Festival combines public art and activism to inspire change
TORONTO, June 20, 2016 /CNW/ - As part of its ongoing commitment to city-building and creative initiatives, Matte PR announces its communications partnership with A Love Letter to the Great Lakes, Toronto's first ever international street-art festival, an extension of Sea Walls: Murals for Oceans.
As part of this partnership, Matte PR and A Love Letter to the Great Lakes are hosting a panel discussion (June 23, 7 p.m. at Rally, 12 Ossington) exploring how public works of art can inspire people to think and act differently about the worlds water resources.
When the firm was launched in January 2016, Matte PR created a policy to support up to three not-for-profit initiatives per year, starting with Toronto architecture firm Brook McIlroy's Green Gardiner project, a volunteer initiative to build a linear park above the Gardiner Expressway. Continuing with supporting creativity with environmental implications, A Love Letter to the Great Lakes was an ideal follow up partnership, as it clicks with Matte PR's 'ideas in action' criteria for this program.
"As part of our commitment to supporting art, design and city-building initiatives, as well as raising the overall profile of the City of Toronto, this project was a natural fit." said Heidi Ruggier, founder and director of Matte PR. "A Love Letter to the Great Lakes combines public art, activism and raises awareness for issues facing the largest freshwater system in the world. We hope their work inspires others to use art as a conduit for issues that they are passionate about."
The week-long festival hosts a lineup of 21 renowned local and international artists, who will paint murals designed to stimulate public awareness of critical environmental issues facing this precious natural resource, while pointing towards long-term solutions.
"The success of any Sea Walls/Love Letter project hinges on its media outreach, underlining a core component of ARTivism: communication. Matte PR has offered a tremendous local and international amplification to our impassioned project. The agency's unique vision and intimate access to various media resources gives us an unprecedented opportunity to highlight key issues and solutions concerning this freshwater treasure," said Jason Botkin, Artistic Director, A Love Letter to the Great Lakes, Canadian Regional Project Coordinator, PangeaSeed Foundation.
Three primary production sites will host this inaugural festival, which are each in themselves a 'Love Letter'.
- Queen/Ossington
- Queen/Spadina
- The Lower Don (in collaboration with Friends of the PanAm Path)
Lake Ontario Waterkeeper's Watermark Project
Love Letter Projects is partnering with Lake Ontario Waterkeeper's groundbreaking Watermark Project to collect love letters to the Great Lakes. Submissions will be featured at https://www.watermarkproject.ca/organization/a1kU00000078IBoIAM as a way to contribute to a national database of important waters, while influencing environmental policy and celebrating the vital importance of the Great Lakes.
Artists' collections will be showcased and sold at an exhibition on from June 21-25 at the festival's headquarters, Rally Ossington (12 Ossington Ave) to raise funds for the cause.
Visit 'A Love Letter to the Great Lakes' website for events and artist line-up.
Matte PR Inc.
Matte PR is a boutique public relations agency that specializes in creating strategic public relations campaigns for a diverse range of lifestyle clients. Programs combine traditional media relations, social & digital outreach, strategic partnerships and influencer relations to achieve powerful results. For more information, visit www.mattepr.com and follow @MatteStories.
A Love Letter to the Great Lakes
A Love Letter to the Great Lakes is the fresh water edition of Sea Walls, bringing the Pangeaseed mandate to Toronto. Inspired by the international work and impact of the Sea Walls mandate, a small group of Canadian change-makers spearheaded inviting Tre' Packard, PangeaSeed Foundation and Sea Walls to the Great Lakes basin for the creation of a fresh water focused mural festival. For more information, visit www.loveletterprojects.com and follow @loveletterprojects.
SOURCE Matte PR
Image with caption: "Mural by Jason Botkin - Photo by The Stills Agency (CNW Group/Matte PR)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160617_C8991_PHOTO_EN_717010.jpg
Image with caption: "Matte PR (CNW Group/Matte PR)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160617_C8991_PHOTO_EN_717008.jpg
Image with caption: "A Love Letter to the Great Lakes (CNW Group/Matte PR)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160617_C8991_PHOTO_EN_717012.jpg
For further information: MEDIA CONTACTS: Hayley Lang / Heidi Ruggier, Matte PR, 416-515-7667, [email protected], [email protected]
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