To really know Scarborough, it is important to understand the subtext.
This weekend a collaborative effort by several organizations is hosting the Subtext Multi-Arts Festival to highlight the talent in Toronto's east side and bring residents from different communities together in a weekend of celebration.Part of a summer-long program called, The Bridging Project, the area underneath the six-lane bridge on Lawrence Avenue between Orton Park and Galloway roads will be transformed into an art space for an assortment of free artistic performances.Co-produced by the Scarborough Arts Council, City of Toronto Cultural Services, Mural Routes, The Amazing Place, Evergreen and Jumblies Theatre, the festival will take place on Saturday, Sept. 11, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 12, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m."It's about embracing the space and inviting the community to come down in the space to make it a welcoming and inviting space," said Tim Whalley, executive director of the Scarborough Arts Council. "It didn't serve the function that a bridge should, connecting two communities. The communities on either side really felt separated from each other."During the weekend there will be a number of activities and performances that residents from all over Scarborough can enjoy, including a permanent tribute to Scarborough's shared natural environment in the form of a mural stretching 266 metres across the side of the bridge, painted by Mural Routes.Above the bridge, modern Batik style artworks will hang from the light posts. These works were created by students at Sir Robert L. Borden Business Technical Institute with the help of local artist, David Kibuuka.The area underneath the bridge has also undergone a transformation. Volunteers from Evergreen have already planted 800 native wildflowers along the Highland Creek on the north side of the bridge in June and will plan another 800 on Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon.Sharing physical and psychological space is a big theme in the festival, which has incorporated different generations of youth and professional artists to produce the entertainment, which will use the natural acoustics of the bridge to treat the community to live music, dancing and art demonstrations, such as graffiti workshops.Groups from The East Scarborough Storefront, Jumblies Theatre, The Amazing Place and other local organizations will also be participating."The goal was to involve different disciplines through the arts," said Whalley.If the festival is a success, Whalley hopes there will be a lasting effect helping the communities on either side of the bridge feel comfortable working with each other to make Scarborough a greater place to live.