CITE at The Bentway Toronto – A Summer Celebration of Skateboard Arts and Culture (June 30-Aug 12)

The Bentway and Build for Bokma are thrilled to announce CITE, a summer-long celebration of skateboard arts and culture launching on June 30 and officially opening the Skate Trail for the season!
 
Opening weekend (June 30–July 1) kicks off with the reveal of a new art installation /skatepark featuring Semblance, skateable sculptures conceived and constructed by Build for Bokma which create a 3D terrain for boarders to ride on, as well as a site-specific art installation by artist and skateboarder Pascal Paquette.
 
Saturday June 30 features DJ sets by The Remix Project alumni, a marketplace of local skateboard merchandise, pop-up film screenings from TUFF (Toronto Urban Film Festival) and an open skate.  Take a break at The Bentway Beer Garden, with tasty treats from SPiN, Toronto’s Ping Pong social club.
 
On Canada Day, July 1, celebrate with more local DJ sets; live beats by Toronto-based DJ and producer Beat Sampras (7pm) and LA-based DJ and producer Peanut Butter Wolf (8:30pm); the marketplace and beer garden where there will be Ping Pong and other outdoor games; skate demos and best trick showcase; open skate; and meet and greet with the pros, including Vans athletes Leon Chapdelaine, Una Farrar, Etienne Gagne, Annie Guglia, and Dustin Henry.
 
“Vans is excited to partner with The Bentway and Build for Bokma to present CITE and help bring their vision of skateboarding and creative expression to life in the city of Toronto” – Jared Bevens, Vans Canada General Manager.

 

 
On subsequent weekends, CITE will also offer a variety of free workshops including learn to skateboard clinics for youth, building skate sculptures, videography, screen printing, and designing skateboards. Vans will also be onsite offering games, giveaways and more. The Skate Trail with the Semblance sculptures will be open and available for skateboarding every day from 10am-9pm. Saturday Skate Clinics are drop-in. Sunday Workshops require advance registration.
 
July 7-8: Youth Skateboarding Workshop with Skate Loft and Babes Brigade(July 7) and Videography Workshop with James Morley  (July 8)
July 14: Youth Skateboarding Workshop with  Skate Loft  and Live Broadcast of the Vans Park Series 2018 Men’s Pro Tour from Vancouver
July 21-22: Youth Skateboarding Workshop with  Skate Loft (July 21) and Designing Skateboards Workshop with Morning Bell Skateboards (July 22)
July 28: Youth Skateboarding Workshop with  Skate Loft and Babes Brigade 
August 4-5: Youth Skateboarding Workshop with  Skate Loft (August 4) and Building Skate Sculptures Workshop with Gord Hardie (August 5) 
August 11-12: Youth Skateboarding Workshop with Skate Loft (August 11) and Screen Printing Workshop with Baitshop, plus a skateboard-focused speaker series (August 12)Artist and skateboarder Pascal Paquette uses street art, graffiti and photography in his site-specific and geographically-dependent installations. For CITE he has created Spent, a series of hanging banners to be installed on The Bentway columns depicting images of his hand-painted skateboards decks. Paquette’s work has been commissioned, published and exhibited locally and internationally including the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, the Art Gallery of Ontario, and in the USA, South Africa, Serbia, Switzerland, Mexico, France, Germany and England.
 
CITE is an opportunity to advance Build for Bokma’s mission to create a permanent memorial DIY skatepark, along with multifunctional interactive public art structures, in the name of Justin Bokma; to bring new audiences to The Bentway; and to serve Toronto’s new skateboard strategy to better integrate skateparks in the future development of the city.
 
CITE, co-produced by The Bentway and Build for Bokma and presented by Vans, with media partner VICE, runs from June 30 – August 12, 2018. The Bentway is supported by the City of Toronto and the Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund (an agency of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport). 
 

For more information, and to register for CITE Workshops,
please visit TheBentway.ca/CITE
Social Media: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using @TheBentway
and YouTube
#TOBENTWAY   #CITE   #SKATEBENTWAY

 
About The Bentway
The Bentway is a unique and innovative public space that transforms 1.75km underneath Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway into a new gathering place for our city’s growing population.The Bentway knits together seven local neighbourhoods with over 70,000 residents, becoming a gateway to the waterfront, while providing access to important attractions and destinations – from Fort York National Historic Site, Ontario Place and Exhibition Place to Harbourfront Centre and the CN Tower. The Bentway offers year-round activities and events, including gardens, a skate trail, recreational amenities, public markets, public art, special exhibitions, festivals, theatre and musical performances, and more. The initial phase of The Bentway is open to the public. Stretching from Strachan Avenue in the west to just east of Bathurst Street underneath the Gardiner Expressway, this section of The Bentway is located on the lands of Fort York National Historic Site, recognized by the Government of Canada as a site of national significance.
 
The Bentway is maintained, operated, and programmed by The Bentway Conservancy. The project was made possible through the collaboration of a range of city-builders and experts, including the City of Toronto, Waterfront Toronto, Judy and Wilmot Matthews, Ken Greenberg Consultants, PUBLIC WORK,Fort York National Historic Site, and Artscape. The Bentway is a proud member of the High Line Network,an international network of projects that transform underutilized infrastructure into new urban landscapes.
 
About Fort York National Historic Site
Fort York National Historic Site is one of 10 Toronto History Museums operated by the City of Toronto. Since 1793, Fort York has been an important military location and is where Toronto was founded as an urban place. Located in the heart of downtown Toronto, this 43-acre heritage conservation district is home to Canada’s largest collection of original War of 1812 buildings. Fort York offers permanent exhibits and immersive multimedia displays at the Visitor Centre, ongoing programming and events, site tours, military displays, historic cooking demonstrations, and the annual Indigenous Arts Festival. Fort York National Historic Site is also home to the first phase of The Bentway.
For more information, visit http://www.toronto.ca/fortyork.
 
About Build for Bokma
Build for Bokma is a not-for-profit organization located in Toronto, Ontario, their mandate is to create multifunctional skateable public structures. Their long-term goal is to develop a community-built skatepark that commemorates the life of (Canadian pro skateboarder) Justin Bokma. The group is focused on fostering a long-lasting dialog with the public and future generations of skaters by utilizing under developed spaces in an innovative and creative ways. The demand for more places to skateboard is on the rise across the country and, BFB intends to further integrate skateboarding with future developments, initiatives, and community-lead activities within the city of Toronto.
 
About Vans^®
Vans^®, a VF Corporation (NYSE: VFC) brand, is the original action sports footwear, apparel and accessories brand. Vans authentic collections are sold globally in 84 countries through a network of subsidiaries, distributors and international offices. Vans also owns and operates more than 600 retail locations around the world. The Vans brand promotes the action sports lifestyle, youth culture and creative self-expression through the support of athletes, musicians and artists and through progressive events and platforms such as the Vans Park Series, Vans Triple Crown of Surfing^®, the Vans U.S. Open of Surfing,Vans Pool Party, Vans Custom Culture, Vans Warped Tour^®, and Vans’ cultural hub and international music venue, House of Vans.