The Arts List is a monthly listing of arts, culture and co-op related events featuring members and friends of the Lakeshore Village Artists' Co-op in New Toronto. The list is brought to you by LVAC News and can be shared by clicking the arrow button at the end of the post.
EXHIBITION: Returning to Ourselves | Rebecca Baird and Kenny Alvin Baird
A Retrospective of Art and Design by Cree Métis Siblings
Curated by Lisa Deanne Smith
September 2, 2026–January 30, 2027
Opening Reception: September 9, 5:00–7:00 p.m.
Onsite Gallery
Returning to Ourselves presents over forty years of transformative work by LVAC's Rebecca Baird and her brother, Kenny Alvin Baird. The exhibition spans sculpture, painting, and traditional material practices, alongside interior design, film art direction, graphic design, and public art commissions.
Emerging from their Cree/Métis histories and ways of knowing, the Bairds approach creative practice through multiple cultural perspectives, bringing together diverse forms of making grounded in lived experience, collaboration, and community-centred practice.
An opening reception will take place on Wednesday, September 9 at 5:00 p.m. Exhibition details are available on the gallery's website.
THEATRE: How to Live with Dread
By Jane Wells
August 8, 7:30 p.m. and August 9, 2:00 pm
Victoria Playhouse
Victoria, PEI
Coming to PEI's Victoria Playhouse, How to Live with Dread is LVAC member Jane Wells' solo performance about the death of her brother, who was not only her beloved older sibling but also her primary theatrical collaborator.
In the show, Jane considers identity after loss, both as an individual and as an artist: whom you become as you lose those people who have known you since childhood, and how creation continues when you lose the voice, the eye, the hand that worked so closely with your own.
If you're in PEI in August, you can purchase tickets for the show on the Victoria Playhouse website.
DANCE: Lakeshore Dance Series
Outdoor Dance Jam + Picnic
City of Toronto in partnership with TOES FOR DANCE
Saturday, August 22, 11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. (Rain Date: August 23)
Assembly Hall
TOES FOR DANCE is excited to launch the Lakeshore Dance Series in South Etobicoke!
Celebrate the beginning of the 2026-27 Lakeshore Dance Series with TOES FOR DANCE this summer. Connect with our community through a day of free outdoor beginner dance classes, live music, and a BBQ lunch at Assembly Hall. Free ice cream will be provided by local favourite Ed’s Real Scoop for the first 75 attendees!
Visit the TOES FOR DANCE website for the programming schedule and to register.
OPEN CALL: Arts Etobicoke + Nuit Blanche
Open Call: Nuit Blanche 2026 Community Art Project
Application Deadline: August 21, 2026
Project Date: October 3, 7:00 p.m.–7:00 a.m
Location: Humber Cultural Hub, Humber Polytechnic—Lakeshore Campus
Arts Etobicoke invites West Toronto-based artists to submit proposals for a new participatory artwork to be presented during Nuit Blanche Toronto 2026 at the Humber Cultural Hub.
This opportunity is open to artists with a strong community-engaged practice who are excited to create an interactive artwork that evolves through public participation over the course of the evening.
Visit Arts Etobicoke's website for more information about the project and to apply.
Vote Co-op Housing Campaign
This is a critical moment for affordable housing in Ontario.
Luckily, co-op members and supporters can make a real difference in the upcoming municipal elections, which will take place on October 26.
The Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada has just launched the Vote Co-op Housing campaign to get out the co-op vote. Visit the campaign web page to learn about what's at stake and to call on your candidates to build new housing co-ops, protect existing co-ops, and ensure that everyone has an affordable place to call home.
Summer Break and October Arts List Submissions
The Arts List is taking a late summer break and will return in September.
If you have an arts, culture, or co-op related event you'd like to share with the readers of LVAC News, send the details to our submissions coordinator by September 15 for inclusion in our October listings.
Submission instructions are available on the LVAC News website, below.
Lilian Radovac, Editor
