard, Ruby Rose and Elder Gillis, Rohullah, Kamryn Marsh (they/them) and Brea, Kemi King, Musawer, Luca Tucker and Emma Aslett, Laura Chaignon, Mo Horner and FL, Willa Crowder and Jasmine Woboditsch, Jane Kirby and Eska, Kayla MacLean, Nick Saray, Robyn Henry Saray, Karen Raddon and Orrin Saray.  

The collaborators are people who are connected to Kingston/Katarokwi and they were asked to share about their identities, imaginings around shapes and bodies and a letter that might represent them. The collaborators imagined positions for themselves, sent photos to the artists and together, created a collective imagination.  

Jill Glatt (she/her) is a French and English teacher with the Limestone District School Board, printmaker, and arts educator. Jill is also the Volunteer Coordinator for the Skeleton Park Arts Festival and sits on their board of directors as Vice President-Treasurer. Jill believes that taking care of the needs of all residents of Katarokwi-Kingston is necessary for us to move forward through Covid-19 and beyond.   

Mutual Aid Katarokwi-Kingston (MAKK) is a project initiated by AKA Autonomous Social Center in Kingston, ON which was formed to respond to meet the needs of folks needing to self-isolate in relation to COVID-19. MAKK believes we must simultaneously address people’s immediate self-determined needs for survival and organize fundamental shifts in the way we relate to each other and the earth.   

Kingston Freestyle Dance was established to preserve, build, and empower street dance in Kingston. Growing steadily since its inception in 2018, the collective offers classes and workshops to the Kingston community, weekly sessions around Queen’s campus, and battles, showcases, and socials for dancers of all styles. Kingston Freestyle Dance is a melting pot of both street styles and cultures that make up the collective. 

Leah Riddell is bilingual, using both her natural sign language, American Sign Language and her parents’ language, English. She is a sign language storytelling illustrator. Leah brings her Deaf experience to life in her creative visions. She is the owner of SignAble Vi5ion aiming to cultivate inclusion, a certified ASL instructor, and a trainer of visual inclusive communication for businesses & organizations. 

Elizabeth Turner has been a Kingston resident for 13 years and generally works with paint and ink. This artwork has been digitally rendered from a drawing with the help of a friend. Most of Elizabeth's previous work has been in poster and protest art and this work is meant to look like a sticker you might find on the street. The goal of the work is to communicate that all the systems we rely on are made up of people and that we must rely on and take care of each other to survive. None of the systems that support or oppress us are bigger than those that work to maintain them. 

Mo Horner (she/her) is a theatre artist, co-creator, and independent producer based in Kingston interested in abolitionist dramaturgies, site-specific live performance, care work, and collaborative creation. She’s worked with anARC Theatre, Thousand Islands Playhouse, SpiderWebShow, Great Canadian Theatre Company, the Kick & Push Festival and Theatre Kingston. Interested in catalyzing independent and non-traditional theatre artists and forms in Kingston, she was the Festival Director of CFRC's Shortwave Theatre Festival in 2020 and Kingston's Storefront Fringe Festival from 2016-2018. Co-founding the Cellar Door Project  in 2013, Mariah has produced and dramaturged 15 original site-specific theatre performances in Kingston and Ottawa.   

Grace Dixon (she/her) is an interdisciplinary artist from the Rideau Lakes area. She has designed promotional work for independent creatives including illustrations for a local Kingston poet, multiple album designs and a tabletop for Daft Brewery. She enjoys combining mixed media and graphic design, utilizing detail and pattern often. She is one of the visionaries behind a small digital zine known as Seamzine. She also enjoys indulging in playing music and writing. She often finds solace in nature and yet also in the excitement of urban settings, where the buzz of other stories and truths inspire her work.  

Roots and Wings is a community organization that is designed to make space for racialized girls, trans, and non-binary youth in Kingston. The Roots and Wings youth are encouraged to explore their diverse identities and are provided with learning opportunities about social justice issues in a fun, engaging, and age-appropriate way. They are encouraged to teach and share their unique skills with each other, as well as the larger community through action on social justice issues. Over three workshops, the Roots & Wings youth unpacked their answers to the question “where do we go from here?” by exploring the following concepts:  

• Belonging (where do we feel we belong? What does a space need for everyone to belong?);   
• Responsibility (what and who are we responsible to? How can we live according to the Haudenosaunee Seventh Generation Principle?); and  
• Collaboration (how can we work together?)  

The Roots and Wings youth worked with visual artist Kayla MacLean to bring together what we learned about belonging, responsibility, and collaboration to create our artistic response to the question “where do we go from here?” Within this installation you will find individual contributions created by our youth to convey how the future needs to be one where individual voices are heard and protected while still recognizing that we have to care for each other as a collective community. 

 Ryan Lewis is the founder of Elevation Studio, a recording studio based in Kingston Ontario, that functions as a music school, and offers artist development and artist management. Elevation Studio was created to expose creative individuals to the world and business of the music industry and prepare them to take on a more professional role, should they choose to. 

Sadaf Amini is a Musician and Santur performer. She studied music performance and music technology, performed in various projects and recordings, and won awards and prizes in multiple festivals. 

Sadiqa de Meijer is a writer who lives in the Skeleton Park neighbourhood. Her poetry, essays, and short fiction have been published in journals across Canada, as well as in the U.S., the U.K., and the Netherlands. Her first book was a finalist for the Governor General's Literary Award. Her two most recent books are the poetry collection The Outer Wards and the language memoir alfabet / alphabet. 

William is a self-taught artist currently based out of Kingston, Ontario. They have spent the last number of years refining their fine art photography practice, while also working towards producing affordable, accessible and usable fine art, under the banner of their own business, Green Moth Photography. As a non-binary person living on the autism spectrum, William sees their disability/diagnosis as the unique gift that it is an endeavour to advocate for the value of diversity in all its forms. Currently working on large scale sculptures inspired by cultural artifacts or events, William strives to present my unique visual perspective to the world. 

Yessica Rivera Belsham is a multidisciplinary artist. Her works in various facets promotes compassion and care for people, families, communities which are fostered in inclusion, diversity, and equity across Turtle Island. Through painting, drumming, singing, dancing, and more, she celebrates life, honours ancestors and Mother Earth.