WHEN: September / October 2026
WHERE: Parkdale, Queen Street West
JURIED EXHIBITION: OPEN CALL

PRETTY VACANT  showcases the talents of visual and media artists by temporarily transforming a vacant streetscape into a vibrant community exhibition and gathering place.

Parkdale has long been a creative and culturally dynamic neighbourhood fostered by affordability. Today, this spirit is under pressure as rising costs threaten both artists and the spaces where art and culture flourish.  PRETTY VACANT seeks to spark dialogue around this tension by reimagining these vacant sites as a canvas for community expression and cultural revitalization.

Presented to residents and visitors of South Parkdale, with the participation of local commercial Landlords, Pretty Vacant explores the tension between creativity and gentrification by transforming empty storefronts into a public exhibition, reactivating vacant spaces as sites of community expression, memory, and resistance.

Artworks act as both offerings and interruptions—quiet disruptions in a rapidly changing city. We will ask artists to reflect on: What happens when cultural vibrancy is pushed out by rising costs? What stories remain in the windows of once-busy spaces? Can art hold space in communities under threat? Can joy be reclaimed in the face of loss? How do we find beauty in the overlooked corners of urbanity?

Public art exhibitions often emerge during moments of political unrest, cultural shifts, or urban transformation. These are our times. They are difficult times but they can also be moments that are meaningful for the art created and the engagement of people and community.