Fall 2025 Programming at the Aurora Cultural Centre

This fall, the Aurora Cultural Centre proudly reconnects with its roots, presenting a vibrant lineup of exhibitions that spotlight local creatives. The season opens with Stories Woven Through Fabric, a series of handmade ribbon skirts by Sharon Rigby, one of our 2022 Bell Box Murals Artists, culminating in a Gift of Resilience Ceremony on November 30. On October 30, join us for the costumed opening of Shifting Realities, featuring evocative portraits by local painters and class instructors Eva Folks and Judy Sherman. Finally, we close out 2025 with a solo exhibition of new works by Julia Mobbs, our Fall artist-in-residence, and What Does a Winter’s Night Hold?, a smorgasbord of works by our in-house instructors.

Fall Exhibitions

Stories Woven Though Fabric

September 20 – November 30, 2025
Lower Hall Gallery + Additional Sites

Artist Sharon Rigby uses the medium of ribbon skirts to share the lived experiences of Indigenous individuals impacted by the Sixties Scoop and residential school systems through this multi-site project.

Ribbon skirts hold deep cultural significance for many Indigenous communities across Canada and North America. While their meanings vary between nations, they are recognized as symbols of identity, connection to heritage and the land, and tools for healing. Through her art, Rigby creates a space for truth and reflection, inviting members of her community to share their stories, and in doing so, foster a sense of healing and understanding surrounding the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation.

Gift of Resilience Ceremony: Sunday, November 30, 1 – 3pm, starting in Lower Hall Gallery (Level 1). All welcome.

Eva Folks, The Collector, 2025

Shifting Realities: Adventures in Portraiture

October 30, 2025 – January 17, 2026
Homeroom Galleries

Shifting Realities: Adventures in Portraiture is imagined by award-winning artists, Eva Folks and Judy Sherman.

Presented as a double-solo exhibition, this show highlights their shared flair for humour and character-building through painting; Folks in acrylic, Sherman in oil. Blending realism with a touch of surrealism, their new works invite viewers down the rabbit hole into their two boldly inventive and unfettered artistic minds.

Opening Gala + Artist Q&A: Thursday, October 30, 6 – 8pm (costumed attire encouraged)

New Years Art Jamboree!: Friday, January 2, 1 – 3pm, Homeroom Galleries. All welcome (parental supervision required).

Gallery Yoga and Sound Bath (2 sessions):
December 8, 7 – 8pm (Homeroom Gallery 2) | $18 +HST per registrant
January 12, 7 – 8pm (Homeroom Gallery 1) | $18 +HST per registrant

Learn more >

What Does a Winter’s Night Hold?

November 6, 2025 – January 25, 2026
Great Hall Gallery

An exhibition featuring in-house educational instructors, reflecting upon the family gatherings, holiday traditions, and warmth that carries us through the winter season.

Discover the beauty of local art and the creativity of the artists who teach with us. Inspired? Registration for our upcoming classes is now open — come learn directly from the artists behind the work.

Reception: Thursday, December 4, 6:30 – 8:30pm. Combined opening with Lower Hall Gallery exhibition, a solo show by Julia Mobbs.

Julia Mobbs: Artist-in Residence Solo Exhibition

December 4, 2025 – January 25, 2026
Lower Hall Gallery

Emerging artist Julia Mobbs displays new works created in her fall residency with the Aurora Cultural Centre in this final, cumulative exhibition.

Mobbs is a recent graduate from the BFA program at Concordia University and resident of Aurora, Ontario. In her work, Mobbs creates expressive, viscerally evocative works, often using wet-on-wet painting techniques and material manipulation. Focusing on images from popular media, archived magazines, luxury objects and leisure culture, her works challenge the human form and consumer processes. In this residency, Mobbs will be using her practice to investigate how her hometown, Aurora, has shaped herself and her artistic practice, as well as to the impact it has had on the community at large.

Reception: Thursday, December 4, 6:30 – 8:30pm. Combined opening with Great Hall Gallery exhibition, What Does a Winter’s Night Hold?

Fall 2025 Artist-in-residence Julia Mobbs creating in the residency studio

Events and Open Calls for Artists

Event: Crit Club
Next session: Saturday, November 8, 2025, 9 – 11am
Registration required
Activity Room; Level B1

Event: Artist-Poet Gatherings
Next session: Saturday, November 8, 11am – 1pm
Registration required
Homeroom Galleries (Level 1)

Event: Fall Open Studio
Wednesdays, 10am – 4pm | September 3 – December 17
Activity Room; Level B1

Open Call: 2026 Artists in Residence
Deadline to Apply: November 2, 2025, 11:59pm
Learn more and apply

The Aurora Cultural Centre is accepting applications to our residency program, offering two opportunities in 2026:

• Winter: February 1 – April 30, 2026 (with solo exhibition from May 7 – July 19, 2026)
• Fall: September 1 – November 30, 2026 (with solo exhibition from December 3, 2026 – January 24, 2027)

Each artist residency is 3-months in duration, where selected artists will receive exclusive access to the studio, the Pine Tree Potters Activity Room, of the Cultural Centre. The end of the residency period is celebrated with a 2-month solo exhibition in the Lower Hall Gallery. Selected artists will receive a $4,000 honorarium package for their participation in the residency and solo exhibition. This is not a live-in residency program.

Open Call: Favourite Characters (for youth aged 13-17)
Deadline to Apply: November 19, 2025, 11:59pm
Learn more and apply

Aurora Cultural Centre
Aurora Town Square
50 Victoria Street, Aurora, ON
This is an accessible venue.
auroraculturalcentre.ca

Homeroom Gallery Hours:
Monday – Saturday, 9 am – 4pm
Visit here for further information

Great Hall & Lower Hall Gallery Hours:
Per Aurora Town Square hours
Visit here for Aurora Town Square hours

Contact Us
Tel: 905-713-1818
Email: info@auroraculturalcentre.ca
Social: @auroraculturalcentre