Last year's High Performance Rodeo saw the debut of This is My City, a program designed to engage homeless citizens with art-making. Now, as the year-long project comes to a close, the fruits of its labour are ready for display.

The Art Exhibition is a dynamic collection of textiles, masks, photography, trading cards, paintings, videos, sculptures and more, all created by members of the homeless community. The Showcase Cabaret highlights a wide variety of performances by homeless artists, including the This is My City Drama Club, members of the Stand-Up Comedy workshops, the Drop-In Centre Singers and the Found Sound Orchestra. Finally, join 'This is My City' and homeless artists to create mixed media art in the Open Art Workshops

Click here to view a map of Art Exhibition locations.

This is My City was a twelve month-long project initiated by the City of Calgary's Arts & Culture division to facilitate the engagement of homeless citizens in art-making. Starting in January 2009, members of the homeless community were provided the opportunity to work with artist mentors to develop their creative voices for expression, public advocacy, and dialogue. The multidisciplinary program included poetry, performance, personal narrative, drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, photography, and video production. This is My City does not pretend to be a solution to the homeless crisis. Rather, the project intended to enable homeless citizens the chance to speak on their own behalf.

Photo by Douglas R. Witt