Ladyfest Ottawa Mandate

Ladyfest Ottawa (LFO) is a non-profit, primarily women-organised music and arts festival that is open to everyone.

Now in our sixth year, Ladyfest Ottawa 2007 remains a volunteer-driven organisation that both showcases women's artistic expression and shares ideas through music, performance, film and video, exhibitions, panels and workshops.

Ladyfest Ottawa is part of a tradition of grassroots-organised festivals showcasing the talents of women artists. The first Ladyfest took place in Olympia, WA in 2000. This event inspired women around the world, from New York City to Berlin to Indonesia, to organise their own festivals. Other Canadian Ladyfests have taken place in Toronto, Guelph and Halifax.

Ladyfest Ottawa is an inclusive, feminist organisation. We feel that providing a venue for women artists counters the obstacles and discrimination that women often face, including sexism, homophobia and racism. We also try to address these issues in our workshops, along with encouraging a D.I.Y. (do-it-yourself), hands-on approach to skill sharing. We believe that political action can be fun and creative!

We are also committed to building communities, collaborations and conversations among women in the Ottawa-Gatineau region. We are proud to showcase local artists.

Ultimately, we hope Ladyfest Ottawa inspires women everywhere to organise themselves and create similar spaces that allow women's creative works to be seen and heard.