By Stephen Weir

Patrick Tobin, the General Manager of the City of Toronto’s Economic Development and Culture (EDC) portfolio, posted a notice on the LinkedIn social media site that, effective today, Karen Carter has been given the role of Director, Museums and Heritage Services for the EDC Division at City Hall.

“Karen is a leading local cultural sector executive with a demonstrated track record of success working in creative and educational environments,” Tobin wrote. “She has over 20 years of experience working and volunteering in a range of arts, culture, and heritage settings in North America and the Caribbean.”

Carter is a well-known art expert within the Canadian Caribbean community and with most public galleries and museums within the GTA. She is the former Executive Director of Heritage Toronto, a City of Toronto agency responsible for the education and promotion of Toronto’s heritage. She is the founding Executive Director of “Myseum” of Toronto and co-founder of the Black Artists’ Network and Dialogue (BAND), a Toronto organization with international reach dedicated to supporting emerging Black artists in Canada and abroad. BAND has an art gallery and cultural centre in east downtown Toronto.

“Karen’s most recent projects include CArt, a Caribbean art gathering connecting artists from the region to the international art world, and the BIPOC Fellowship in the galleries, libraries, art galleries, and museums supporting the development of a more diverse cultural landscape in Canada,” he continued.