Thursdays April 13, 20, and 27, 2023
5:30 – 8 pm

From social media to reality television, miniatures are having a big moment. Toronto-based miniaturist, Roxanne Brathwaite, was a contestant on  Season 1 of CBC Gem’s “Best In Miniature”, in which highly-skilled artists from around the world competed to build their dream home in miniature form.

Inspired by the miniature dioramas and use of recycled materials in the exhibition Karine Giboulo: Housewarming, join Roxanne for a series of three workshops in which participants will progressively develop skills and techniques to build their own miniature suite by repurposing everyday objects.

About the Instructor:

As a child, Toronto-based maker Roxanne Brathwaite loved to play with her dollhouse. More specifically with what adorned its interior—Roxanne threw out the dolls and played with the furniture. That fascination with furniture continued into adulthood. In 2015 she began an apprenticeship with master upholsterers and eventually started the company Hollis Newton where she reimagines antique and vintage furniture into bespoke, one-of-a-kind pieces. When the first COVID-19 lockdown forced her to shut down production, she rediscovered miniatures and quickly became immersed in the miniature-making community. Roxanne creates miniature spaces that are rich in textures, detail, and design history. Wherever possible she uses natural and recycled materials as well as found objects. Her miniature spaces have also become an artistic medium to raise awareness about social issues such as intimate partner abuse, dementia, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women.

Roxanne was a contestant on Season 1 of CBC Gem’s “Best In Miniature.” Her work has also appeared on CityTV’s Cityline and CBC Arts, and featured in Shrunk Magazine, Designer’s Today Magazine and the Toronto Star. She has exhibited with DesignTO and is a 2023 International Guild of Miniature Artisans (IGMA) scholarship recipient.

About the Exhibition:

Enter a world at once familiar and uncanny. Montreal-based artist Karine Giboulo invites visitors into an immersive reimagining of her home. Brought to life by over 500 miniature polymer clay figures, this is no ordinary house. The colourful dioramas furnishing each room prompt reflection about the challenges we face as a society, including connectedness and isolation, aging and care, labour and consumerism, the climate crisis, food insecurity, and housing instability. Learn more