Critical Mass
A Centre for Contemporary Art
Welcome to Critical Mass!
We believe in Art for All!
Critical Mass is a not-for-profit contemporary art organization based in Port Hope, Ontario, on traditional Haudenosaunee, Wendake-Nionwentsïo, Mississauga and Aninshinabe territories.
We believe that art changes how we see the world and our place in it. We bring contemporary art experiences to Port Hope so that everyone in our community can have the opportunity to see the world anew.
We’re grateful to have 2 exciting Ontario Trillium Foundation funded projects to pilot this year – an Artist in Residence program and a Sound Art Walking App!
Stay connected for updates to our residency line up and programming schedule, artist talks or spotlights, community engagement activities and challenges. Or have a look back on some of our past projects, and check in for artist calls, volunteer opportunities and membership updates.
Welcome, 2021 Artists-in-Residence!
2021 Artist-in-Residence Line Up
We are excited to announce our 2021 artist in residence line up! Made possible with funding from Ontario Trillium Foundation.
Read more
Mast Year Collective – July 2021
During their residency, Mast Year Collective will explore how food – from making, to sharing, to eating – is entwined and grounded in our physical environments both past and present.
Read more
Susan Campbell – June 2021
During her residency, Susan Campbell will be mapping the evolving cultural palimpsest of what our community values and preserves. How we talk to one another through messages, notes, posters, and official signs can be mapped from our environment.
Brian Hoad – August 2021
During his residency, Brian Hoad will explore personal narratives from his time coming-of-age in Port Hope, considering themes of memory, nostalgia, and an interest in how people connect with their envionment, both now and throughout history.
Read more
Meet the artist!
Drop by the Little Station during Open Studio Hours to meet the artist. This June, Tuesdays through Fridays from noon to 2pm.
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Lucas Morneau – September 2021
During their residency, Lucas Morneau will explore the cultural environment in sports (hockey in particular), and reclaim the racially charged and homophobic pejoratives often used to attack a player’s “manliness”.
Read moreWhat’s On & Featured
May 30, 2021
APP Naming Contest
Help us name our Port Hope Sound Art Walking APP! Send your ideas to us by May 30th, 2021. Deadline extended to June 5th!
Read more2021
Become a Member!
Join us to form a critical mass of support for the arts! Become a member, today!
Read moreMay 30, 2021
APP Naming Contest – Ways to enter
Send your ideas to us by June 5th, on Instagram, Facebook, or by emailing us at info@criticalmassart.com
Read moreNov-Mar
Colour Me, Port Hope – Candlelight Festival 2020
Come to Lent Lane this November & December to immerse yourself in the art! Pose in front of the Colour Me, Port Hope illustrated selfie panels or colour your own version of our postcard and send to a friend or loved one that you miss, this winter.
Read moreApr-May 2021
Nov-Dec 2020
We Are Here
Critical Mass invites you to be in good company this winter. We Are Here is a community art installation made up of the smiling faces of Port Hope and its visitors.
Read more Find us on Instagram!
The latest news from Facebook
Critical Mass is excited to announce our August artist-in-residence – Brian Hoad! So looking forward to learning about cyanotype. 
Growing up in Port Hope, Brian’s coming-of-age days were spent exploring the forest trails, beaches and river, and observing the relationship between country and town while fostering connections with friends and nature. No longer a resident of the town, Brian remains fascinated by the compartmentalized magic and wonder that seems to be scattered across its relatively small footprint.
Throughout his residency and for his project — Landscapes are Organized Chaos — Brian plans to revisit local sites of personal significance as inspiration for a large, mixed-media piece. The artwork will include cyanotype alongside painting and will be accompanied by a series of studies on paper.
Like many before him, Brian Hoad enjoys the activity, excitement, and reflection associated with making art in nature. Hoad has always felt moved by landscape rendering, both as a viewer and artist, observing its visceral potential for mark-making. After experimenting with cyanotype as an instructor, he became interested in its ability to function in an outdoor setting alongside other mediums more commonly associated with working en plein-air. Cyanotype is one of the earliest photographic processes, akin to blueprints. Unlike drawing and painting, this process requires one to account for the environment’s direct influence on their piece when working outdoors.
Brian is presently focused on incorporating cyanotype into his larger works-on-canvas, arriving at an object that will satisfy his creative desire to work more holistically through conceptually considering the role of process.
Drop by the pop up tent outside the Little Station in Lent Lane this Saturday, August 7th from 9am to 1pm to make your own cyanotype print and button and a learn more about his residency project. Open studio hours will be held on Sundays from 2pm-4pm.
Residency made possible with funding from @ONTrillium.
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