Founded in 2014, Girls' Art League (GAL) a Toronto-based arts collective with the mission of empowering young women and trans youth through the visual arts.
We provide the knowledge and resources for girls and women (GALs) to develop their artistic practice, express themselves visually, and build artistic confidence - all within a safe and supportive environment. Our team of artists and educators teach a variety of 2D, 3D, and time-based mediums, and present direct connections to successful female artists working today. GAL offers these teaching through regular 8-week courses, workshops, artist talks, self-directed learning programs, and mentorship programs. We are dedicated to building a vital community of girls and women interested in the arts in Toronto. To ensure this opportunity is available to all girls and women in Toronto financial assistance is always available for our programming.
We are inclusive.
GAL uses an inclusive definition of “girl,” “woman” and “female” and we welcome trans*women, those who are on the trans*feminine spectrum, and those who are genderqueer/ gender non-conforming.
We believe in the artistic process.
To help GALs develop an artistic confidence we emphasize the creative process. Techniques and tools are important in producing art, but so too are the thoughts, questions, feelings, and connections that fuel the process. Valuing the entire process over the finished product is one way we go about cultivating a supportive rather than competitive creative environment. Essentially, it is through the artistic process that we become empowered as artists.
We value connections.
GALs learn from instructors and mentors, and also learn from each other as we connect and relate through artistic practices. We seek to explore the ways in which our artistic voices can resound in the connections of our everyday lives. We are working towards building and growing a community among students, instructors and visiting artists, and we extend connectivity to other organizations that focus on the social and economic justice of girls and women.
We are agents of change.
We believe that girls and women have the right to learn, connect, and create in a safe and supportive environment. GAL seeks to provide this safe and supportive environment for creation by working within an anti-oppression and feminist framework. This means we understand that there are different ways in which oppression and marginalization can be experienced, and we recognize that people have complex lived realities. GAL fosters open and respectful participation between students, instructors, mentors, staff, and volunteers. We also seek to collaborate with other organizations that advocate for change and address the social and institutional inequities that are constructed in our society.
Our mission is to empower girls and women through visual arts. Girls of all artistic abilities, socio-economic backgrounds, and lived experiences should have the opportunity to develop and exercise their artistic voice. We believe that this artistic voice and an empowered creative practice are cultivated when we connect, share, and learn from each other.
