Building Beauty In The Mud

Why are you letting a small-town group chat kill your creative spark before you even start building?

Small towns in the North are weird. Everyone knows your business, and misinformation spreads faster than a forest fire in July. You try to start an arts collective or a local gallery night, and suddenly the gossip mill is churning about who thinks they are better than everyone else. It is exhausting. We are dealing with polarized vibes where if you aren't with one specific clique, you are the enemy. It makes you want to just pack up and move to Toronto, but honestly, that is not the move. We need the arts here precisely because things are so fractured. Art is the only thing that actually forces people to sit in a room and look at something other than their own opinions.

Let's talk about the capacity problem. You are looking around your community for collaborators and all you see are people caught up in interpersonal drama or stuck in that-is-how-we-have-always-done-it mindsets. It feels like you are trying to build a house with wet cardboard. But here is the real-talk: you have to work with what you have. You can’t wait for the perfect, healthy, enlightened board of directors to manifest out of the muskeg. You have to identify the three people who actually show up and want to do the work. The ones who choose to participate are your foundation. Everyone else is just background noise.

Mindfulness isn't just for yoga retreats; it is a survival skill for northern community organizing. When the local Facebook group starts spiraling or someone tries to gatekeep the only available studio space, you need to practice some serious cognitive reframing. Ask yourself if this is a real barrier, or if this is just someone else's insecurity talking. Most of the time, it is the latter. Use Acceptance and Commitment Therapy principles here. Accept that the community has flaws and people are messy. Then, commit to the value of creating anyway. Don't let the crabs in a bucket mentality pull you back down.

Building sustainability in the North means being tougher than the environment. If you are waiting for everyone to agree or for the misinformation to clear up, you will be waiting until the next ice age. You build capacity by being the person who does not engage in the gossip. You become the stable node in the network. When you lead with kindness and a focus on the craft, you slowly change the culture. It is not about fixing the whole town; it is about creating a micro-climate of sanity where artists can actually breathe.

At the end of the day, people make a choice. They either choose to build something or they choose to tear it down from the sidelines. You cannot control their participation, and honestly, chasing them is a waste of your limited energy. Focus on the ones who are in the room. Even if it is just three of you in a drafty basement in Dryden, that is enough to start. Build something so real and so grounded that the noise does not matter anymore. That is how we win against the fragmentation. We just keep showing up for the work.

Northwestern Ontario Arts, Culture and Recreation

Rooted in Melgund Township, Northwestern Ontario we're exploring arts, culture, and recreation programming that brings our communitiess together. From creative workshops and local exhibitions to youth activities and cultural events, we support rural artists, strengthen community connection, and celebrate the creative spirit of Northwestern Ontario.

Through community-based arts initiatives, recreation programming, and cultural gatherings, Melgund Recreation, Arts and Culture fosters creative expression, collaboration, and long-term sustainability in the northern arts sector. Our work connects residents, empowers youth, and builds pride in local talent across rural Northwestern Ontario.

Learn more about our programs, events, and opportunities at Melgund Recreation, Arts and Culture.