Curating the Village: Open Sessions
Call for Contributions
Curating the Village: Open Sessions is a public symposium curated by Shalon T. Webber-Heffernan. It emerges from Curating the Village, a research pilot developed through a study group of curators, artists, and cultural workers with caregiving responsibilities, supported by Balancing Act Canada and MOTHRA Artist-Parents Project as part of the Level Up! initiative (2025–2026).
Toronto (some hybrid participation) | June 20-27, 2026
The Open Sessions extend this research into a public and sector-facing context, creating space for shared reflection, presentation, and dialogue.
About the Open Sessions
The Open Sessions are conceived as two public gatherings in June 2026 that bring together contributors and audiences for presentation, exchange, artistic expression, and conversation. They are grounded in the understanding that caregiving is not peripheral to cultural production, but a structuring condition that shapes how work is made, shared, and sustained.
Contributors are invited to share practices, artworks, ideas, and approaches that reflect sustained engagement with care in relation to curatorial, artistic, or cultural labour.
Call for Contributions
Contributions are invited from curators, artists, performers, and cultural workers whose practices have been shaped by caregiving responsibilities, whether for children, elders, family members, or others.
Proposed contributions may take a range of forms, including (but not limited to):
artistic or curatorial works
performances or performance lectures
media-based contributions or film screenings
short talks, panels, or practice-based presentations
case studies, tools, or curatorial models developed through care-centred work
Who This Call Is For
This call is intended for practitioners with experience navigating caregiving alongside cultural work, as well as those interested in contributing to critical conversations about how care functions (or does not function)—practically, unevenly, and imperfectly—within contemporary arts contexts.
Contributors are encouraged to propose formats that align with their practices, capacities, and the realities of caregiving.
Format & Accessibility
The Open Sessions will take place over two public days in Toronto in June 2026, with multiple presentations and formats across each day. Some hybrid participation will be possible.
Programming will be child-inclusive and structured to support focused engagement while allowing for flexibility in participation. Care supports and access considerations will be integrated wherever possible.
How to Submit
Please send the following materials to shalonwh@gmail.com by March 13,2026:
your name and contact information
a brief CV or bio
a short description of the contribution you would like to share, including how caregiving informs, shapes, or intersects with your practice
any technical or spatial requirements
any access or care considerations relevant to participation (including scheduling, format, or caregiving needs)