The Youth Art Mentorship Program (YAM) presents senior high school students with the opportunity to learn from professional mentors to gain valuable skills as professional artists and create work for a public exhibition. Youth artists will also receive training in valuable transferrable employment skills in visual arts and creative administration, which can open doors to a breadth of careers including animation, industrial design, architecture, and the non-profit sector.

Guided by the Artist Mentor, Curator, and Education Programming Coordinator, artists selected for the YAM program will work independently and as a collective of peers to develop new ideas and create artwork for their curated public art exhibition at the Art Gallery of Peterborough. Artists will also be given free access to studio time, materials, and equipment, as well as receive payment as professional artists for their exhibition.

Eligibility:

To participate in this program, applicants must be:

• a grade 11 or 12 student enrolled in high school or an alternative education setting.
• between the ages of 16 and 20.
• a resident of the City of Peterborough or Peterborough County.
• able to access transportation to attend in-person programs at the Art Gallery of Peterborough.
• have not previously been selected to participate in the Youth Art Mentorship Program.

Please note:

The Art Gallery of Peterborough strives to reflect the whole of our community and encourages applications from all qualified candidates. Previous participants of the program are ineligible to apply.

We are committed to building an inclusive and barrier-free environment for staff, volunteers, artists, visitors, and patrons, and actively work to reflect the diversity of our community. As such, applicants will not be discriminated against for any reason, including but not limited to issues of race, creed, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, class.