CAFKA (Contemporary Art Forum Kitchener and Area)

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CAFKA (Contemporary Art Forum Kitchener and Area)

CAFKA is a non-profit, artist-driven organization that presents a free biennial exhibition of contemporary art in the public spaces of Waterloo Region

CAFKA is a non-profit, artist-run organization that presents a biennial exhibition of contemporary art projects in the public spaces of the City of Kitchener and across the Region of Waterloo, inviting the public to meet regional, national and international artists and to experience the art they create. CAFKA promotes art education through its YouTube channel CAFKA.TV, and through its Big Ideas in

Art & Culture series of artist talks and symposia. CAFKA creates experiences that are unexpected, surprising and memorable - setting up encounters with contemporary art that are intended to stimulate feelings, provoke thoughts and begin conversations. CAFKA is supported by the City of Kitchener, Musagetes, Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, the City of Waterloo, individual donors and its many, many volunteers.

04/25/2026

Come on over! Next Saturday we'll be hanging out and doing some spring cleaning in our office, Studio 7 at Globe Studios (141 Whitney Place, Kitchener).
Join in and do some rummaging, or bring ephemera to add to our community archives.
We might even screen some CAFKATV 📽🍿

04/06/2026

IT'S TIME TO MEET

You're invited to CAFKA's Annual General Meeting for snacks, important decisions, exciting announcements, and song!

Monday, April 20
7pm
The Yeti Café (14 Eby St N, Kitchener, ON N2H 2V6)

On the agenda:
CAFKA members will vote to adopt our audited financial statements and approve the Board slate. 💼
CAFKA Staff and Board will recap last year, acknowledge our funders, and announce for the *first time* the CAFKA.27 biennial artists roster and exhibition planning! 🌟

You're welcome to show up throughout the evening, but all presentations and voting will take place between 7-8pm. Then it's 100% karaoke. 🎤

We hope to see you there!

Photo: Monster Pageant by Stephanie Florence, 2025. Photo by Phi Doan.

03/20/2026

What happens when someone reaches out about an old CAFKA photo? We go down an archival rabbit hole and come out the other side, with a story.

CAFKA.02 was 'Power to the People'. The theme recognized the 100th anniversary of the inception, in Kitchener (then Berlin), of one of the largest publicly owned utilities in the world – hydro-electricity.

CAFKA.02 asked artists to respond directly to that history, to its democratic connotations, or to public art as a democratic activity.

On September 21st, 2002, we welcomed 20 artists from across Canada, the United Kingdom, United States, and Mexico. Alongside their artwork, they shared video work and gathered with museum, arts, and academic professionals to debate issues related to artists and activism, censorship, and the artist/curator hybrid.

24 years after 2002, and many more since electrification, what changes are we experiencing now that could become public utilities? Are new forms or adaptations of public utilities emerging? Do we need and want something else?

Power to the People ✊🏼✊🏽✊🏿✊🏻✊🏾

03/13/2026

Around the CAFKA office, we often get to play a game: is it random or is it art?

This bone-shaped candle is from Ping Qiu’s Knochenkerzen, an installation and performance at Kitchener City Hall during CAFKA.04 Peace of Mind.

Do you have a piece of CAFKA’s story? A moment you saw a CAFKA artwork out in the world and wasn’t sure if it was random or it was art? A piece of ephemera you want to share?

We’re gathering stories and materials to share as a part of our 25th anniversary this year.

Drop us a line in the comments, our DMs here, or our inbox outreach[at]cafka.org

If you're feeling extra creative, send us some snail mail to 141 Whitney Pl Studio #7, Kitchener, ON N2G 2X8.

We might even send you a little surprise back!

📲📧💌🕯️

03/11/2026

🥱✨👋 We’re waking up from our winter social media slumber, senses adjusting to the sights, sounds, and smells of spring time’s arrival.

It’s like waking up on our birthday ~ there’s magic in the air ~ because this year marks 25 years of CAFKA! 25!!

Over the year, we’ll be sharing our stories and inviting you to share yours too as we celebrate, together.

If you haven’t already, subscribe to our newsletter and mailing list http://eepurl.com/eIIYo or on our website, cafka.org to come along for the adventure.

We’re also spreading our wings over .bsky.social 🦋

See you around the neighbourhood!

11/19/2025

What happened here? What is happening here? What can happen here?

On November 27th, CAFKA, Inter Arts Matrix, and Home Range Story Kitchen are hosting a circle for intergenerational story-telling and listening among local artists.

Email education [at] cafka.org to sign up to attend or to ask questions about participating.

Inter Arts Matrix is an accessible space, with a ramp for wheelchair access. Please feel welcome to reach out with requests for accommodations.

11/03/2025

Are you seeking an opportunity to bring your artwork out of the gallery and into common spaces?

We invite your proposals for CAFKA.27, our next biennial exhibition of contemporary art taking place in the Waterloo Region during June + July 2027.

We are open to artists working across disciplines and originating from the local, national, and international communities. We welcome artists of all identities and various professional backgrounds.

The Call is open now until November 30, 2025.

Learn more at cafka.org/cafka27-call

Office Hours + Support with applications

If you have questions about the application process or would like to get to know our team and organization better, join us for drop-in office hours!

In-person: November 21 from 4-9pm and November 22 from 10am-4pm. You can find us in Studio 7, during the Globe Studios Art Show and Sale.

Online: November 13 from 11am-2pm, email education[at]cafka.org to sign up.

11/01/2025

Do you love contemporary art, and making it happen in your community? Consider joining us as a volunteer!

Volunteers support CAFKA with hosting duties for events and programs, connecting with local organizations and communities, and other creative projects.

We are hosting a Volunteer Appreciation and Recruitment Party on Saturday, November 15 beginning at 8pm at The Yeti, featuring karaoke, snacks, and refreshments – all welcome!

Come get to know members of our team, including volunteers, staff, board members, programming committee members, and previous exhibiting artists.

Volunteers of all ages and experiences are welcome. Volunteers who are under 14 years old need to be accompanied by a parent or trusted adult.

We hope to see you there 🎤🪩🤝

07/30/2025

As CAFKA.25 comes to a close, impressions remain 🌼
Make your own impression through flower pounding.
Learn how to transfer shapes and colours onto a patch or CAFKA t-shirt!

August 1 // 2-4pm
Schneider Haus (466 Queen St S, Kitchener)

This workshop is led by Courtney, from Rosewood Stitches. Rosewood Stitches creates up-cycled clothing and accessories inspired by nature and traditional handwork crafts. With a focus on sustainability, they work to bring new life to secondhand textiles incorporating traditional quilting motifs and natural dyes using locally grown and foraged plants.

Supplies will be provided. Bring your own flowers, if you want to!
Marigolds, marigold leaves, coreopsis and cosmos are a few of Courtney's favourites.

07/22/2025

Join us in Cambridge on July 26th for a reflective and restorative afternoon of closing events 💐

Perception = Participation Tour – A low-barrier, accessible, and embodied tour guided by Niomi Anna Cherney.
Cambridge Sculpture Garden, 12:30-1:30pm

Lecture + Q&A with Nasrin Himada – Nasrin Himada is a Palestinian writer and curator currently based in Kingston, on Anishnaabe and Haudenosaunee Territory. Their writing on contemporary art has appeared in many national contemporary art publications, including Canadian Art, C
Magazine, MICE, and Fuse.
Cambridge Centre for the Arts, 2-3pm

Performances – In collaboration with Long Dash Festival Sound Walk, we’ll enjoy performances of the rain remembers its life as the sea / naakita f.k., Izabella’s Voice / Ben Gorodetsky, and electro-acoustic harp by Grace Scheele. The performance will serve as lullabies for nappers under Brenda Mabel Reid’s communal quilt, Underlay.
rare Charitable Research Reserve – Slit Barn, 4-5pm

Address

141 Whitney Place, Studio 7
Kitchener, ON
N2G2X8

Telephone

+15197445123

Website

http://www.cafka.org/

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