We are thrilled to present the second iteration of the Art for Social Change Workshop Series, taking place June - August, 2026. This workshop series is led by artists, activists, and facilitators exploring the power of art to create inner and outer change. A huge thank you to OPIRG Guelph for supporting this series.
UPCOMING WORKSHOPS
"Whose Streets? Our Streets!" Protest Printmaking with Pardis Pahlavanlu
Monday, June 22, 4-7pm, 119 Wyndham St. N, Guelph ON
In this skill-building and community-mobilizing workshop, participants will engage the relationship between art and social movements by making their own linocut protest media.
In a space prioritizing connection, solidarity, and knowledge sharing, participants will design and carve an image for their chosen social movement and print their protest designs on placards. Folks may also swap their carved designs with each other to use on their own media, as well as on a communal poster, with the slogan “Whose Streets? Our Streets!”.
These activities express the inherent interconnectedness of social movements and the opportunity for shared solidarity.
Pardis Pahlavanlu is an artist and illustrator living as a guest between Tkaronto (Toronto) and unceded Coast Salish territories (Vancouver). While her academic studies have revolved around systems of power in contemporary colonial states, her artistic work has centred on the healing that is necessary in these contexts.
In her workshops, Pardis aims to make art-marking accessible to all, allowing room for imagination and play to take place. She meets people where they are at and offers various approaches for teaching printmaking, collaging and other mediums. Her goal is that participants walk away with pride in their learning capacities and an eagerness to learn more, whatever that may be.
Ritualizing Resistance: A Zinemaking Playshop with Justine Abigail Yu
Saturday, July 11, 1 - 4 pm, 119 Wyndham St. N, Guelph ON
What does it mean to resist – not just in moments of urgency, but as a sustained practice, as sacred ritual? Ritualizing Resistance is a zine-making playshop that invites storytellers to explore resistance as something we return to, tend to, and transform through intentional acts.
We are living in times of climate chaos, violent displacement of innocent people, corrupt regimes that disregard the health and wellbeing of citizens, and the continued ravaging of the natural world. It is more critical than ever for us to speak up and share our experiences. Our stories have the power to heal relationships, reinforce our collective memory, resist systems of oppression, and to create change.
Through creative writing, arts-based prompts, and critically curious conversations, we will speak truth to power while envisioning equitable and just futures for all. We’ll play with simple prompts to draw, doodle, and write to create our own zines. This is a space for writers and artists of all levels, especially those seeking to connect their creative practice to social change, healing, and community.
Justine Abigail Yu (she/her) is the founder of Living Hyphen, a community that explores what it means to live in between cultures as a hyphenated Canadian – this is, anyone who calls Canada home but has roots elsewhere. She is an award-winning facilitator whose work has appeared in the Globe & Mail, Toronto Star, CTV National News, and CBC. Recognized as a “Changemaker” by the Toronto Star, Justine is a fierce advocate for equity, justice, and collective liberation. Her mission is to stir the conscience and spur social change.