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Labour Arts Catalyst
Professor's Desk by Zinnia Naqvi at Whippersnapper Gallery, photo by Wend Yasen
Mayworks’ Labour Arts Catalyst pairs artists with local labour organizations in a collaborative art-making process. From an open call for submissions artists are annually selected to participate in this 8 month residency offering collaboration, research, mentorship and support to develop art works for presentation at the Mayworks Festival.
Submissions for 2025/2026 are now open! Learn more here.
Labour Arts Catalyst Festival 2022: Alexandra Yeboah, Anna Jane McIntyre, David Yu, Funmilola Lawson, Maandeeq Mohamed, Maysam Ghani, Nasim Asgari, Paul-Daniel Torres
Labour Arts Catalyst Festival 2023: Kamika Peters, Sonali Menezes, Zinnia Naqvi
LabourArts Catalyst Festival 2024: Atanas Bozdarov, Julianna A.S., Kristine White
Labour Arts Catalyst Festival 2025: Andre Lopez, Krish Dineshkumar, Monica Cheema
Condé Beveridge Labour Arts Residency
Liberty Lost (G20, Toronto) (2010) by Carole Condé and Karl Beveridge, is the artists’ response to the events surrounding the G20 Summit in Toronto in 2010. Courtesy Karl Beveridge
In Memory of Carole Condé
Carole Condé (June 27, 1940 – July 19, 2024) will be remembered for her dedication to building an art practice centred around revolutionary social change. Her work responded to critical and contemporary cultural, social, and political issues. She rejected the elite capitalist artworld and brought representations of working people to art made with and for the people.
Along with long-time collaborator and partner, Karl Beveridge, they created a significant body of work, spanning over fifty years. Their work involved collaboration with union members and spoke to issues of labour justice. They have exhibited internationally and been recognized for their significant artistic contributions. Condé and Beveridge have been leaders in the field of labour arts in Canada and are founding members of both the Mayworks Festival of Working People and the Arts and the Workers Arts and Heritage Centre in Hamilton.
This residency program seeks to embody: the spirit of collaboration; the commitment to labour movements and social analysis; the openness to artistic genres; and the public accessibility that is found in their practice.
Taking place over two years, it offers an artist or an artist group collaboration, research, mentorship, and support to develop art for presentation at the Mayworks Festival.
All genres are welcome including theatre, dance, visual art, media arts, music and multi-disciplinary.
The 2025 call for submissions has passed. Further information available here.
Volunteer
Julianna A.S exhibition setting up Mayworks 2024
Volunteer with Mayworks 2025
We’re seeking volunteers invested in labour arts and interested in gaining first-hand experience in festival operations. Sign up here!
Join the Board
If you have a passion for the arts and a dedication to the labour movement (formal and grassroots), we want to hear from you! Please find more information here.
Support
Shadow puppet (by Kristine White) & ASL Mayworks 2024
Mayworks values the support and participation of the community in our festival. We thank all those individuals and organizations who have contributed their art, their time, their expertise, their space, and their presence.
The Mayworks festival is free and open to everyone. Please consider making a donation to help cover the costs of creating and presenting artwork that advances the struggle for better working and living conditions. Donations can be made here.
Mayworks relies on and is extremely grateful for the support of many unions not only for their generous financial contributions but for their participation as collaborators and partners.
If you’d like to support Mayworks as a presenting partner, collaborator or supporter, we have opportunities for festival 2025. Please contact our Festival Director at director@mayworks.ca
Open Calls
TBA
Announcements
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