Author: Kevin Bourne

So you want to hold your very first art exhibition? Congratulations, you just took a step into a creative and fulfilling world. However, it does have some challenges and you’ll need a good plan and organization to pull it off. When I held my first solo art exhibition in 2015, “A Voice for the Voiceless”, I was so nervous I couldn’t even think straight. Don’t worry. This is a normal feeling. Breathe. Don’t panic. The most important thing when organizing an exhibition is the theme. Unfortunately, it’s not enough to have a bunch of your artwork you’d like to exhibit.…

This week the Liberal Government presented its first budget since being elected by Canadians. Among all the spending are a few treats for the arts community. Caoimhe Morgan-Feir and Leah Sandals of Canadian Art magazine wrote an overview of what the budget means for artists and arts organizations. Here’s a brief excerpt. The federal budget released today offers $40 million in new funding to the Canada Council (on top of its previous $180 million allotment) in the upcoming year. “Culture is synonymous with creation. It also creates a collective wealth that goes beyond economic benefits and statistics,” Finance Minister Bill…

Our editor, Kevin Bourne, recently wrote an article for Apt613 about Ottawa street photographers. Below you’ll find an excerpt of his article. Street photography is a genre in transition. It can be traced back to Eugene Atget, recognized as the father of the genre, in mid-19th century Paris. Used as a way to capture design, his subjects were mainly buildings, streetscapes and gardens. Street photography would later undergo another change as the main subject became people. Traditionally it’s about capturing candid moments of people going about their everyday lives in urban settings- crossing the street, kissing, running for a bus.…

Breaking into the fashion and entertainment industries can be exciting and daunting at the same time. Most aspiring actors and models are often inundated with misinformation and wonder where to begin. Here are a few things to know about these industries before getting started. 1. Understand The Market You’re In It’s important to know your market as each season represents new opportunity. In the fashion world, there are men’s and unisex fashion weeks. In film and television, there are film festivals, awards season, pilot season and episodic season. Many of these represent great opportunities to network and get your brand…

Avengers: Age of Ultron, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice. Movie fans and critics alike are now living in an age dominated by the hundred million dollar blockbuster, with big stars and even bigger explosions and fight sequences. Marketing for these films can start years in advance, beginning with just the mere announcement of the film. Batman vs. Superman is a prime example of this, and actually the inspiration for this opinion piece. In July 2013, when the film was announced, the internet almost literally exploded. The sequel to the incredibly, even annoyingly divisive…

The second article in The Creators Article Series comes from Dimitri Boweya-Ngombo, Creative Director of Sans Façon, who shares his inspirational journey in becoming a fashion entrepreneur. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ You start a fashion business with passion and diligence. Study. Create a sustainable business plan. Cross all your T’s and dot all your I’s, then register your business and open shop. By all accounts, if you take these basic steps, voila, you’re in business. How long will it last? What will you do if you run out of resources? Will you quit or will you stay in this business? Chances are if…

The following article marks the beginning of The Creators Article Series featuring how-to’s and insights from creative entrepreneurs in business, music, art, fashion and entertainment. In this article Sola Ogunbitan, CEO of Role Model Records, gives you some practical steps to starting a record label. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ I grew up listening to my older brother blasting classic albums like The Infamous, 36 Chambers and Doggystyle from his room in the basement of our metro Toronto housing complex. Growing up, hip-hop culture surrounded me. It was how I lived, dressed, talked and even how I viewed the world. I remember nights when…

In time for Black History Month, we spoke with fashion designer, Mandela Legacy Ambassador, and event organizer, Gwen Madiba. Koliah Bourne: So you’re the Nelson Mandela Legacy Ambassador for Canada and North America. What does it mean  to you personally to be the ambassador for Mandela’s legacy in North America? Gwen Madiba: For me it’s such a great honour that the family has trusted me to represent them in North America. It’s a real honour. Part of me feels like it’s destiny because my last name is Madiba as well, which is part of Mandela’s name and the title of…

The week of Monday, March 21, 2016, SHIFTER Magazine will be presenting its first article series called The Creators. We’ve brought together a roster of creative entrepreneurs in business, music, fashion, art and entertainment to bring you insight into how to get started in these industries. Our contributors include: SOLA OGUNBITAN, CEO of Role Model Records Sola Ogunbitan is the founder and CEO of Role Model Records, where they don’t aim to be successful, but strive to be significant. Current artists include DJ Lagit, Juliem, Shopé and DruBex. DIMITRIOS SEYMOUR, President of Dimitrios Management Group Dimitrios Seymour- Canada’s Top 100…

It was a few minutes before midnight on Sunday, February 28th, 2016. Some had already shut their eyes and drifted off to dreamland, while some still had theirs glued to their TV screen watching the 88th Academy Awards. All fixated on Julianne Moore as she opened that envelope to announce the winner for Best Actor in a Leading Role. And she finally says the name that most us have been waiting for a presenter to say for several years now, Leonardo DiCaprio. After six nominations, DiCaprio finally brought home his first Oscar and broke the internet while doing it. With…

If you haven’t noticed, television is in a period of nostalgia. Some of our favourite shows from the past are coming back and introducing us to our favourite characters once again. Classics like Full House, Boy Meets World, The X-Files and Twin Peaks, and even newer hits like Heroes, 24 and Prison Break, are being rebooted for old and new audiences alike. The big and small screens are even swapping brands as Rush Hour and Minority Report are coming to television and Baywatch is being made into a movie. What do these reboots say about where creativity is at on…

J’maine Jones. If you are unfamiliar with this name now, WRIN [We Rock It Natural] assures you won’t be for long. The singer, songwriter and actor was as a semi-finalist on Canadian Idol and toured internationally with the Idol team for almost a year but upon his return to ‘The Six’, he made a bold decision to move to the US to further pursue his dreams. In 2014, J’maine walked out onto the historic stage at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem and stood before music legends Micheal Bivins, Dougie Fresh and Gladys Knight to belt out his rendition of Stevie…