Artcite Inc. celebrates 40th anniversary with $40K fundraising goal amid hopes of community expansion

When you step into Artcite Inc., you'll find a love letter to the gallery's 40-year history.

"It's so special and so representative of the people who have been here," said Teajai Travis who took over as Artcite's executive director in 2021.

Travis has set a fundraising goal of $40,000 for Artcite, an artist-run gallery in downtown Windsor, to commemorate its 40th anniversary.

It first operated out of Mackenzie Hall in 1982 and now occupies a space in the downtown Capitol Theatre.

Recently, pieces of art and historic material from the gallery's basement were brought upstairs for the public to see and turned into a display called Vesitges and Remains from Toronto-based artist Morris Fox.

"It's interactive, so you can touch the materials," said Travis.

"We have binders you can flip through and you can see shows that happened in the '80s and '90s. If you want to get a connection of why Artcite Inc. exists as an artist-run centre, just flip through the pages."

Among the desired uses for the $40,000, Travis said, are for artist grants, scholarships and an expansion of the gallery's community programming.

One of Artcite's newest programs is its Community Connector which launched one month ago. Every Friday, people can meet up to participate in poetry readings, drum circles and some much-needed conversation.

"In this post-COVID period, a lot of people have stories to share," said Mbonisi Zikhali, a participant of Artcite's first Community Connecter in mid-March.

"So the Community Connector is really an opportunity for people to say 'hi' again."

An Instant camera photos taken over the course of the past 4 Community Connector meet-ups (Sanjay Maru / CTV News)For Zikhali, who was born in Zimbabwe and moved to Canada in 2009, the weekly meet-up is a great way to learn about the people around us — but also the art within them.

"There's so much art that happens in spaces such as Windsor," Zikhali added.

"Small communities are often overlooked in the grander scheme of what imagining art is, but small communities are where the art is."

In the years to come, Travis said he hopes to bring more of Artcite's art out of the gallery and into the community.

But one of his other main goals, he added, is to turn the gallery into a space where up-and-coming arts organizations can be mentored and seek guidance.

"A lot of the philosophy and mission around this space is to make it an accessible space for artists like myself," said Travis.

"We're artists. We're visionaries. We want to change the world for the best, or at least leave a mark of some sort. This is a space that platforms that opportunity."

Artcite's Community Connector takes place every Friday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.