ECH Newsletter February 2026

View this email in your browser Incé Husain, Yet I Dance, 2023, Ink on paper Inspired by a poem, This is Why We Dance by Mohammed El-Kurd 2021  Photo credit: Incé Husain, 2025 Today, February 17th, 2026, we embrace the year of the fire horse in the Lunar calendar and leave the year of the snake behind. The Embassy Cultural House wishes everyone a healthy and happy Lunar new year. PS Guelph's Annual Rock / Paper / Scissors, Book & Print Fair '26 2026 poster design by Justin LaGuff February 22nd, 2026 11am-4pm  Art Gallery of Guelph Rock / Paper / Scissors is co-presented by PS Guelph, Musagetes, and Art Gallery of Guelph. The Book & Print Fair event space is accessible by both a ramp and stairs leading to the front entrance, with stair and elevator access to the washrooms. Masks are encouraged, and some will be available at the door. We encourage vendors and guests to stay home if they feel unwell. Please reduce the use of scented products (e.g. perfume, cologne) for this event. ECH postcards and publications are available to purchase. If you don’t have a copy of the ECH anthology, An Alternative Cultural History of London, Ontario, this is your chance to get one! Available to purchase through ECH, Art Metropole, book stores and Museum London. Our publications are available for public viewing through the London Room at the Central London Library. Other Upcoming Book Related Events Image: ECH Postcards by Olivia Mossuto, Incé Hussain, Shelley Niro, Jamelie Hassan, Ron Benner, Diana Tamblyn and Mireya Seymour. Photo credit: Ron Benner The postcards are now available at Shop Museum London, Little Wren Books and are coming soon on the ECH website. Price: $3.00 each/5 for $10.00 + postage in Canada Mireya Seymour at the ECH book table, Not/For the Money book launch, January 22nd, 2026, Department of Visual Arts, Western University, London, ON Photo credit: Ron Benner Following our successful book launch in the Department of Visual Arts at Western University, we have other scheduled upcoming events. Sunday, Feb. 22 - Rock Paper Scissors, PS Guelph at Art Gallery of Guelph, Guelph, ON Sunday, March 15 - Lake House Books, Port Stanley, ON Thursday, April 30 - Critical Distance, Toronto, ON, Check out the Embassy Cultural House on the CDCC website Thursday, May 15 - Sunday, May 17 - Vancouver Art Book Fair, Vancouver, B.C Andrew Maize: Artist in Residence at McIntosh Gallery “Hey Ron - we’re just pulling into the station. I’ve got a brown wool coat, keffiyeh and a bundle of sticks!“ Text message from Andrew Maize Artist Andrew Maize arrived to London, Ontario from East Dover, Nova Scotia on Jan. 11 2026 to begin his artist in residence at the McIntosh Gallery, Western University. Andrew stayed in London for a month at ECH headquarters while working on his project and he was able to meet many involved in the ECH and the regional community. One of his last acts in his McIntosh Gallery interactive studio installation,*(s)twer, was to hang Saeed Teebi’s book from the ceiling at chest height directly in front of the entrance doorway and halfway to the opposite wall. Teebi's book, You Will Not Kill Our Imagination, is without its dust jacket. Matte black with title, author’s name and publisher’s logo on spine in embossed gold. It looks like a yearbook diary one could purchase from Bijan’s Art Supply Store in downtown Deshkan Ziibi/ London, Ontario. "An unresigned" act of solidarity against an ongoing genocide of the people of Palestine.  While Andrew departed Feb. 12, his exhibition continues at the McIntosh Gallery until Sat. May 16, 2026. Check it out. Watch for Andrew’s ECH contributor's page coming soon on the website. Andrew Maize in his installation at McIntosh Gallery, Western University Photo credit: Ron Benner Black History Month Film Screening February 22nd, 2026 filter Cafe located in Reimagine Co, 206 Piccadilly St., London, ON The filter Cafe is hosting a free screening of "Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat" in recognition of Black History Month and as a fundraiser for the charity Hope of St. Joseph Shelters.   Hope of St. Joseph runs two shelters in the Congo to help those affected by the ongoing violence surrounding the mining industry. Christophe Lwiyando, from the Congo, will be speaking about the charity and the work they do and the state of the Congo today.  For more information on the event, click here. Registration is recommended. Recommended reading: RWANDA and the New Scramble for Africa: From Tragedy to Useful Imperial Fiction by Robin Philpot, Baraka Books, Montreal, QC, 2013 Save Your Seat Symposium From Brazil to Canada and in between March 6-7, 2026 Visual Arts Centre, Western University Art Now!: Sanaa Humayun March 12th, 2026 7pm Western University, WIRB 1170  Sanaa Humayun (she/her) an artist, writer, & curator, living and working in Hamilton, ON. Her practice thinks about gossip, secret sharing, and play and joy as acts of resistance. Primarily working in textile and paint, she is passionate about playfully (and sometimes spitefully) investigating the systems that oppress us. You can usually find her laughing a little too loudly with her friends in public places. The Embassy Cultural House is pleased to partner with SASAH and the Visual Arts Department, Western University. Photo credit: Department of Visual Arts Website, Speaker's Series ECH Online Shop Coming Soon Looking to purchase publications, print materials and artists' multiples directly through ECH? Soon, we will launch an online website that will include not only our current publications, such as Not/For the Money and An Alternative Cultural History of London Ontario, but also artwork from the ECH archive and ECH contributors. More details to come! Trump’s Losing His War in Minnesota. He’s Ready to Declare ‘Mission Accomplished’ Federal agents after they killed a legal observer on Jan. 24, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  From Zeteo website. Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images. Larry Towell: Boundaries at Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery  October 3, 2025 – March 14, 2026 Judith & Normal Alix Art Gallery 147 Lochliel Street, Sarnia, ON   Boundaries spans four-decades of Larry Towell’s prolific career, revealing his emotionally charged and deeply humanist vision as a photographer. His work explores themes of land, landlessness, and control, ranging from a personal account of his family’s life in rural Ontario to the plight of civilians caught in the crossfire of war.  The exhibition highlights selections from Towell’s extensive photographic series, including: The Mennonites, which exposes the extreme poverty endured by the Canadian/Mexican Mennonite community as they struggle to resist modernity; The World From My Front Porch, which offers a personal account of Towell’s family life and home in Dawn-Euphemia Township; El Salvador, the award winning No Man’s Land which intimately examines the struggle for survival in the conflict zones of El Salvador and Palestine; Afghanistan, released in 2014, plus his most recent project, The History War, which documents Ukraine’s long struggle for independence. For more information, please visit the Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery website.  UpwithArt! April 16th-25th, 2026 Museum London The 16th Annual UPwithART is almost here, raising crucial support for Unity Project and Museum London! This year’s event theme is The Future of Joy, and you’re invited to help shape it. Your participation, your bids, and your presence all contribute to building a future filled with creativity, compassion, and community care. Browse and bid on 50 exceptional artworks by established and emerging artists, including Unity Project participants, along with remarkable pieces generously donated by local collectors. On April 25, join the UPwithART! team at Museum London for arty-party, featuring live performances from local musicians, interactive art experiences, delicious cocktails and tasty treats, and so much more! Collaboration with Little Wren Books The Embassy Cultural House is pleased to announce that Jenny Berkel/Little Wren Books is exhibiting works by artists in the ECH community. The first featured artist is ECH cofounder and curatorial advisor, Jamelie Hassan. She is exhibiting two of her glass mosaics in the bookstore.  Little Wren Books Website https://www.littlewrenbooks.com Little Wren Books, 502 Adelaide St. N, London, ON Jamelie Hassan, Common Expressions: Rome #1 All Roads Lead to Rome, 2022, Glass mosaic on plywood Special Thanks and Recognition   Special thanks to Jessica Joyce for helping us manage the ECH social media page. Thanks to Liza Eurich for planning our book launch event, January 22nd, 2026, in the Visual Arts Department. Incé Husain and Mireya Seymour for recent designs of ECH postcards.  Best wishes to Adi Berardini as she departs from her position as Executive Director of Forest City Gallery (FCG).  Congrats to Maxwell Hyett, interim Executive Director of FCG. Relevant and Related Links   The Conversation, Author Saeed Teebi writes beyond exile in his memoir of Palestine https://theconversation.com/author-saeed-teebi-writes-beyond-exile-in-his-memoir-of-palestine-and-writing-in-dark-times-270130  Zeteo, Why Is the World Silent When the Gaza Genocide Is Not Over? https://zeteo.com/p/why-is-the-world-silent-when-the?utm_campaign=email-post&r=1x6a7d&token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoxMTYxODY2NjUsInBvc3RfaWQiOjE4NzY1OTkxNywiaWF0IjoxNzcwOTA5MDQ0LCJleHAiOjE3NzM1MDEwNDQsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0yMzI1NTExIiwic3ViIjoicG9zdC1yZWFjdGlvbiJ9.CLxbeuBdyelq65zy3IxShfU2_SEGDVsXTEU4wgdE0tI&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email Counterpunch, MAGA Aesthetics and Fascist Power: Spectacles of White Supremacy https://www.counterpunch.org/2026/02/13/maga-aesthetics-and-fascist-power-spectacles-of-white-supremacy/  The Conversation, Unpacking Bad Bunny's Superbowl Show - An Alternative Joyful Vision for America https://theconversation.com/unpacking-bad-bunnys-superbowl-show-an-alternative-joyful-vision-for-america-275545 Bruce Springsteen's newest song, The Streets of Minneapolis https://brucespringsteen.net/news/2026/streets-of-minneapolis Aljazeera, Arundahti Roy 'shocked' by jury's remarks, quits Berlin film festival https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/14/arundhati-roy-shocked-by-jurys-gaza-remarks-quits-berlin-film-festival Peoples Dispatch, Over 100 Cuban artists call for international solidarity https://peoplesdispatch.org/2026/02/16/over-100-cuban-artists-call-for-international-solidarity/ Visit the ECH Website Embassy Cultural House is located on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabek, Haudenosaunee, Lūnaapéewak, and Chonnonton peoples, at the forks of Deshkan Ziibi (Antler River), an area subject to the Dish with One Spoon Covenant Wampum and other treaties, colonized as London, Ontario. The ECH strives to create meaningful relationships between the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island and our contributors. The ECH honours the stewardship of the many Indigenous peoples who have resided on these lands since time immemorial. Copyright © 2026 Embassy Cultural House. All rights reserved. Our mailing address: 514 Pall Mall Street, London, ON, N5Y 2Z6, Canada Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.