About the PLOT
“While the artistic invitation of ‘the plot’ created the possibility for a new urban commons, the people who were drawn to it shaped it into a vibrant intergenerational, inter-racial, inter-faith common space where all were welcomed;
quite extraordinary, to say the least!”
–Michael Lewis, Executive Director, Canadian Centre for Community Renewal
“THE PLOT” is a Non Profit Community run and supported project. It was initiated in 2016 by the The People’s Food Security Bureau. The PFSB was formed in 2015, by artists Cora and Don Li-Leger, to further the mission of integrating art and life through food. “With art at the center, The People’s Food Security Bureau advocates artisanal agriculture, home cooking, and living in the oneness of all things.”
The idea was to create a garden based on artistic expression that would generate a sense of community and at the same time provide free food for the Food Banks and others in the community.
The PLOT was to be a collectively-tended, interactive, and functional land art piece for the community – not an aggregate of individually-owned plots as in a community allotment garden, but a single large garden to provide opportunities for participation, inspiration, education, and food for the surrounding community. It was to be a single-season exploration of community capability and potential.
The PLOT is a testament to what can manifest within a single growing season. The degree of community enrichment experienced as a result of this project, suggests the extensive benefits of utilizing publicly owned vacant land in city neighbourhoods on a year-to year basis. The materials used are all natural and require little or no alterations to return the land to its former state, making it ideal for these spaces that are only temporarily available.
At the end of the first growing season the PLOT was turned over to the Friends of the PLOT. And…
The PLOT Continues
The Friends of the PLOT have worked hard to increase local food security, not just with the garden but with Care Baskets and a free veggie stand.
They have stayed true to Don and Cora’s vision of an inclusive garden with heART at the center, where the unique gift each person brings to the intergenerational, intercultural community is celebrated.
They have led a celebration of every Solstice and Equinox at the Medicine Wheel.
In addition, Selfie Boxes, hosted by the Zinc Artist Collective, have popped up, WEAF was hosted by artist Deborah Putnam, and Tiptoe through the Garden was led by writer Virginia Gillespie with a guest appearance by artist Elizabeth Carefoot. And the MishMash Bash was a celebration of all that the PLOT has germinated.
If art is life, it is not a still life here.
The Friends of the PLOT have worked hard to increase local food security, not just with the garden but with Care Baskets and a free veggie stand. They have stayed true to Don and Cora’s vision of an inclusive garden with heART at the center, where the unique gift each person brings to the intergenerational, intercultural community is celebrated.
They have stayed true to Don and Cora’s vision of an inclusive garden with heART at the center, where the unique gift each person brings to the intergenerational, intercultural community is celebrated.
The Friends of the PLOT have stayed true to Don and Cora’s vision of an inclusive garden with heART at the center, where the unique gift each person brings to the intergenerational, intercultural community is celebrated. They have worked hard to increase local food security, not just with the garden but with Care Baskets and a free veggie stand.
The PLOT rides on an ideal of inclusivity; providing a space in Nature of which we are a joint part of, to express and share in intergenerational, intercultural ways, expressing as a vast array of ‘life as art’ possibilities. certainly not still life.
Selfie Boxes PopUp at the Plot hosted by the Zinc Artist Collective, WEAF hosted by artist Deborah Putnam, Tiptoe through the Garden, hosted by writer Virginia Gillespie with guest appearance by artist Elizabeth Carefoot. If art is life, it is not a still life here.
At the end of the first growing season the PLOT was turned over to the Friends of the PLOT.
The Friends of the PLOT have worked hard to increase local food security, not just with the garden but with Care Baskets and a Free Vegetable Stand.
They have stayed true to Don and Cora’s vision of an inclusive garden with heART at the center, where the unique gift each person brings to the intergenerational, intercultural community is celebrated.
They have led a community observation of every Solstice and Equinox at the Medicine Wheel.
They invited guest artists. Selfie Boxes, hosted by the Zinc Artist Collective, popped up. The beautiful WEAF was led by artist Deborah Putnam. Writer Virginia Gillespie and artist Elizabeth Carefoot led the community in a zany Tiptoe through the Garden. And the MishMash Bash was a celebration of all that the PLOT has germinated. So many incredible artists contributed.
If art is life, it is not a still life here.