Established Artists

Allison Beula holds an Honours B.A.A. in film and is a recipient of the “Norman Jewison Filmmaker” Award. She furthered her training at the Randolph College for the Performing Arts, for whom she currently Directs, Choreographs, and Instructs (College and Kids Program) She most recently held the title of “Head of Triple Threat-Kids Division” She is also currently on faculty for The Avenue Road Arts School, The Institute for the Performing Arts (“TIFTPA”), and VIBE Arts. She has lead workshops and classes for dozens of institutions including: Mirvish (Lion King),The Toronto and Catholic School Board, CAMH, OISE, Show Choir Canada, and The Ontario School of Ballet, to name a few. She is the first ever professional dance instructor on faculty at Ulpanat Orot, private high school. She trained with Upright Citizens Brigade and Dance Manhattan (NYC), and is a graduate of the Second City Conservatory Program. Allison is a two-time recipient of an Ontario Arts Council grant for “Artists in Education”. Allison’s musical “The Tiki Bikini Beach Paradise Party A-Go-Go!” which she wrote, directed, and choreographed, made its debut at the Toronto Fringe Festival where it won “Patron’s Pick” and “Best of the Fringe” and then continued on to be in the curated “Next Stage Theatre Festival”. Her choreography (and performing) can be seen in the video “Hypnotized” (Jeffery Straker) which hit the “MMM” Top 10 as well as Kat Goldman’s “Release Me” (Choreographer, Performer).

Astrid Ho is a visual artist focusing on abstract art and the personal narrative in printmaking. She co-founded Propeller Centre for the Visual Arts (1996) and is an artist member of Open Studio. She has taught at Centre3 (Hamilton), McMichael Canadian Art Collection (Kleinburg) and Open Studio (Toronto) among other locations. She was a recipient of Ontario Arts Council Access and Career Development Project Grant (2009) and is the board chair at Cultural Pluralism in the Arts Movement Ontario (CPAMO). Her various exhibitions include Harbourfront Centre, Open Studio (Toronto) and Sir Wilfred Grenfell College Art Gallery (Newfoundland). Her works are represented in various corporate and private collections including the Bank of Montreal, The Canada Council Art Bank, Global Affairs Canada and National Bank of Canada. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from OCAD University and studied in Florence, Italy under the OCAD Study-Abroad Program.

Azadeh Pirazimian is a practicing multidisciplinary artist, art instructor, and art administrator based in Toronto and formerly a lecturer in Iran. With a passion for exploring themes of self-expression, communication, daily resistance, and social injustice through diverse media, Azadeh's artistic practice merges various disciplines, including painting, mark-making, photography, video, performance art, and sculpture. Her methodology has been consistent throughout her career, resulting in her own distinctive visual language. Over the years, Azadeh has showcased her works at multiple exhibitions in Iran, Canada, and the Netherlands. Her art has received recognition and awards, including the Newcomer and Refugee Artists Mentorship Grant(2021) from the Toronto Art Council, the RBC Space Award(2021) from the Toronto Arts Foundation, and the RBC Art Access Fund(2016), among others. Azadeh holds a bachelor's degree in painting and a master's in visual communication. Her passion for education is evident in her commitment to teaching art and her ability to inspire students. She has honed her skills through years of experience and learning, including her completion of Centennial College's Arts Management program. Azadeh aims to make meaningful contributions to the Canadian arts and cultural scene, leveraging her multicultural lens while teaching visual arts at leading organizations such as Vibe Arts and Turtle House. In the fall of 2023, Azadeh will pursue her art education at the University of Waterloo, where she will be enrolled in the esteemed MFA program. This opportunity will enable her to develop her artistic skills further and expand her knowledge of the art world.

As seen on RollingStone India, Complex Canada and CBC Music, Balu has become a musical pioneer for the South Asian community along with artists like: Jay Sean, Nav and M.I.A. Being raised in a Sri Lankan home while living in Eglinton West, Toronto - a place rich in Afro-Caribbean culture, Balu draws upon the nature of his upbringing to create an ‘East-meets-West’ element to his artistry. Expressing his musical identity meant grasping the complexities within himself first. He aims to become everything he never had. With an unmatched level of versatility, Balu seeks to bring more vulnerability and redefine Bollywood and breathe fresh air into South Asian representation. Previously he was was a beatboxer representing Canada.

Frances Potts is an emerging visual artist who is deeply inspired by the captivating night sky and universe, which surrounds us each night. She tries to incorporate the vast sea of stars into her works in unusual and surreal ways, to provoke thought and creativity. She is 20 years old and grew up in Scarborough, Ontario, where she works as an artist today. Frances enjoys working with the community wherever possible in her career. She found that are and the community have a symbiotic relationship; the community benefits from art opportunities through the revitalization of their neighbourhood, participation and/or collaboration, while artists benefit through compensation, promotion and gratification. She relishes in the positive interaction with people of all ages during these times.

Isiah Lea is an Artist, Activist, and Community Leader who channels his passion, drive, talent, and purpose in life into Art, Community Building and Social Justice. These things are the pillars and foundation of everything Isiah does, is, and creates. Isiah was born in Toronto, Canada, and is a proud resident of Jane-Finch living in Toronto Community Housing. Social Justice is at the core of Isiah’s approach to Art, Community Building and Leadership. He views each one of these elements as necessary components for creating positive and sustainable social change. As an artist Isiah channels deep expressions of his soul through various artistic mediums of Performance Arts as well as Visual Arts; including Spoken Word Poetry, Rap, Theatre, Painting/Drawing, Piano, Guitar, Dance, and Photography/Graphic Design. Though the artistic mediums may vary, the contents of Isiah’s creations all have one thing in common, they are messages molded with consciousness, awareness, and purpose, rooted in honest storytelling, empowerment, and community building.

Jasmine Wemigwans currently attends Wexford Collegiate School of the Arts for the advance visual arts program. She is set to graduate in 2016, and hopes to find a satisfying career in the fine arts since it has always been her passion. Currently she is an emerging artist at VIBE Arts. She believes her passion for the arts was greatly influenced by her Aboriginal heritage and being surrounded by family members making a living in the fine arts. She hopes to continue working with VIBE and continue gaining more professional experience in the art community.

Jennifer Chin is a visual artist and educator based in Toronto. She holds an Associate’s Diploma from the Ontario College of Art and Design and a Masters in Fine Art from the University of Windsor. She has exhibited her multi-disciplinary work across Canada and the U.S, and has been an instructor and lecturer at various universities, independent schools and youth outreach programs since 1999.

Jordan Laffrenier is a multidisciplinary director, writer, community builder and photographer.  He is the artistic director of Then They Fight Theatre. Through his work Jordan creates theatre that is socially and stylistically relevant. He is an advocate for theatre that supports the local community on and off stage. Recent creative credits include: Amelie on Broadway (Lyric Theatre), Sousatzka (Tiberius Entertainment), Carbon (Little Black Afro) and The 101010 Project (Then They Fight Theatre).

Keisha James is a multi-disciplinary artist with 6 years of experience in the community arts sector and 4 years of experience in the film and media industry. She values social welfare programs, and using the power of media to highlight issues and bring about change. Having obtained her Bachelor of Film (honours) from Humber College, she hopes to use her education to continue storytelling through filmmaking and create engaging works of art, along with facilitating future opportunities for youth in Toronto to be able to achieve their goals.

Kofi Frempong, is a Toronto-raised visual artist of Ghanaian descent who specializes in creating warm, vibrant acrylic paintings that pay tribute to the beauty of the African diaspora. With over 30 years of experience and a passion for fostering safe spaces for love, learning, laughter, and endless possibilities, Kofi has been running his art business since 2014. He believes that art is not just for consumption but an expression of life and a conduit for love in endless possibilities. In addition to creating art, Kofi is dedicated to supporting young, emerging artists through his work as a Vibe Arts For Children And Youth Mentor, a freelance facilitator, and curator. With over 15 years experience as a community Health Worker, he also combines his passion for community building with his art by leveraging his relationships to create access and opportunities for those in need. Most notably, Kofi founded Freedom Fridayz, a community based platform that connected artists , entrepnures, and community stakeholders to build an ecosystem of collaboration , celebration, and support. As a social media influencer, Kofi creates meaningful dialog, connections, and a culture of community love. Kofi is a renowned and successful artist known for exhibiting prestigious venues such as the AGO and Art Expo New York. He has received recognition for his work, including being selected as a CBC Arts Canadian Artist of the Month and being featured on the Oprah Winfrey Network and Discovery Plus' Profiled: The Black Man. He has also been showcased in galleries both locally and internationally and serves as a brand ambassador for The Hustle Never Dies, a lifestyle brand promoting community, excellence, and style. However, to Kofi, his biggest accomplishment is inspiring his two daughters to have a true love for art. He invites you to experience the love and passion he puts into each piece and hopes that by following his journey, you will find your own art and love the world with it.

Lucia Laford (Waawaaskone Kwe) is an Anishinaabe and Irish artist born in Baawaating, ON. She is a proud two-spirit Ojibwe Kwe. Lucia paints in a Woodland style that has been passed down to her by her father. Her style is vivid and bright with crisp line work. Lucia has a spiritual connection to her work that has been established through her own healing path. She is a passionate Indigenous Arts Educator and loves working with everyone from youth to the elderly and especially enjoys working with First Nation Communities. Lucia has ongoing workshops and classes year-round that teach Woodland and floral painting, drawing, and leatherwork. Recently, Lucia became a part-time Professor at Algoma University, where she teaches a course entitled “Anishinaabe Art and Material Culture”. Lucia is on the lifelong journey of reclaiming her culture and learning Anishinaabemowin.  Lucia paints to come to terms with her own identity and realize and reflect the power of her inner spirit. She paints to connect people and herself back to our original obligations as caretakers of this land, the waters and all of creation. Lucia hopes to continue on the path of education and guiding those that occupy this land towards reconciliation and decolonization. 

Originally from West Africa Guinea, Mabinty Sylla has been dancing in Africa for sixteen years, beginning her dance training at the age of 12 in Conakry with Mamadouba Camara her dance instructor, who is the first soloist for the Ballet Djoliba and former soloist for the Ballet Africans-two of West Africa’s most respected traditional groups. Also she learnt and performed with a group Ballet Tayelly directed by Fode Gassama. She moved to Toronto Canada since 2008 and continued her dancing & networking in Toronto with associations​ such as A.F.C.Y.. ..now named vibe arts and Lula Lounge french schools african dance program. She has presented her work in most of Canada’s provinces and cities e.g sunfest London Ontario and Halifax African festival. In Toronto she performs at numerous festivals such as Afro Fest from 2009 to the present and Muhtadi International Drumming. She also performs in most of the mega-city's African and Caribbean cultural programs such as Oshawa African Pavilion fiesta week, Carrisaga, Habari African Festival at Harbour Front and is a member of the extraordinary Okavango orchestra. Mabinty Sylla teaches and choreograph West African dancing in many areas e.g. schools and community programs, she also does private workshops for individuals and groups.

Maureen Da Silva is a Toronto-based artist committed to an intersectional feminist practice. Her practice focuses on silk screen, lithography and relief, with forays into bookbinding. She has taken her love of print into the founding of the not-for-profit artist group, The inPrint Collective, of which she is the Managing Director. Through this collective, Maureen has been proud to showcase work in Scotiabank NuitBlanche (2012), Printopolis (2010), Culture Days (2010-present) and other spaces across the GTA. With inPrint, Maureen has also developed a number of projects with various community organizations across Toronto. A 2008 graduate of York University’s B.F.A program, Maureen has also completed her Masters of Arts at the University of Toronto (2009), as well as her Certificate in Museum Studies from the Ontario Museum Association (2013), and is the recipient of two OAC Exhibition Assistance grants. Her research in her Women and Gender Studies Master’s program focused on the politics of inclusion within feminist art collectives, an interest which brought Maureen into the Feminist Art Collective (FAC). Her own practice in feminism and printmaking, as well as the artistic wealth of her print community has inspired Maureen to a lifetime of creativity, non-stop learning and sharing.

Mirka Loiselle (she/they) is a visual artist and arts educator for children & youth. She works primarily in digital illustration and other drawing media, but also dabbles in painting, printmaking, and puppetry. Mirka is passionate about creating art for and with children of all ages (including those adults who enjoy being children every now and again!), and always strives to imbue her work with a certain amount of joy and whimsy, even while tackling tough subjects like anxiety and depression. Her work has recently been featured in Ossington Subway Station and at the Scarborough Civic Centre, and she is the illustrator behind Camp Coup, a children’s webcomic about rebellious animals at a summer camp. Find her work online at mirkaillustrates.com and on Instragram @mirkaillustrates.

Nyaomi is an artist from Toronto with experience shooting and exhibiting in North and South America. Her artistic practice can be defined as personal narratives that explore subjectivity, the body and challenging issues. She aims to bring awareness to what's been repressed and show alternative ways of thinking.

In recent years, she has worked with Airbnb, WeWork, Maclean’s, LinkedIn, and more. Inspired by her thesis–research on alternative perspectives on depression–she continued creating with transformation in mind. Nyaomi has since expanded into textiles to further explore the connections between our mental health, our environment and the power of creating something tangible. She is an OCAD University graduate with years of experience as a freelance photographer, entrepreneur, and facilitator.

Paddy Leung is a genderqueer, neurodivergent, second-generation, Canadian Chinese artist, educator, and cultural worker. Working with drawing and painting, mixed media, sculpture, and installation. Paddy works from a unique perspective of strength-based, community change, experimental art forms, and ideas through an activist lens to support various communities with diverse life experiences and navigating multiple intersections of identities. Paddy’s socially engaged art-based practice aims to strengthen the communities with a collaborative approach rooted and grounded by mutual respect, empathy, and compassion for the self and others. They design projects and host community events to engage people with the creative process while sharing their experience of art as a tool for growth and positive change, both personal and collective. Paddy’s practice has focused largely on providing inclusive and accessible art programs, primarily for young people with lived experience on the margins. Working with the Art Gallery of Ontario, VIBE Arts, The 519, North York Arts, Xpace Cultural Center, and Design Exchange, among others, Paddy is helping to transform the landscape of Toronto’s community arts scene.

Pamela Schuller is a visual community artist, her concept of working with community is aligned with her personal art practice. In community arts, she is responsive to the needs of the participants as appropriate to each unique moment. Through the art making process, Pamela engages people with rhythm, rhyme, humour, and questions that generate imagination and creative action. Her intention is to cultivate a creative experience that engenders a sense of curiosity, trust, and joy. She feels that everything has a sound or a song. Combining visual arts, sounds, and songs together through the form of community arts is a collaboration that inspires.

Sadko studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Sarajevo, Bosnia, earned his MFA at the University of Belgrade, Yugoslavia (1984) and arrived in Canada in 1993. Since his arrival from Bosnia, Sadko has participated in over sixty exhibitions in public galleries and artist-run centres across Canada. He is the recipient of visual arts grants from Toronto Art Council, the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts. Sadko continues to explore identity, and its cultural and social implications, with an extensive portraiture-based body of work using mixed media and collage, and an array of references to popular culture.

Sandra Tarantino, a resident of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, received a Bachelor of Fine Arts through Ontario College of Art and Design, as well as a Bachelor of Education. She has actively participates in the artistic community as Founder and Director of C1 art space (2004-10), Co-founding Director of AWOL Gallery and Studios Co-operative (1996-2012) and as a Visual Arts Instructor for organizations and schools including Vibe Arts (formerly AFCY, 2008- present) and Avenue Road Arts School (2012-present). She is a recipient of the Visual Artist Grant (2007, 2005, 2003), Exhibition Assistance Grant (2006, 2005) and Artist in Education Grant (2008-12) from the Ontario Arts Council. Tarantino’s artwork incorporates elements of both painting and sculptural modes through her shaped canvases, ceramic figurative pieces and other mixed media works. Her artwork is in private and corporate collections across Canada, U.S.A and Europe.

Toronto born and raised self-taught emerging artist that creates anything from small crafts to large scale paintings experimenting with many types of mediums. She is an arts educator who works within many communities throughout the GTA such as Urban Arts and VIBE Arts in schools and community centres. Shashann’s work is heavily influenced and inspired by Toronto culture, music, social issues, and her environment. She is a 2014 graduate of Seneca @ York’s Art Fundamentals program and is currently studying Visual Art and Digital Art at Humber College Lakeshore.

Sylvie Stojanovski (@anepicenigma) is a Scarborough-based, emerging artist, creative facilitator, and project manager, with a passion for community art-making. She believes that art has the power to heal, connect people across difference and create social change. Her personal creative body of work is largely pattern-based, and created through a process of intuitive mark-making. Sylvie is inspired by the myriad of relationships we have with the contemporary natural world, and is interested in helping people reconnect with their child-like sense of wonder.

As an arts entrepreneur, Sylvie has founded successful collectives, and played roles in program development, research, and outreach for established arts organizations, including: Mass Culture, Scarborough Arts, and the Coalition for Music Education in Canada. In the community, she is known for her exceptional leadership, and dedication to supporting arts initiatives at the intersection of creativity, mindfulness, and play. In 2019, she was awarded the Rising Star in community leadership award from Dancing Damsels Inc. for her work with the youth-led multidisciplinary arts festival, ARTSIDEOUT. Recently, she was one of 5 artists selected from across Canada to be a part of the Youth Climate Lab’s Virtual Gallery and #MoveTheNeedle campaign on climate conversations.

Tara is a visual artist passionate about arts education, collaborative art making, and murals, practices that bridge her backgrounds from a Bachelor of Fine Art in Drawing & Painting from OCAD University and a Community Arts Practice Certificate from York University. Tara loves to use storytelling, brainstorming, and playful art techniques like collage to encourage conversations, confidence and to bring many ideas together into action. Since 2011, Tara has worn many hats from artist, arts educator, facilitator, curator, arts administrator and project manager. She has had the opportunity to work and learn from art making experiences in libraries, schools, art galleries, community centres, seniors centres, skate parks, abandoned storefronts (you name it!) through projects in Toronto through opportunities with Vibe Arts, Nuit Blanche, Lakeshore Arts, Platform A, and East End Arts and in London, UK with groups like Entelechy Arts, Brockley Street Art Festival, Art Mongers and Lewisham Education Arts Network. Tara is currently the Program Director at Mural Routes.

Tasneem Dairywala is an artist, author, and educator. Focusing on themes of resilience, empathy, and kindness, she loves to create worlds full of magic, colour, and warmth. Her passion lies in using the arts as a tool for knowledge and understanding, which is why she founded Art Ignite, a non-profit organization that offers art programs across Toronto. Tasneem is an OCAD graduate with a major in Drawing and Painting and a minor in English, but most of her education comes from reading children's books with her daughter.

A Poet

A Singer

A Thunder Bringer

Thunderclaw Robinson is a Jack of all trades, master of some

Super Powers Include Lyricism, Vocal Proficiency, Enhanced reflexes, super strength, access to unlimited Knowledge of science facts that nobody needs, and a super human level of awkwardness

Promises you he won’t lie and neither will his hips.

Once Managed to win 3rd Place at an Open Mic (“How does one win an open mic?” You might ask? Ask him!!!)

He Is the Co-Captain of the 2018 BAM! Toronto Youth Poetry Slam Team that represented Canada in the International Spoken Word Slam and Festival; “Brave New Voices” in Houston Texas this year

He has traveled to a variety of locations across the continent to Share Light through Poems and Praise Thru Song

And believe it or not, his name does not have any affiliation with the “Thundercats”

Anthony Gebrehiwot is a multiple award winning visual artist, photographer and community leader whose creative lens re-visions photography as an ongoing dialogue of social change between subject and society. A self-taught artist and photographer, Gebrehiwot founded XvXy-photo in 2014 focusing on studio portraiture. To date, he has worked with several notable brands such as Nike, Royal Bank of Canada, Vice Canada, Absolute, Hudson Bay, The City of Toronto and Linkedin to name a few. His work has been featured in over forty local and international publications such as the Star, the Globe and Mail, PAPER Magazine, Elle UK and Yahoo Lifestyle.

Based in Toronto, Vero Díaz is an artist that works in the realm of magic realism and indigenous futurism. She believes in the power of finding our ancestral aesthetic and crafting our own stories, especially to process and heal from ancestral wounds and present day urban realities. She believes in the decolonization path and the power of radical imagination as a force that brings collective actions and personal transformation. Her practice is grounded in her mixed roots from México. She integrates Maya, Mexica, and Cora indigenous art forms and ancestral knowledge with contemporary folklore in film, photography, performance, writing, and installation.

Her work has been shown in Harbourfront Centre, Gallery 44, Toronto Public Library, Artscape Youngplace, Sketch, World Pride, York University, Waterloo University, and Kitchener City Hall. Díaz mounted her first solo photography exhibition Inner Blooming at the Arcadia Gallery in 2017. She completed her Masters in Environmental Studies (MES) at York University in Latinx Transformation & Decolonial Art Practice. She is developing Red Surrender, a multidisciplinary bio-mythic piece created and performed in Watah Theatre. Her practice has been shared locally and internationally for 10 years in Canada, Costa Rica, and México.