Critical Distance PROGRAMMING To Whom It May Concern

Critical Distance is pleased to launch our Fall 2026 Study Hall program with an OPEN CALL for participants in To Whom It May Concern, a small-group workshop series curated by Anu Makinde. 

Over four in-person sessions starting in November, selected participants will engage in archival and multidisciplinary research and discussion on letter writing in relation to Black diasporic relationships across history and distance. Through reading, writing, watching, listening and making, participants will explore how such relationships have been formed, sustained, and strained through specific historical moments, and what such moments might mean for us in the present. 

Grounded in the epistolary form, collected correspondence that creates an intimate narrative, this program will encourage personal reflection for participants to become subjects in their own histories. Sessions will include engaging with and responding to a multimedia “reading” list; hands-on creation of a photography quilt with visiting artist Felicity Hauwert, and research involving The Stuart Hall Library (SHL) at iniva, UK, which was founded in 1994 to challenge inequalities in the visual arts and to nurture the creative practices of Black and Global Majority artists and communities.

This program is similarly offered in support of Black diasporic artists and communities, and as such, the application to participate will include the opportunity to self-identify. Successful applicants will receive a $150 CAD honorarium upon completion of at least 3 of the 4 sessions in the series, which will be held at Critical Distance, Suite 122 at 401 Richmond Street West in downtown Toronto, on Saturdays, Nov 14+28 and Dec 5+12 from 4–6 pm. Light refreshments will be provided for all sessions, as well as TTC if needed, and workshop materials. 

The deadline to apply is OCTOBER 16, 2026. Space is limited to a maximum of 7 participants. Access the form via QR code or at https://tinyurl.com/to-whom. Successful applicants will be notified on or before October 23rd. Best of luck to all applicants!

About the Curator

Anu Makinde (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist-educator, researcher and curator invested in cultural studies, migratory music histories, diaspora and its manifestations as sights and sounds. She works to build and program collaborative learning spaces that are multi-modal and dialogic. She graduated with a Bachelor’s in Social Science from the University of Ottawa and an MA in Human Geography from the University of Toronto.

To Whom It May Concern is conceived by Anu Makinde and developed through conversations with Yaniya Lee, Crystal Mowry, Felicity Hauwert, Kaitlene Koranteng and Davina Dhallu (iniva UK and The Stuart Hall Library), and Shani K Parsons (Critical Distance). 

This program is presented as part of Critical Distance’s Study Hall initiative, space, and series of curatorial research and process-oriented programs focused on new modes of critical co-learning and connection-making between curators, artists, artworks, environments, audiences, and ideas.

Critical Distance is located in Suite 122 on the ground floor at 401 Richmond, a wheelchair accessible building with ramps at both Richmond Street doors, and an accessible washroom on every level. 

When public programs are on, we are open Wednesdays from 10am–4pm and Thursdays–Saturdays from 12–6pm. NOTE: During the Saturday workshop sessions for To Whom It May Concern, public hours will shift to 10am–4pm, with the gallery closed from 4pm on for the workshops. If in doubt, please reach out to info@criticaldistance.ca to confirm that we are open before making the trip. Office hours are by appointment only. 

For any questions or more info on our programs, participating curators and artists, accessibility, or our organization more broadly, please visit our website, our Instagram page @critical.distance, or email info@criticaldistance.ca.

To Whom It May Concern is produced with the support of the City of Toronto through Toronto Arts Council. 

Critical Distance Centre for Curators acknowledges the operating support of the Toronto Arts Council and the Ontario Arts Council,
an agency of the Government of Ontario.