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ART OPENING + ARTIST TALKS - FREE | PUBLIC EVENTAn opening event for the upcoming exhibition 'SAFE' will be held at the gallery from 1 - 3pm on Saturday, October 5. The afternoon will include artist talks, hospitality, and community conversation; everyone is welcome to attend.
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SAFE: HOLDING SPACE FOR LIVED EXPERIENCES AND SAFER WAYS OF BEING ADMIST THE TOXIC DRUG POISONING CRISIS
This exhibition explores the meaning of "safe" as understood by participants and staff of AVI Health and Community Service’s Prescribed Safe Supply program.
Over the past year and a half, CVAG's Walk With Me research and social action team has been working with Prescribed Safe Supply Program participants and staff in a community-engaged research project designed to uncover the human dimensions of the toxic drug crisis and potential solutions. We’ve shared food, conversation, and art practices (through workshops led by Montreal artists Patrick Dionne and Miki Gingras), and asked what it means for participants to feel "safe". Along the way, we were gifted powerful images and words that speak to the toxic drug crisis and its impacts, and illuminate perspectives of people not often seen or heard.
We invite you to enter into this conversation. Bring your curiosity, your compassion, and your humour. Please leave stigma at the door.
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This exhibition is dedicated to those who shared their insights with courage, and to those whose lives have been lost. We honour those whose names have been spoken in memory — whose stories continue to compel us forward in pursuit of transformation. We honour you and think about you often — especially when we walk.
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CONTENT ADVISORY:
Some of the stories and images shared in the exhibition can be difficult to hear and see, and involve accounts of violence, abuse, neglect, racism, stigmatization, etc. The Walk With Me team will hold space for conversation and connection throughout the exhibition; community resources will be identified for those seeking additional support.
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Learn more: https://www.comoxvalleyartgallery.com/themes/safe/.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
580 Duncan Ave, Courtenay, BC, Canada, British Columbia V9N 2M7
