LaunchPAD

This collection offers a glimpse into the world of The Free Folk—a vision of New Earth rooted in Indigenous knowledge, reverence for nature, and the deep remembering of how to live in balance.

Inspired by my ancestral roots—Mapuche, Andean, and Caribbean—and by the teachings I’ve received from First Nations peoples here on Turtle Island, these works imagine a future shaped by the values of love, reciprocity, and respect for all beings. In this world, technology and nature are not in conflict. The land is not a resource—it is kin. Art is sacred. Community is medicine. Beauty is everywhere.

The Free Folk live in harmony with the Earth, guided by ancestral wisdom and a shared devotion to collective well-being. Their world is not a fantasy—it is a seed. These paintings and drawings are artifacts of that seed taking root: visual echoes of a world that already lives in our dreams, our memories, and our resistance.This is just the beginning. These are not just characters or symbols—they are invitations to return to something ancient, to believe in something tender, and to co-create a world where love leads.

Andre Mandela López is a visionary muralist and multidisciplinary artist whose work centers Indigenous wisdom and collective healing. His murals and public art projects are rooted in community collaboration, designed to cultivate togetherness and awaken the innate creativity and love within us all.

Through vibrant imagery and intentional engagement, Andre bridges political and social issues with spiritual solutions—reconnecting people to the land, to one another, and to their own inner power. His practice stands as a living testament to the transformative role of art in cultural resilience and liberation.

"Fi We T’ing, Fi We Culture" is all about celebrating what makes the Caribbean so special, our culture, our traditions and the stories that have been passed down through generations. This is resistance and pride, every detail holds an energy, a memory and legacy. We’re not just preserving the culture, the resilience and joy that can’t fade. We’re living it out loud and proud for the generations that come to feel it, claim it and carry it forward.

Jade Kent-Brewster is a multidisciplinary artist and designer based in Toronto. Her work is deeply rooted in the natural world and the vibrant cultural heritage of her Jamaican and Trinidadian background. With a passion for storytelling and history, she explores themes of identity, resilience, and transformation through a dynamic fusion of traditional and contemporary artistic practices. Specializing in mixed media, she repurposes everyday materials integrating paint, fabric, photography, paper, beads, and found objects to create visually compelling compositions. Her work captures the beauty and strength of Caribbean culture while reflecting both personal and collective narratives.

Water is the path that connects communities, My inspiration is born out of the Humber river and all of its connections. My experiences, teaching, exploring and living in West Toronto have always had a connection to the land, in my art I have chosen draw directly from these experiences.

Joaquín Varela is a visual artist, educator, placemaker and nature interpreter. Joaquín leads arts programming with a focus on providing access to creative expression and resources. Passionate about nature and eco-conscious practices in public engagement, Joaquín leads hikes and workshops as a nature interpreter in many of the city's green spaces.Joaquín is also the co-founder of Roots To Bloom, a collective that aims to cultivate crucial relationships to the land and collective stewardship through placed-based community art-making.

Kanisha Dabreo is a multidisciplinary artist and digital designer based in the GTA. Her work explores the importance of community, inclusivity, and representation while touching on themes of beauty and self-love.

Escaping into other worlds has always been my refuge—a quiet kind of therapy that has carried me through life’s noise. Whether through painting, reading, or daydreaming, I’ve long turned to stories and imagined landscapes as a way to process reality and reconnect with my inner self. Dreams, in all their softness and strangeness, allow us to see what we suppress, desire, or fear—and through art, I try to give form to those feelings.

In this exhibition, I share a collection of dream-inspired paintings that explore themes of emotional release, longing, and wonder. Each piece is a visual diary entry—fragments of the worlds I escape to when life feels too heavy.

I will also be presenting a live performance installation, where I paint mini dreamscapes from inside a vending machine. The act is both playful and symbolic—offering pieces of my imagined world, one painting at a time, to those looking for a small escape of their own. Through this work, I hope to remind others (and myself) that it's okay to drift into dreams—sometimes, it's the only place that feels like home.

Serene is a Chinese-Canadian creative and an expert daydreamer, utilizing her passion for storytelling to produce digital and traditional imagery that evokes child-like wonder and captures nostalgia. With an artistic journey spanning over 9 years, Serene has established herself as a freelance traditional painter and digital illustrator, lending her creative support to independent musicians, writers, and fellow artists. Her work is a delightful fusion of her interests in books, mental health, East Asian culture, and the boundless realms of fantasy. Beyond her artistic pursuits, her versatile background includes her academic education in business and her years of entrepreneurial experience, having founded and nurtured three successful start-up ventures. Through her art, she strives to create awareness and appreciation for the beauty of Asian cultures and the stories of marginalized communities. Her creative endeavours are a testament to her dedication to building bridges of understanding and fostering a more inclusive world. When Serene is not painting, her hands stay busy sewing, crafting, and thrift flipping. Serene’s work has been featured at Toronto Pearson Airport, College TTC station, Gardiner Museum, Oriole Community Centre, Scarborough Museum, Downsview Airport, VIBE Arts, and more.