A Social Affair

by Vernon Williston

There is a venue in downtown Toronto that provides a platform for emerging artists to display their work, develop contacts and make life-long friends. The Speakeasy is the only event of its kind held at the historic Gladstone Hotel located on Queen St. W.
 
Things can get lonely for artists fresh out of school, something Speakeasy founder David Brown discovered after graduating from the Ontario College of Art and Design in 1992. Working from his apartment in Toronto’s west end, Brown missed the friends he used to get together with to talk about art and share ideas, so he decided to call the friends he graduated with to do so. In the beginning it was a small group of 6 to 10 people getting together to have beers and brainstorm.  “It’s particularly difficult for freelancers,” Brown says. “You usually work by yourself; it’s like you’re in your own little bubble of just you and your computer.”

It started when a friend of Brown’s called and wanted to show him some of his work. Brown suggested his meeting idea, and, from there, the group began to meet. The event slowly gained popularity, and in 1996 the Speakeasy was born.

At first, getting artists to come out was a bit of a chore. Brown would have to call and fight to get artists to come out and display their work.  Now Brown usually has 30 or 40 people submitting work for shows and has to narrow it down to a group of 10.

Brown says the Speakeasy has significantly evolved over the years, starting as a casual meeting of people to share ideas, then to a venue to show their work and introduce them to new artists. Now it’s a low-key networking night for people in the creative industry.

The event is held at the Gladstone Hotel the first Thursday of the month, eight times a year. Artwork from eight creative disciplines is displayed. Topics include graphic design, industrial design, fine arts, multi-media and comic book shows. The works are displayed for a crowd interested in that specific art form. The Speakeasy is also meant for all walks of life, meaning one doesn’t have to be an artist to fit in and enjoy the experience.

“Some people will just want to sit and chat with this buddy they haven’t seen in a year, so they’ll go off to a corner and have a real good conversation,” Brown says. “Or there are people who are more interested in the more traditional networking stuff; you can see them working the room handing out business cards, shaking hands and introducing themselves.”

The majority of artists are genuinely enthusiastic about being there. “I love to talk about art, and if I get a chance to show it while I’m talking about it, even better,” said Stewart Jones, a creative professional in different disciplines.  KC Citroen says it’s an interesting venue.  She likes the setup, finding it very casual and not as formal as a gallery.

Brown says since the venue moved to the Gladstone there are more new artists coming out to show their work.  Most artists catch wind of the event through their friends and are more than happy to check it out.  Brown says the real success of the Speakeasy is that there is no structure; you can make whatever you want out of the night.  It’s great for people who are new to the city since they can go to the event with one person and leave having been introduced to a whole network of people. This could not be truer for Aaron Leighton, a creative illustrator living in Toronto.  Life in his hometown of Lloydminster, Alberta, didn’t provide much for creative types like Leighton,  so in 1998, with nothing to hold him back, he moved to Toronto on a whim. At the time, his agent’s secretary told him to check out the Speakeasy and there he met David Brown. Brown introduced him to a couple of people including a young woman with whom he is still good friends with.

“It was the first Thursday of the month and I thought I would go because it was my only social outlet in Toronto,” Leighton said. “I think some of my best friends are in Toronto and I would say I met about 90 per cent of them through the Speakeasy. It’s a valuable venue to show your work but it’s more valuable for meeting people because you never know what’s going to happen with the people you meet.”