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Fostering and promoting the Visual Arts throughout Ontario since 1872. |
Welcome to our new members for 2026
Anne Elizabeth Williamson
Waterloo Ontario
I was young, sketching and painting. As I approached retirement from the business world, I took many workshops and courses to hone my skill. I have been an active member of the Kitchener Waterloo Society of Artist, Central Ontario Art Association and Art$Pay. I’ve organized and collaborated many art exhibitions and feel honoured to be in the company of many talented artists across Ontario. I curently teach at the Button Factory Arts and provide personal workshops.
Cathy Lorraway
Oakville Ontario
Cathy is inspired and motivated by the kindred spirits of her local art community. A former high school art teacher, Cathy currently teaches workshops on pastel at the Dundas Valley School of Art and local art communities, most recently at ICAN, Canada’s national pastel conference. Cathy holds Pastel Artist Canada Signature Status and is an Elected member of the Society of Canadian Artists and Colour and Form Society. She loves engaging with fellow artists and recently chaired the Burlington Fine Art Association’s Juried show, “The Artist’s Mark”. She also coordinated, curated and mounted exhibitions for the Burlington Fine Art Association’s Fireside Lounge and was past president for Arts Burlington. She was awarded the Art Gallery of Burlington Volunteer of the Year Award in 2017. She also enjoys serving as a juror for local art and plein air competitions.
Cherie Christine Daly
Toronto Ontario
Hailing from Toronto and splitting my creative time between a Sunrise Avenue studio and Muskoka, I began this artistic journey in 2016. My dedication to art has been recognized with awards from the Oshawa Art Association and the Federation of Canadian Artists, Toronto Chapter. Since 2017, my work has been included in juried shows, group exhibitions, and online platforms like Saatchi Gallery and The Other Art Fair. Noteworthy exhibits include the Federation Gallery in Vancouver the ADC Fine Art show Art Comes Alive in Cincinnati, and the 2024 Artist Project, Toronto. This creative evolution has not only shaped my artistic expression but served as a vital outlet during personal challenges, particularly in supporting a family member facing mental illness. Through my bold, funky, and youthful work, I aim to infuse joy and strength, offering viewers a chance to partake in the expressive energy embedded in each stroke.
Chris (Christina) Jeanette Chrysler
Johnstown Ontario
Chris Chrysler is a Canadian multi-media artist whose practice spans painting, assemblage, and sculpture. For nearly two decades, she has developed a distinctive visual language rooted in cycles of place, memory, and resilience. Guided by a feminist perspective, Chrysler’s work interrogates the evolving definition of home and identity, transforming both found and traditional materials into forms that invite reflection on belonging, adaptation, and survival.
Chrysler is a full-time professor of fine art and former curator. She lives and works on a 37-acre flower and alpaca farm in Eastern Ontario, where her practice is deeply connected to both rural and urban influences. Her work has been exhibited in Canada and the United States, and is included in private collections across North America, Europe, and Australia.
Dennis Lawrence Montford
Virgil Ontario
I am a primarily self-taught contemporary artist with a foundational background in architecture and landscape design. My artistic education has been enriched by attending art classes at various respected institutions including Mohawk College in Hamilton, the Dundas Valley School of Art, the Burlington Art Centre and the Pumphouse Art Gallery in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
At present I reside in the picturesque Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake in Ontario where I maintain a dedicated studio space. My passion for art has been a constant companion since childhood and I am proud to say that my work is showcased in both corporate and private collections throughout Canada and the U.S.A.
Years ago I began introducing mixed-media and collage into my art practice. I found that I enjoyed the freedom of experimenting with various materials and techniques including incorporating collage as a base layer then with almost reckless abandon, tempered with good design aesthetics, create subsequent layers of mark-making, blending, dripping, spraying, splashing, scraping, rolling and brushing on acrylic paints and inks, watercolour paints, pencil crayons, pastels, charcoal and oil sticks. I try to combine these materials to develop exciting textures, colour, depth, movement and light into my original abstract and semi-abstract images of landscapes and figurative compositions and to achieve the look that I am striving for; one that is timeless and poetic.
Throughout my artistic process I embrace the happy accidents that occur which allow the paintings to develop their own personality layer by layer. The feeling of being surprised at the end of each painting session is invigorating.
My art draws inspiration from the beauty of nature, hiking the Bruce Trail past pastoral farmlands and rocky landscapes as well as the graffiti-clad walls of the inner-city and significant current events. These are some of my favourite go-to references.
Elizabeth Nancy Johnson
Dorset Ontario
I studied art at the University of Guelph, and the Haliburton School of Fine Arts, and was mentored by Charles Reid, William Schultz, and Janette Malloy, among other North American artists. My years spent living in Paris and the island of Crete in Greece, and my travels throughout the world, have deeply formed my expansive outlook and enjoyment of life.
Twenty-two years ago, my husband and I moved to Dorset, ON (Canada) to live a life of simplicity and connection to nature. It was here that we raised and educated our four children and I established my career as a painter. I paint mostly landscapes in acrylic, oil, watercolour, and pastel.
My studio can be found in the charming village of Dorset on the shores of Lake of Bays. Dorset, a historically significant village, straddles the Muskoka Lake District and the Haliburton Highlands. The studio is located on Hwy #35, 300 metres south of the Dorset Bridge. Nestled behind the Wood Fired Pizzeria at Portico Timber Frames, it is surrounded by the beautiful Community Garden of Dorset.
FRANCIS TIMOTHY DE ROSE
Sydenham Ontario
My main interest is in landscape painting. For me painting is progressive and cyclical and must carry some form of message. I work in series of the same or similar subject material. The majority of my work is focused almost entirely on the forest. Representational images of the forest or rural habitat, the compositions are drawn directly from edited digital original photos. The colour and overall atmosphere are abstracted. I don't believe that art is anything more than abstract in it's definition. I draw and paint nature but I can't create nature with my work.
In June 2001, I visited Newfoundland and became interested in where and why people live in certain places. I did a couple of paintings based on small villages (Musgrave Harbour and Trout River) and the theme seemed to fit with my overall interest in the environment and our relation to it.
In January 2003, I went back to Newfoundland and photographed extensively looking for subjects that would further enhance this idea. The resulting paintings from this trip (Industrial Road near Port au Basque, Isle aux Morts, Parson’s Pond, Unexpected View, Rose Blanche, and Yellow Birches), taught me something about what I want to say in painting, and a new way to express it.
My style comes from woodcut printing and developing line drawings. My influences are David Milne, David Blackwood, and Picasso.
Gerald Manno
Oakville Ontario
I was born in Brantford, Ontario. While still in high school, I had my first experience of exhibiting when one of my watercolours was chosen as a featured work at the Glenhyrst Gallery in Brantford. I took many classes in art history and painting, and my art teachers often told me that I should apply to OCA. At the time being the child of poor immigrant parents, I was too timid to follow that path and chose instead to study Business and Law. Even during university, I continued to paint in oils and sold my work to help pay for school expenses. After completing my studies, I returned to art more fully, taking many seminars and classes in both watercolour and acrylic painting. My journey may have taken longer than most, but I found myself enjoying the path as much as the destination, and in time I became a professional artist.
My studies have carried me into classrooms and studios across Canada, the U.S., and Italy, learning from award-winning artists and refining my own craft. Today I paint daily, moving between acrylic, casein, printmaking, and watercolour. I am fortunate to be a professional artist who makes a living by selling art and teaching.
My work has travelled further than I ever imagined, finding homes in courts, galleries, and private collections in Canada, the U.K., Italy, Australia, the U.S., and even Barbados.
GERRY RICHARD GOODERHAM
https://gooderham.photoshelter.com/index
Temagami Ontario
At Gooderham Photography, my work is rooted in a deep reverence for the natural world and a commitment to capturing the essence of place, light, and emotion. Each image is more than a moment—it is an invitation to pause, observe, and connect with the often-overlooked beauty that surrounds us.
Growing up in Northern Ontario, I was shaped by its wild landscapes, dramatic seasonal changes, and quiet resilience. These elements inform my visual language and guide my artistic process. Whether I am photographing vast lake vistas, intimate woodland textures, or fleeting weather patterns, my goal is to reveal a sense of presence and timelessness.
My photography blends technical precision with an intuitive approach. I strive to balance composition, natural light, and detail to evoke mood and narrative—often without words. I am especially drawn to environments where water, sky, and land converge, and where light dances with form in unexpected ways.
Through Gooderham Photography, I aim to foster a visual dialogue between viewer and landscape—one that encourages stewardship, reflection, and wonder. In a world that moves quickly, photography is my way of slowing down and offering space for others to do the same.
Holly Elizabeth Atkinson
Guelph Ontario
Holly Atkinson lives in Guelph, Canada and exhibits nationally and internationally.
Her sculpture in metal and mixed media is a personal glimpse from people she has met or places she has been. Her work captures character, cultures and a unique view from her eyes. Holly’s creations often include natural elements such as wood, stone, and fabric.
Holly is a member of The Sculptors Society of Canada,The Medallic Art Society of Canada, Women’s Art Association of Canada and Kitchener Waterloo Society of Artists.
Jacques Descoteaux
Toronto Ontario
For over 25 years, I have had a dual career – as a professional accountant (CPA, CMA) working in the automobile industry, and as an artist – first working in watercolour and pastel, and more recently in oil on canvas and oil and acrylic on paper. I also work in sculpture and mixed media. I now work full time on my art.
I am mostly inspired by landscape. By the landscape of the North – Northern Quebec, Northern British Columbia, Iceland, Ireland, Scotland. By the big sky. By the sea.
Over the years, I have studied with a number of artists at their studio and at various art schools, including attending a pastel master class with American artist Wolf Kahn at the National Academy in New York City. I was granted art residencies in 2015 and 2019, part of the Cill Rialaig Project, in Co. Kerry, Ireland.
I volunteer on a number of Boards of not-for-profit organizations, in social justice and in the art world. I am a member of Propeller Centre for the Visual Arts, an artist-run gallery in Toronto, the Al Green Sculpture Studio and School, BRAVO-Art (a grouping of Ontario francophone artists), and Le Labo Media Arts Centre
I have participated in solo and group exhibitions in Toronto, Montréal, and New York. My work can be found in private collections in Canada, the US, and Europe.
Originally from Montréal, I now live and work in Toronto.
James Edward McKeag
Port Perry Ontario
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Having worked in advertising for five years, James shifted his focus from commercial arts to applied arts. Enrolling in the Visual Arts program at York University, James earned a B.F.A. with a focus in painting and sculpture. In his second year of school, he won the York University, "L.L. Odette Sculpture Award" for one of his Lime stone sculptures. University provided learning and the discovery of various media that had been developed throughout the history of Western art. James embraced the 20th century eras of art history, when artists pushed each other with the advancement of new art forms/styles and the techniques used to create. It was here that he discovered Edward Hopper and his use of light, colour and landscape that appealed to James as a landscape painter Upon graduating, James continued his studies in the newly created teacher Education Program at York University for Fine Arts. The degree program's focus was on teaching the arts' disciplines. Practice teaching experiences in this curriculum included teaching at the Claude Watson School of the Arts in Toronto. James earned his Bachelor of Education through this program. |
James Steven Fowler
Toronto Ontario
James Fowler is a Toronto-based artist, curator, and community organizer whose multidisciplinary practice explores queerness, ecology, and social transformation. Working primarily in painting, textiles, soft sculpture, and performance, James draws from queer culture and lived experience to create visually engaging, critically reflective work.
His long-running painting series—often drawn from aerial views of cities and maps—explores the complicated connections between place and identity. These abstracted landscapes, rendered in acrylic, oil, and gouache on paper, wood, and canvas, borrow from cartography and geometric abstraction to celebrate both urban centers and rural geographies. Whether depicting the grid of a city or the organic lines of a forested lake, James treats landscapes as emotional and cultural terrains, rooted in memory and meaning.
Over the past two decades, James has played a key role in shaping queer visual culture in Canada. He was the founding curator of the 10X10 Photography Project, a decade-long portrait series celebrating LGBTQ Canadians in the arts, and co-curator of the Church Street Mural Project, which transformed ten buildings in Toronto’s Church-Wellesley Village as part of World Pride 2014.
He is also a founding member of the Throbbing Rose Collective and co-organizer of Queer Up North, a wilderness artist residency that brings LGBTQ+ artists into remote environments to explore queer ecological thinking. His leadership in this area has fostered cross-cultural dialogue, artistic experimentation, and community care at the intersection of queerness and nature.
Recent exhibitions include Catch & Release at Red Head Gallery (2024), Urban Planner at Worth Gallery (2024), and LOOKING at the Trout Museum in Wisconsin (2024–25). His work was also featured in Node at Plan D Gallery in Düsseldorf, Germany. He is currently preparing a large-scale exhibition opening at Red Head Gallery in 2026 that critiques toxic masculinity and the culture of trophy hunting through the lens of queer and ecological mythologies.
Through his curatorial work, James champions inclusivity and intergenerational exchange in the arts. He has spearheaded international artist exchanges, including a Canada–Argentina residency program, and continues to advocate for queer visibility in both urban and rural settings. Whether through his art, curation, or community building, James creates spaces for reflection, resistance, and radical joy.
His work has exhibited in North and South America, and Europe, and is held in numerous private and corporate collections. He studied Film at York University in Toronto and maintains a full-time studio practice.
Janice Marion Hardacre
Midland ON
Originally from Toronto, Ontario, I was raised in small towns north of the city and returned to Toronto as a young adult to work in administrative roles until retirement in 2014. I am a self-taught artist, exploring various areas of creative expression through drawing, painting, photography, puppetry and collage. Since 2004, I participated in juried group and solo art and photography shows in the GTA and had been a member of several local art groups during that time.
Jason Michael Pettit
Bloomfield Ontario
Being a participant in the story of the land around me is the muse for my art. More than that, nature is my conduit to understanding myself, as well as the knowledge base for my role as a human in the wider world.
As a result of this, my photos have become a visual representation of my thoughts and beliefs. I think of them as pieces of myself - a reminder about how I felt and what I learned at a specific time in my life.
From the viewers perspective I can only hope to engage their imagination by including feelings in my photos that go beyond the basic objects in the frame - There is more to nature than what is viewed on the surface. I want to encourage them to interpret my work personally, understanding that my emotional response cannot be replicated in another individual, but may give them the opportunity to find something unique within themselves.
JungHee Lee-Marles
Nepean Ontario
JungHee Lee-Marles is a visual artist based in Ottawa, Canada.
Born in Seoul, South Korea, JungHee has been passionate about art, especially drawing, from a young age. She completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts Education with a major in oil painting and a minor in sculpture. During her university years, she won awards in several art competitions and graduated with the title, “Recommended Artist of the Province.” She worked as an art teacher for a couple years before moving to Chicago, where she obtained a Master of Arts in Education.
In 1988, she immigrated to Canada, living first in Quebec and then Manitoba. For more than 10 years she participated actively in the art community, as an art instructor, artist-in-residence at several local schools, gallery assistant and art juror. She was awarded four grants from the Manitoba Arts Council, had several successful solo exhibitions, and participated many group exhibitions.
Residing in Ottawa since 2003, she has continued to create and exhibit works of art, to teach, and to volunteer in art activities. JungHee has had several solo exhibitions and participated in many group exhibitions, at venues including the Shenkman Arts Centre in Ottawa, Rotunda Gallery in Kitchener, Rebecca Gallery in Toronto, Agora Gallery in New York City, and Colorida Gallery in Lisbon, Portugal.
JungHee Has been the recipient of numerous awards including two exhibition grants from the Ontario Arts Council. Her works are held in the Government of Manitoba Art Collection, Kang Won University Art Collection in South Korea, and in many private collections all over Canada, the United States, and overseas.
Kat (Katherine) Palmer
Toronto Ontario
Fascinated by the absurd search for meaning, order and control in a world of chaos.
My aspiration is that viewers experience the work as playful and humorous but with a worrying undertone. I'm looking for the sweet spot where one experiences tension, humour and fear at the same time. I say go for it rather than sit back and worry.
I'm interested in the power of the natural world and the human experience within it. I enjoy the plein air experience as one can sit and really look and absorb one's surrounding, and finding my way into the emerging painting.
I’m inspired by Alex Colville and his approach to story and Tom Thomson for the energy in his works especially the drama of the changing landscape and for the sheer joy he conveys in his experience of nature. Francis Bacon is also a significant influence for his tremendous work ethic and his tenacity in repeatedly using motifs and themes in order to get closer to conveying his ideas.
Born, raised and still located in Toronto, I trained as a sculptor although in the last number of years I've focused more on painting. Ideas drive my painting style- layering and building as I go. When making objects, I use a variety of materials ranging from plaster, wax, wood and found objects.
Mario Angel
Mississauga Ontario
Mario Angel, a seasoned artist with a passion for creativity, embarked on his artistic journey at an early age, driven by an innate inclination for drawing and painting. This passion led him to pursue a degree in Fine Arts at the prestigious Academy of Fine Arts in Medellin, Colombia. Here, Mario honed his skills in drawing and delved into the realms of watercolor, acrylic, and oil painting, acquiring a diverse set of techniques that would later define his artistic style.
However, life took Mario to Canada, momentarily interrupting his career as an artist. Despite this, his unwavering interest in developing and applying his artistic talent persisted. Upon regaining the opportunity to focus on his art, Mario quickly gained recognition and acceptance within the artistic community.
His participation in various juried exhibitions resulted in numerous awards, establishing him as a notable figure in the Canadian art scene.
In the course of his six-decade-long career, Mario Angel has continually evolved as an artist. His latest venture, the Cosmic Conspiracy style, represents a groundbreaking exploration into new artistic dimensions. This avant-garde style blends elements of mysticism, cosmic symbolism, abstract and human expressionism, creating a visual language that captivates and challenges the viewer's perceptions.
At the age of 75, Mario remains a prolific artist, expressing his creativity through a myriad of techniques that he has perfected over the years. His work transcends geographical boundaries, being exhibited and sold around the globe. Each piece crafted by Mario possesses the power to elicit questions, provoke intrigue, and bring joy to those who immerse themselves in the rich tapestry of his artwork. Mario Angel's artistic journey is a testament to a lifelong commitment to creativity and self-expression. As he continues to push the boundaries of his art, his legacy grows, leaving an indelible mark on the world of fine arts.
Michael Black
http://www.michaeljbblack.com/
Port Perry Ontario
Michael graduated from the Ontario College of Art (now OCAD U), in 1984 and holds a Doctorate in Education from the University of Toronto (2003). For 30 years, he worked in education. Michael has shown his work in Toronto, Charlottetown, Port Perry, Creemore, Thornhill, Cobourg, Port Hope, Ottawa, Alliston, Blue Mountains, Peterborough, Meaford and Sutton. His work is held in many collections.
Nikola Wojewoda
http://www.nikolawojewoda.com/
Hamilton Ontario
Nikola Wojewoda is a multi-disciplinary artist of second-generation Polish and Russian descent. A graduate of the Ontario College of Art and Design, she has exhibited in a variety of mediums. In addition to drawing, painting and printmaking, she has shown sculptural work in clay, bronze, stone, plaster, mixed media assemblage and installation. She’s made experimental short films shown in North America and Europe, and has designed sets for dance and theatre in Toronto and Hamilton.
Her work can be found in private and corporate collections, including the Canada Council Art Bank. Her art has been reviewed in a variety of publications, including C Magazine and the Globe and Mail. She has taught painting and sculpture in Continuing Education programs through the Toronto Board of Education
The recipient of several Ontario Arts Council Grants, she has received local awards for her sculpture, ceramics, and fine art. Nikola is a member of Art Gallery of Hamilton, Art Galley of Burlington, Hamilton and Region Potters Guild, she also supports the Women’s Art Association of Hamilton, Central Ontario Arts Association and the Hamilton Artists Inc.
Her current practice includes mixed media painting and drawing, illustrated ceramics, and clay sculptures that incorporate found objects. She combines two and three-dimensional work to tell a story. Her collages using discarded and vintage wallpapers makes use of passing tastes and relentless consumption.
Her detailed and process-oriented work investigates the intersections of icon, symbol, and pattern, and the bridge between craft and fine art.
Nikola lives in Hamilton Ontario; situated upon the traditional territories of the Erie, Neutral, Huron-Wendat, Haudenosaunee and Mississaugas.
Pearl Van Geest
Guelph Ontario
In my work, informed by theories of queer ecology I explore the connection between the human/animal body and the natural world, working towards the blurring of commonly perceived binaries and dichotomies. When I began these works, I used photographs taken while paddling along shorelines of lakes and rivers – from southern Ontario, upstate New York and in the northern Ontario parks of Temagami, Algonquin and Pukaskwa. They are from times where the surface of the water is like glass, reflecting rocks and trees of the forests. In rotating the images in a bisymmetrically vertical orientation openings, imagery resembling body parts and creatures appear and disappear suggesting interconnectivity and fluidity the macro and micro, the biotic and abiotic, and the human and non-human. Most recently, during travels in Poland, Argentina, the Netherlands and closer to home, in Pouch Cove, Newfoundland, I have undertaken a initial program of researching the flora, design elements, iconic artworks, and other visual elements of the place. I sketch and photograph these things that capture my imagination and use these forms, shapes and patterns as the basis for hand-cut Mylar stencils. I then use these to make mirrored and layered paintings, out of which immerge unexpected and shifting imagery conveying, I hope, a sense of magic, wonder and other worldliness.
Rachel Pieters
Windsor Ontario
I’m fascinated by the cause and effect of how we become who we are. Is it through the deliberate choice of us kicking against a powerful current, or do we just fall into it by accident based on the expectations of others and how we were raised?
I’m completely intrigued by people who make very conscious choices about who they are and how they present themselves. Are these choices based on circumstances? Experiences? What are their best memories? Their worst? How do these affect who they are today and how they present themselves to the world? How do they see themselves? When do they feel most at peace? When do they feel most alive?
This is what I try to capture in my work.
I'm a Contemporary Realist artist working mainly in oils and pencil. I submersed myself in art from my earliest memories until the age of eighteen, then put it aside for twenty-three years to pursue Graphic Design and writing. I was gifted my grandfather’s paints and brushes in 2018 and returned to my first love.
I grew up on Madonna, movies, MTV, and Vogue magazine, and I love the creativity and enhanced drama of it all. I'm highly influenced by the various moods and themes conjured by stories, music, and fashion, as well as by historical masters like Rembrandt, DaVinci, and Gerome, and by contemporary masters like The Wyeths, Kehinde Wiley, Miles Johnston, Odd Nerdrum, and Margaret Bowland.
Ralph Norman Mackenzie
https://www.ralphmackenzieart.com/
Thornhill Ontario
I was born in St John, New Brunswick but have lived for most of my life in Toronto, Ontario. I have been drawing and painting using various media since early childhood and I fondly remember my father bringing pads of writing paper home from work for me to use. From those first childhood scrawls, my motivation has been to capture in a picture that which I found exciting, dramatic or otherwise exceptional ...something that, for a moment, raised my life above the ordinary. Now, as an artist, I want to share those moments with the viewer.
In essence, this is an attempt to capture time in a bottle. As a little boy, I first found those moments in depictions of sporting events but as I grew older more subtle but no less significant qualities were found in the faces of unique people or in a momentary quality of light on the landscape. And yet, after a lifetime of playing and watching sports, I still find the crucible of competition to be a deep well of excitement and emotion.
From time to time, I have been asked, "Where did you train?" The answer that I give is, "...many years in the school of trial and error." There are many artists, both historic and contemporary, whose work has inspired me and, without doubt, have had some impact on my style of painting but the best description for me is "self-taught". I have had some formal training in the form of private lessons when I was in high school and studies of fine art and freehand drawing in the School of Architecture at the University of Toronto. I continued to draw and paint while I pursued a career in construction management but now that I have retired, I have the time to devote myself to art both as an artist and an enthusiast.
Through the years, I have worked with oil paint and both chalk and oil pastels but I currently work with acrylic paint because of its extreme flexibility and permanence. My paintings range in size from small studies to canvases up to 24"x36". My work is held in collections in Canada, the United States, Great Britain and Taiwan.
Rudolf Kurz
www.etsy.com/ca/shop/rudolfkurz
Toronto Ontario
Surrealism has celebrated its 100th birthday last year but who is to say that you are old hat just because you are a hundred? If I had to pick a label for my style of painting I would call it surrealist, but I prefer other words like playful, fantastical or introspective. Play is important to me; I am willing to follow any crazy idea without prejudice. One never knows where it might lead: often to a dead end, sometimes to an entertainment and from time to time to a treasure trove. The adventure of finding out what is at the bottom of the dig keeps me going. It is a bit like excavating fossils from the Burgess Shale.
I usually begin a painting with a pretty accurate preliminary drawing, but as soon as it is transferred to the panel or canvas it begins to evolve. I start changing things, going deeper, scratching sections out, replacing them, overpainting again, looking for what I really want to see. Unfortunately, I still don’t know what I want right away! This process can take weeks or months. Actually, I have completely repainted and changed works that are 20 years old until I was satisfied with them. Oil painting is a very forgiving medium and perfect for a long, drawn-out exploration. I also paint in acrylics, encaustic and watercolour and have produced a sizeable body of work in etching, but I always come back to oil painting. I feel comfortable in the tradition of this medium that goes back to the Renaissance.
I was elected a member of the OSA in 1994. However, living in the countryside and helping to raise two kids did not give me much time to contribute to the Society or to benefit from it. I let my membership lapse. Now that we have moved to Toronto I am looking forward to take part in the life of the OSA again and I am applying once more! I am now able to volunteer as needed.
Sara Petroff
Toronto Ontario
My artistic practice explores themes of memory, impermanence, and identity through the transformation of obsolete analogue artifacts into sculptural collage. Drawing on my background in both fine art and curatorial work, I approach creation as an act of excavation— unearthing the personal and cultural narratives embedded in overlooked, discarded objects. Primarily working with aged papers, and mixed media, I create pieces that echo the structure of clothing—not to replicate wearables, but to evoke the intimacy and weight of what we carry, both physically and emotionally. These works function as vessels of memory, at once delicate and resilient, fragile yet layered with story. Each composition is informed by tactile intuition and a deep sensitivity to the histories of the materials. My process is intentionally slow and accumulative, involving layering, staining, tearing, and reconstruction. This methodology reflects the nonlinear nature of memory, and the cyclical tension between disintegration and preservation. By integrating archival aesthetics with contemporary assemblage, my work aims to hold space for personal reflection and collective resonance, inviting viewers to reflect on their own narratives and the quiet but potent significance of what we leave behind. I am particularly interested in how the domestic realm and material ephemera serve as containers for identity, care, and loss.
Sharon Dembo
Toronto Ontario
Sharon Dembo is a Toronto visual artist and a child and adult psychotherapist. Sharon began painting over 35 years ago. Over the past 15 years, she has explored a variety of printmaking modalities and uses them in conjunction with other media. She feels a fascination for printmaking and the freedom it gives her to explore her interest in dance and movement. Her work frequently uses textures and vibrant colours to express these dynamic gestures. Sharon has exhibited and sold her art at a number of venues in Toronto.
Wendy Mitchell
Toronto Ontario
Wendy Mitchell is a self-taught artist based in Toronto, specializing in highly detailed graphite portraiture. Using photographs as her reference, Wendy has completed a wide range of commissions, each showcasing her exceptional ability to render lifelike and expressive images. Wendy delights in how the medium of graphite demands simplification and focus. Her ultimate goal is to capture moments suspended in time, inviting viewers to pause, reflect, and connect with the stories within her portraits.
Wendy Natalie Wallace
https://www.wendywallaceart.ca
Oshawa Ontario
Wendy Wallace is a graduate from the University of Toronto, Sheridan College, and University of Ontario. Wallace has received many grants from the Ontario Arts Council and Canada Council. Wallace's work has been shown in numerous solo and group exhibitions and her works are in several public and private permanent collections.
I choose subjects based on my observations in the places and spaces I travel through, constructing compositions from experiential reality. The paintings are perceptions of change that have altered the environment, bringing to mind the interconnectedness of people, trees, water, land and architecture revealing narratives and stories in the landscapes of southern, central and eastern Ontario. Overall my images encompass my experiential connections in nature, becoming humanized cultural narratives merging memories with the present.
William Lottering
Newmarket Ontario
William Lottering grew up in Johannesburg, South Africa. As a teenager, he was enrolled in extra-curricular art classes at the Johannesburg College of Art and Design and took private drama lessons. Learning from respected practising arts professionals proved to be a life-long advantage; for example, he was taught painting by the Swiss artist Alice van Arckel and his drama teacher was the South African actor Miems de Bruyn. Another influence was Nico Van Rensburg, principal of the Johannesburg College of Art and Design. At a young age, William participated in art exhibitions and drama competitions and drew regular monthly cartoons for the youth magazine Patrys.
After graduating in Fine Arts at the University of Pretoria, William was invited by South African painter Bettie Cilliers-Barnard to join her installation team at the South African Association of the Arts. Installing art exhibitions bi-weekly, the young artist gained first-hand experience in jurying and gallery installation procedures; principles which he applied throughout his career. William met the drama director Francois Swart, whose intellectual influence and drama philosophy made a lasting impression on him. He spent many hours in the PACT (state drama and opera) workshops, where he was introduced to the technical aspect of the stage.
William started doing voice dubbing for Afrikaans TV and acted in radio dramas as an undergraduate student.
As a graduate, William taught life drawing part-time at Pretoria Tshwane University, but his first full-time appointment was in 1980 at the Pretoria Art, Ballet and Music School. Two years later, he was appointed full-time lecturer at the University of Pretoria Fine Arts Faculty, where he became friends with the head of the sculptor school professor Mike Edwards, art history professors F.G.E. Nilant and Alex Duffey, and the painter Ernst de Jong. Other influences were two of the most respected avant-garde painters in South Africa, Christo Coetzee and dame Bettie Cilliers-Barnard. During these years, Lottering juried many art shows and co-organized prominent national art competitions in South Africa, such as the Volkskas Atelier Exhibition and the New Signatures Exhibition.
Determined to make his mark, William Lottering stepped into the broadcasting world as a radio announcer and producer at the SABC. In the next decade at Radio Suid-Afrika, he created and presented arts programmes, wrote scripts, read news, conducted interviews, provided voice for TV and advertising, produced documentaries and directed over 200 radio dramas. The buzzing world of Radio Suid-Afrika, a national broadcaster, moulded the young artist into ‘a hands-on intellectual’. On the air, he presented a nationwide arts calendar and became a regular presenter at TV4. Expanding his activities, William regularly critiqued art exhibitions for INSIG, a South African news magazine. William refers to his broadcasting period as ‘probably the most exciting and influential time of my career.’ Apart from countless radio texts and a novel, Lottering has currently written nine plays. In the 1980's as an artist-broadcaster, William participated in annual excursions to Namibia, where he met prominent South African poets, painters, authors and scientists. Their exchanges had an significant impact on his artistic path and philosophy, which approached 'the landscape as a document'.
When Lottering moved to Canada in 1992, he resumed his role as art educator. With a rich background in art and drama, he became a program head at the York Region District School Board. William’s first Visual Arts department was in the town of Sutton where, in 1997, he directed an arts project in collaboration with the Chippewas on Georgina Island, Sutton DHS students and the local Georgina community. This project led to interrelated events such as plays, storytelling, writing, video and digital projects that lasted the full year. The culminating public installation was erected in town, proudly inaugurated during a provincial Indigenous Pow-Wow.
As program head, William initiated art events and festivals, and chaired arts committees. He was a co-director of ArtFun and Fantasy Day Camp, a York Region Arts Camp instructor between 1992-2016, and taught at the Haliburton School of the Arts in the summers of 1998-2004. He enjoyed designing sets and lighting for plays and musicals in his musical theatre course titled 'Exploring the Arts'. For a decade, his public contribution was co-organizing an annual volunteer graffiti clean-up with York Region Police, the Town of Aurora, and local secondary school students.
From 2014-2016, Lottering served an arts curriculum consultant for the York Region District School Board. This position provided him with an overview of the arts in York Region public schools, when he supported school administrations with planning and facilitating arts programs, designed and implemented arts curriculum and supported teachers in Visual Arts, Dance and Drama. During this time, William organized large-scale integrated arts events such as a two-year long commemoration of the Centenary of the Great War, and he served on the organizing committee of the annual international Quest Education Conference, where he coordinated student experimental arts projects and art displays.
William Lottering's artworks are regularly displayed in exhibitions and other events. Recently, he has focussed on his studio practice, although he still teaches painting and life drawing, writes plays, is a speaker on art topics and regularly travels for research. Lottering's work is represented in public collections and commissions in South Africa and Canada. He is a member of Propeller Art Collective in Toronto, the Playwrights Guild of Canada and is a member of the Ontario Society of Artists.
Young Hee Sung
East York Ontario
Laird Art Gallery was born out of solitude.
After years of painting alone, Young Hee Sung—artist, immigrant, and mother—felt a deep need for connection.
Longing to share her work and engage with others through art, she opened the gallery on Laird Drive in April 2022.
What began as a small, personal space has grown into a collaborative, artist-led gallery rooted in care, creativity, and community.
We are not a collector-driven gallery, nor do we have the resources or network to operate at that level—at least, not yet.
Instead, we move forward with what we do have: our creativity, our passion, and our honesty.
We welcome artists of all backgrounds—especially those at the beginning of their journey—who value slow, shared growth over spectacle.
Through exhibitions, conversations, and cross-disciplinary collaborations with poets, writers, and musicians, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Toronto’s diverse art scene.
The gallery has worked with nonprofit organizations—including All Seeds Academy, Maum Family Care Center (MFCC), Korean Artists’ Society of Canada (KASC), and Pilgrims Community Center Inc. (PCCI)—on art-based programs that reach beyond the gallery into classrooms, community centres, and healing spaces.
Our dream is simple: to build a space where art can breathe, heal, and connect.
