in trying to expand my appreciation for the Toronto area, i've been crawling through NOW magazine's events listings, checking classified sections for book readings... i'm becoming a real hermit whose therapist told her that she should go out and meet people. the beauty of this - i actually find some sick stuff going on around the toronto area...

i would bore the internet community if i made lists of every 'development' based event happening on my radar - as most of the people i stay in touch with are sending me information on a daily basis for lectures, book signings, film screenings, protests, etc. (and i still act like a giddy school girl every time i get one). so i try to only make note of those things that raise my eyebrows when i find them

*this is literal. i make facial expressions at my computer when i read things.

this certainly peaked my interest.

curatorial statement on art school dismissed:

Art School (Dismissed) celebrates artists who extend their creative practices into the realm of education. It takes place in downtown Toronto’s historic Shaw Street Public School, built in 1914, which feels frozen in time and forgotten since its decommissioning in 2000. The exhibition explores the rich interface between teaching and learning with wide ranging projects that are complex, witty, irreverent, nostalgic, haunting, and sweet. The school’s breezy classrooms and wide hallways serve as the context for new works in the fields of site specific installation, sculpture, video and new media, drawing, painting, performance, as well as many hybrid forms that blend and cross boundaries. Spread throughout the three-day exhibition is a condensed and abundant program of dance, music and performance. As both makers and teachers, the artists in Art School (Dismissed) are uniquely situated to explore and question notions of authority, history, memory, and the dissemination of knowledge. Childhood and play have inspired many of their works.

Faculty have been drawn from OCAD, University of Toronto, York University, Sheridan / UTM, The University of Guelph, U of T Scarborough, Centennial College, George Brown College, Humber College and other educational institutions, such as the TDSB, The Toronto School of Art, and gallery / musical ensemble education programs. The dynamic gathering of individuals participating in Art School (Dismissed) can be seen as a portrait of the current art-educational landscape. It is an opportunity to reflect on some of the most important voices influencing young artists in the region. The artist-as-educator identity is one that often intersects the economic necessity for artists to have a “job” with a deep passion for discourse and inquiry. Art School (Dismissed) pays homage to artist/educators, who are typically mid career and established artists juggling their exhibition and performance schedules with the demands of teaching. As such, the exhibition can also be read as a counterpoint comment on society’s fashion-influenced infatuation with young artists.
Historically, knowledge in the arts has been acquired through apprenticeships and mentors. Education in general, and art education in particular, has gradually become institutionalized through academies and art schools. Within this context – or even despite it – mentorship continues as meaningful dimension in the development of artists. Each of the “Fine Arts” teachers in Art School (Dismissed) has been invited to select an exceptional student for inclusion in Teacher’s Pet, an emerging artist component of the show.
A celebration of artists who educate, Art School (Dismissed) finds a perfect setting in the Shaw Street Public School. The neglected building is a potent backdrop and palette for inspired new works in many disciplines, demonstrating the fertile connections that exist within teaching, learning, and creating. 
here is a schedule, as well as a list of artists

When: May 14, 15, 16, 2010 | Hours: 12:00 to 8:00 PM daily

Admission: $5.00 students, seniors, artists. $8.00 general public.

Where: The {decommissioned} Shaw Street School, 180 Shaw Street, Toronto, Ontario.

The school is located on Shaw Street on the corner of Argyle Street.

(East of Ossington Ave., north of Queen St. West, south of Dundas St.)

Getting there: MAP TTC -subway to Ossington, take Bus #63 south on Ossington,

get off at Argyle, walk left. Street Cars -Queen and Dundas lines to Shaw Street.

Refreshments: An on site café will serve lunch, dinner, snacks and drinks