I accidentally didn't tag @stevenguilbeault.bsky.social correctly I think.

Canada doesn't "manufacture" a lot of stuff anymore, but we DO make things, check out FB marketplace, or Etsy or your local farmers market, there are artists in every city across this country making amazing Canadian art DESPITE a housing and inflation crisis. I want to be able to shop Canadian.

Going to tag ‪@stevenguilbeault.bsky.social and @spencerch.bsky.social‬‬ because this is seriously something that Canada should be doing. I work in animation, and my wage is already subsidized over 50% by film tax credits, imagine if potters and painters and sewists had the same support?

All of this is possible already, here in Vancouver we had an old motel that was run like this, but they never owned it and it's getting redeveloped. With institutional recognition that these artists SHOULD/DO exist, it's way easier to secure funding for a project that supports them.

Imagine starting a co-op and buying up an old motel, or something you can convert to studio live/work apartments, priced as cheap as you can to give these artists a home base. Maybe make a unit into a shop front and bulk buy food. Cross pollinate disciplines and run workshops.

I absolutely love this! I hope that this move springs forth better infrastructure to make this more viable. I can imagine having a structure in place like this would make it easier for a company to secure a loan to build "artist lofts" because you have a client base with stable income.

The rainbow pocket is kind of great though. Leave off the flag patch and this would be a sick fit.