The Disability Artisan Market

The second annual Disability Artisan Market took place at Dufferin Grove Park in Toronto this past Sunday. Presented by The Disability Collective and the Wagner-Green Centre for Access and Inclusion, it included over twenty-five artist vendors selling everything from original art and crafts to self-published books and zines, jewelry, and herbal medicines. We spoke with some of the artists about their work and why they were there.

I’ve been showing at art and craft markets for two years, and this is my second time doing a Disability Collective market. It’s my favourite one, because it’s chill and inclusive. It has a good vibe.
I draw on my iPad. I used to do hand-drawing and painting, but over time I lost more function, so I started using more accessible formats. I like making things, and eventually people were asking me, “Why aren’t you doing something with the things you’re making?” I decided to put them on things like cards to see if anyone wants them, to see if I could share my work with other people.
– Brooklyn Marx @seymoursprintshop

We make different products with herbs that we grow ourselves and local Ontario herbs. They’re medicinally focused for the most part. We started off making tinctures. We both have herbal medicine backgrounds. We also make these things called hydrosols or herbal mists and soaps. One of our most popular products is Clear Mind tincture for brain fog support.
– Bright Holler Herbs

I started with crocheting cat toys because I like cats. Then I started making sensory mazes. I’m autistic and I use movement to self-regulate. They have a bead inside and you guide it through. You don’t even have to look to do it. If you have to inconspicuously fidget and you have a habit of ripping out your nails or picking at your face – whatever people do, we all have those movements – you can redirect them in a healthier and satisfying way.
I generally don’t do a lot of markets, but this one is so good and accessible, I really like it, so I’m happy to come and interact with people.
– Kat Singer @kre8tiveflow

I use a mix of digital and physical drawing. As I got more and more disabled, it became harder for me to paint, so I started using a tablet. But I found purely digital art limiting because it doesn’t have texture to it, so I use style transfer or generative AI to create something that looks a lot more like physical media.
I write micro-fiction and short stories as well. My zine Wolf and Cub tells the story of what it was like as a young child living with my mom. It was a hard life and we were living in an inhospitable place. She is a person with a brain injury and so am I. This was my way of telling her I was her daughter. It was my way of telling her I appreciated our life. Whether it was hard or difficult, I appreciated what my mom did for me.
– Parvati the Art Pixie @parvatiartpixie

I’m a metalsmith and a silversmith and I work with metals. Copper is one of my favourite metals. I really like hammering metals, firing them up, quenching them. I like working with uneven stones and minerals because I like a challenge. I like the meditative aspect of working with metal, because you can’t be on your phone or distracted. You have to be in the zone while working, so I like to disconnect and be focused.
I’ve been at this market before. It’s always so welcoming and the entire organization is wonderful. I’ve had really good experiences here, and it’s been a blessing. They make everything so accessible and easy for the artisans.
– Priscilla/CILLA @goodlookartistry

My mom did a children’s book and she inspired me to do my own. I love illustrating and I love writing, so it seemed to be a natural medium. I also work with kids. I’m an expressive arts therapist. I do art with kids and youth. I wanted to put a book into the world that has a message that I didn’t see growing up.
– Jasper Bryan @queerarttherapy