Crimson & Craft: Seniors Art Connect

About the Program

Crimson & Craft: Seniors Art Connect is a community-driven Lakeshore Arts program for the residents of Griggs Manor, developed by and for senior community members.

Crimson & Craft aims to offer senior residents a space to further meaningful connections with their neighbours. Drawing on ideas gathered during a community consultation session in October 2025, participants will have an opportunity to explore personal creativity, and learn new artistic skills in craft and visual arts. The program is being led by Seniors’ Program Coordinator, Charlotte Sheasby-Coleman, and facilitated by artist facilitator Ewa Henry-Dawson.

Crimson & Craft: Seniors Art Connect Exhibition

Opening Reception

Date: Friday, March 27, 1-3PM
Location: 2422 Lake Shore Blvd. W. (at Mimico Avenue), Etobicoke
FREE, all are welcome!

Accessibility: Lakeshore Arts’ Community Project space is located on the first floor of a building with 3 stairs at the entrance, and a non-automatic door. There is a ramp available upon request, please email us if you require ramp access. Our bathrooms are located at basement level, only accessible by a flight of stairs. Learn more about our access measures here.

More info: We invite you to join us for an afternoon of celebration with the artists, friends, family, and community members. This event will include a special recognition of provincial arts funding.

The exhibition will be on display until April 25th, and available to view during regular drop-in hours: Tuesday & Thursdays, 11AM-3PM or Saturdays, 1-3:30PM.

Questions about Crimson & Craft? Contact Seniors’ Programs Coordinator, Charlotte Sheasby-Coleman, at Seniors@LakeshoreArts.ca.

We are grateful for the support of the Toronto Seniors Housing Corporation, in collaboration with the residents of Griggs Manor. This program is funded in part by the Government of Canada’s New Horizons for Seniors Program. We would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council and the Government of Ontario.

Meet the Facilitator

Ewa Henry-Dawson (she/her) is a Polish-Canadian visual artist, poet, and L.M. Montgomery scholar. She is best known for her vibrant watercolours, though she has also worked with tapestry, clay, and canvas.

She has taught art to aspiring artists of all ages, making the creative process joyful and non-intimidating – especially for beginners.

A graduate of York University and Sheridan College, Ewa devotes much of her time to social activism and advocacy for underprivileged and marginalized members of society. Her artwork is largely sold at charitable fundraisers, as she strongly believes in the power and responsibility of a citizen-driven society.

Francis Tomkins (they/them) is an interdisciplinary artist whose practice includes animation, collage, zine making, and workshop facilitation. They have a BFA in Cross-Disciplinary Arts: Publications from OCAD University and have worked within the arts and accessibility sectors at Tangled Art + Disability, StopGap Foundation and Toronto Queer Film Festival. Their work has been featured by Toronto Animated Image Society (TAIS), RestFest Film Festival, and Arts Etobicoke. Francis is passionate about how art can be used to create and sustain connected communities.

Renu Indapurkar (she/her) is a Toronto-based portrait artist whose love for art began in childhood, inspired by her grandfather, a painter and art teacher. Growing up around his practice and teaching, art became an integral part of her everyday life and a natural way for her to express and connect with the world.

She works across mixed media, oil, watercolour, oil paint and coffee painting, and specializes in portrait art. For the past five years, Renu has been running her small business RK Artworks, creating commissioned pieces that celebrate people and personal stories. More recently, she launched Live Wedding Painting, where she paints live at weddings, capturing meaningful moments as they happen.

Twenty-five years ago, Charlotte founded Wuthering Bites, a café on the Lakeshore in Mimico that focused on the arts and community. With a diverse background in teaching, research and advocacy, and a passion for writing and visual art, Charlotte is thrilled to now be working with Lakeshore Arts as they launch exciting new initiatives for our South Etobicoke neighbourhood. She is especially thrilled to have a unique opportunity to focus on engagement and programming for seniors.

Annie Katsura Rollins (she/they) is a community arts worker, researcher, and puppetry artist. Finding a sense of much needed belonging in community theatre as a young person, she pursued understanding this feeling of connectedness through the arts with degrees in performance (BFA), theatre performance, direction, and puppetry (MFA) and finally a study in traditional lineages of folk puppetry in China (PhD). She concurrently tested this understanding through over 20 years of professional work in art education, facilitation, and community building.

Since moving to Toronto in 2017, Annie has worked in the community arts sector and co-founded and co-curates with Concrete Cabaret, Toronto’s only experimental puppet slam. Annie is a professor in the University of Connecticut graduate certificate program in puppetry arts. She believes that having the arts in our everyday lives is no longer a luxury but a necessity.

Sin Tung (Steffi) Ng (she/her) explores the complexities of Asian immigration experiences through curation, writing and photography. Interweaving these three artistic practices, Ng seeks to build site-specific exhibitions, public programs and installations that amplify marginalized voices and make space for joyful encounters across diverse cultures. Her works have been featured at the DesignTO 2025, Xpace Cultural Centre, Unit 270 and the Graduate Gallery.

Born and raised in Hong Kong, Sin Tung/Steffi is currently based in Tkaronto/Toronto. Her recent interests include AI image-making of demolished architectures, long-distance friendships and Japanese city boy fashion.

Revital Weiss is a queer Jewish arts worker who believes in the transformational power of the arts. Revital works with artists to develop socially-minded arts programming for marginalized communities. She also advocates for opportunities for emerging artists, particularly BIPOC, 2SLGBTQ+ folks, and incarcerated/formerly incarcerated people. Revital has co-curated and supported arts projects at Neilson Park Creative Centre, the Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre, FENTSTER Gallery, and King Heritage and Cultural Centre. Revital holds a Master of Museum Studies. In a past life, Revital was an urban planner.

Crimson & Craft: Seniors Art Connect

Job Opportunity: Programs Assistant

Black Artists Residency 2025/26

Francis Tomkins

Renu Indapurkar

Charlotte Sheasby-Coleman

Kadeem Parchment

Annie Katsura Rollins

Steffi Ng

Revital Weiss

Sherry Pom Foreman

Andi Canales

May Yebuga

MY REASON FOR SERVING ON THE BOARD…