Manifesto | What to bring | Location Info | Available Materials | Past Projects
Who We Are
Thousand Cats Creative Collective is a motley collection of Toronto-based
artists, writers, crafters, and various other creative types who have in common
that we want to make more time for creative pursuits in our lives, and
that we think that more people doing so, more people exercising their
imagination, following their dreams, creating beauty or creating change,
can make the world a better and more interesting place.
What It's All About
We (those present at the first meeting) decided on some basic principles:
- The group is not specific to any one medium, but open to any kind of creative
work -- visual arts, writing, performance, film/video, etc.
- We don't accept the sometimes arbitrary distinctions made between different
kinds of creative work: fine art vs. crafts, genre fiction vs. "real" literature,
etc. Again, any kind of creative endeavour is OK.
- People sharing their work in the context of the group want to receive real,
substantive feedback, not just "that's nice", but criticism that is constructive not
destructive. The aim is to help us all improve our work, not to attack each other or
offer empty praise.
- People are encouraged to try their hand at as many different media as possible
and be open to new things. If you consider yourself predominantly a writer, for
example, that doesn't mean you can't also participate in visual arts projects, or
vice-versa. Experimentation is good. But no one has to participate in anything
they're not comfortable with, and people should be wary of trying to do so many
different things at once that they never really finish anything.
- We should try to give equal time to everyone's work -- not necessarily at each
and every meeting, but overall. Everyone should be encouraged to participate and have
their turn in the spotlight.
- We're open to a variety of different kinds of content as well as format. Some of us may be involved in the goth scene, BDSM or other "dark" subcultures, but that doesn't mean the group's focus is entirely on that kind of work. However, we are open to it and people shouldn't be afraid to explore work that may be considered dark, disturbing or controversial if that's what they want to do.