For 25 years, the Lakeshore Art Trail has welcomed a diverse range of artists, offering a platform and community for creatives to congregate and express their passion for visual arts.
The Lakeshore Art Trail began as a community-driven initiative where participants would go to artists’ homes or studios. The event has expanded since its inception. It now features more than 40 artists and is the largest fine art show in Mississauga and celebrated its 25th anniversary during the weekend show on Oct. 17 and 18 at The Small Arms Inspection Building on Lakeshore Road East.
Many artists were eager to discuss their creations and why they feel the event is so important for Mississauga’s arts community.
For chairperson Celina Melo, the event helped her get into the art scene in Mississauga, after a fellow artist encouraged her to showcase her work.
“He encouraged me, saw my work, and he encouraged me that I really should apply for the show the following year. And so, that’s exactly what I did,” she said.
Melo’s work features the theme of water, and many of her pieces are based on the scenery of Georgian Bay. She describes the water as a duality of calm and excitement and hopes that others will get similar feelings from her art.
Art Trail vice-chair and fellow artist Mina Vancardo noted the event provides opportunities for special needs artists every year.
“We also dedicate two booths to special needs artists every year, where we kind of try to coach them through and assist them in what it takes to be an artist. I think those are the special things that kind of make us a little bit different from others,” she said.
Vancardo said she finds old photographs at garage sales and other places. She said she integrates the pictures into collages to repurpose and inject new life into the images.
She observed that these photos have lost sentimental value, and she said, “My intention here is to make this photograph precious once again.”
Visitors couldn’t help but enjoy the congenial, welcoming vibe of the Trail.
Attendee Jerome Plaatjes said it was a pleasant environment and Leo Dias’s elephant painting caught his eye.
Artist Steve Carroll’s work consists mainly of seascapes and heavily draws upon his experience as an outdoorsman. Carroll has been painting for more than 50 years and started when he was 13. He said he was inspired by his mother, an artist who painted with oils.
“She definitely put it in my head as a child that the romantic part of the art is that oil paintings will last hundreds of years, and that it would be very rewarding to know, after I’m gone, that somebody may ask the question, ‘who was Steve Carroll?’ when they see my name on a painting,” he said.
Carroll said a huge challenge of his work is the difficulty of ensuring the accuracy of small details.
He isn’t the only part of the Art Trail with a long history. The Small Arms Inspection Building, an Ontario Heritage building, was once used as a munitions factory during the Second World War.
The Lakeshore Art Trail collaborated with CreativeHub 1352, a non-profit organization, in 2021 to put the art show and sale in this storied location.
Melo said art plays an integral role in successful societies, and the exhibition is part of the effort to bolster the local arts culture in Mississauga.
“Every society that’s ever done well in all of history has always had art at its center. So, we’re trying to build a great community here in Mississauga as well.”
So far, the effort seems to be yielding fruitful returns.
To learn more about the Lakeshore Art Trail and the artists displaying their pieces, you can visit https://www.lakeshorearttrail.com.
