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Faculty of Art

Drawing and Painting

In the Drawing & Painting program, students learn to become a creative and engaged artist. Students concentrate on their painting studio skills and study art theory, history and contemporary social issues.
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Anika Becker
Anika Becker

Drawing and Painting

Anika Becker

“My practice is avidly growing with the knowledge I learn from the world around me. Looking closely at the environment, I'm constantly expanding my understanding of plant species coexisting with the knowledge of color theory, learning new various... More

Mar Marriott
Mar Marriott

Drawing and Painting

Mar Marriott

“Drawing from a variety of pop cultural, historical, and autobiographical imagery, my thesis work explores the strange and surreal quality of the image as a vehicle for the pagan. I use the word pagan (drawing from feminist academic Camille Paglia’s... More

Jennie Lau
Jennie Lau

Drawing and Painting

Jennie Lau

“My work investigates the relationships between human, architecture and nature, as well as time and space, and explores different ways of transforming them into a new contemporary visual language and experience. My research covers Abstract and... More

Stefani Adams
Stefani Adams

Drawing and Painting

Stefani Adams

“Through my artistic practice, I create room for awareness in the mind and body. Creating is a personal and intimate experience, it allows for a new understanding of the self and world. Within the process of painting and drawing, mindfulness is... More

Menelik Powell
Menelik Powell

Drawing and Painting

Menelik Powell aka. Guise

“There is always something that we can relate to with the human experience. While we each experience something unique, I think that the emotions that we feel when experiencing similar events connect us. I'm trying to link to you through my art, and... More

Carlos Bellorin
Carlos Bellorin

Drawing and Painting

Carlos Bellorin

“My name is Carlos Bellorin and I am a Latin X graduating student at OCAD U. My latest work is a series called Survival of the Fittest. Its about my life, but can also reflect the lives of others. As you will notice, the reoccurring theme through... More

Rashvena Khosa
Rashvena Khosa

Drawing and Painting

Rashvena Khosa aka. VENA

“I deconstruct discourses of time, space, memory, and colour perception by constructing temporal voids of floating tonal vibrations in flux parallel to emotional tones. The idea behind the question: what if we could perceive transmissions of colour... More

Justina Yu
Justina Yu

Drawing and Painting

Justina Yu

“My past and current works aim to dig deeper into my lived experience and investigate complex and conflicting emotions, major events, and life narrative. These works serve as a tangible translation and interpretation of the places in my mind, often... More

Lauren D'Ambrosio
Lauren D'Ambrosio

Drawing and Painting

Lauren D'Ambrosio

“My work addresses the complex, multifaceted nature of grief and mortality through the exploration of my lived experiences of loss. I reference these experiences through my memories, acknowledging them as living and decaying entities while... More

Nasim Salehi
Nasim Salehi

Drawing and Painting

Nasim Salehi

“Art allows us to tell our personal stories in a way that can be understood by all people, no matter what language they speak ”

Ash Randall-colalillo
Ash Randall-colalillo

Drawing and Painting

Ash Randall-colalillo aka. ARC

“As artist’s, it is important to ask about the significance of one’s self in space, time, as well as how we move within the space we possess in our bodies. What value do we place on our interactions with transitional relationships of our external... More

Sara Abulkarim
Sara Abulkarim

Drawing and Painting

Sara Abulkarim

“My paintings are a reflection of my life; memories, meaningful places, and feelings. ”

Aiesha Baig
Aiesha Baig

Drawing and Painting

Aiesha Baig

“The greatest proof of God’s existence is seen through the beauty of nature. Spirituality and kinship one feels to the Creator are contemplated through the moment act of performance between the experience of space and painted articulation. Painting... More

Samantha Goldman
Samantha Goldman

Drawing and Painting

Samantha Goldman aka. Sh3mona

“My sculptural works reimagine the humble Jewish folk art of papercutting. I am seeking to preserve this vanishing tradition using contemporary materials— evoking imagery from my own Jewish upbringing and research of related historical texts, songs... More

Paulina Padilla
Paulina Padilla

Drawing and Painting

Paulina Padilla aka. Citronelaa

“My work navigates the instincts of the body in its different manifestations. Experiencing our body through a screen, can magnify the distraction and entrainement lens through which we encounter the world. The silent qualities of painting, I believe... More

Dayna Schaly
Dayna Schaly

Drawing and Painting

Dayna Schaly

“I listen to the conversation between the bleeding watercolour and breathing canvas. Fragments of handmade paper bring up the daydreams I’ve interviewed. Cut, stitched, and layered, they tell of a dialogue with the self. Left behind is an immersive... More

Anam  Feerasta
Anam Feerasta

Drawing and Painting

Anam Feerasta

“I think of my paintings as deconstructed self-portraits. They explore feelings of fragmentation that are rooted in my ongoing struggle to build an independent identity, whilst balancing familial and cultural expectations. Painted primarily in... More

Angel Chi
Angel Chi

Drawing and Painting

Angel Chi

“The fleeting moments in life bring us to create memories to look back on. My practice focuses on those moments while exploring materials and layers in different forms. Be it my passion, hobbies, experiences, pop culture or origin, being able to... More

Matt Thomas
Matt Thomas

Drawing and Painting

Matt Thomas

“I use painting as a means of introspection, reflection and discovery. I’m interested in the psychological aspects of painting, and how it relates to the viewers’ body and mind through its scale, symmetry, colour and form. I’m equally as concerned... More

Rachael Grad
Rachael Grad

Drawing and Painting

Rachael Grad

“Motherhood is mayhem. My art subjects reflect parenting moments, and my painting technique is a reference to, and mocking of, art history movements such as the machismo of the Abstract Expressionist painters. Currently my art practice is driven by... More

Olivia Trivieri
Olivia Trivieri

Drawing and Painting

Olivia Trivieri

“Collecting is something intuitive, one cannot help but to be inclined to collect something, whether tangible or not. This is a representation of both a physical collection, but also a collection of memories and the emotions tied to them. These... More

Sophia Kyungwon Kim
Sophia Kyungwon Kim

Drawing and Painting

Sophia Kyungwon Kim

“As a heterosexual feminist full of maternal instinct who is struggling to find my place between the art spirit and patriarchal capitalistic reality, I consider where women can stand when motherhood is forced by society or one's maternal instinct... More

Han(a) Clayton
Han(a) Clayton

Drawing and Painting

Han(a) Clayton

“I would like to begin my explanation of my work with a quote from The Faggots and Their Friends Between Revolutions by Larry Mitchel. “When the faggots visit the fairies it is always like entering a wonderful dream. It seems like a dream to the... More

Annabelle Macrae
Annabelle Macrae

Drawing and Painting

Annabelle Macrae

“My process of foraged organic materials is translated between digital and painting. I explore humankind's inherent connection to nature, conceptual acts of preservation, and the critical take on my childhood biophilic connections. Repetitive... More

Michelle Haley Rosen
Michelle Haley Rosen

Drawing and Painting

Michelle Haley Rosen aka. Michelle Haley

“Dynamic Unity is the name I have given to my lifelong, ever evolving & accumulating body of work. This term also refers to the philosophy and process of how the work is produced & reflected upon. It is a visual metaphor for my perception of life &... More

Simpson Ross
Simpson Ross

Drawing and Painting

Simpson Ross aka. Grooble

“I'm just an itty bitty gnome trying to find their way in this too big world. A gnome really isn't meant to be an artist but I'm determined to break out of the gnomey mold. <:) ”

Rabiyah Sagheer
Rabiyah Sagheer

Drawing and Painting

Rabiyah Sagheer

“The heart of Lahore lies not in its physical location, but in the souls of those who call it home. Evading its grasp is futile, for Lahore has a way of permeating one's existence. More

Robbie Pyche
Robbie Pyche

Drawing and Painting

Robbie Pyche

“In my practice I am fascinated with belief and symbolism as a common human phenomena, found across cultures as religion or magic. In my paintings, I utilize symbolic forms representing the divine embedded in our shared visual language and combine... More

Sandra Pascuzzi
Sandra Pascuzzi

Drawing and Painting

Sandra Pascuzzi

“Finding wonder in the ordinary things around me. ”

Iris Adrienne Langlois-Smith
Iris Adrienne Langlois-Smith

Drawing and Painting

Iris Adrienne Langlois-Smith

“Nest 2022 encapsulates play between inner and outer worlds, proposing visual bridges between the two. Through painting and sculpture, I visualize & map emotion and pain in my body. Through installation, I explore what it means for a place to be... More

Alessandra Singh
Alessandra Singh

Drawing and Painting

Alessandra Singh aka. Aly

“Fear-inducing vulnerability in personal expression creates coexisting traits that form an illusion of distorted identity, presented in my work by fragmented faces. Using acrylic, texture, and woven canvas allowed me to cathartically present certain... More

Lesley Chan
Lesley Chan

Drawing and Painting

Lesley Chan

“My thesis work explores the ontology of nature beyond the human influence, disassociating from the innate human behavior of attaching sentiments towards inanimate objects. By deconstructing the natural shapes and textures of plant life into... More

Em Vizcaino
Em Vizcaino

Drawing and Painting

Em Vizcaino

“Working through themes of identity, gender, sexuality, mental health, ethnicity, existence under different lenses, and humanity itself. ”

Stephanie Persaud
Stephanie Persaud

Drawing and Painting

Stephanie Persaud

“As an artist, I aim to include the human experience in my work. I welcome all, from different walks of life, to view my pieces and infer their own interpretations. Through this, I think we can all learn from one another and see things we have never... More

Samantha Jacklin
Samantha Jacklin

Drawing and Painting

Samantha Jacklin

“Life is experienced through the inside and outside world, physically and emotionally. By painting on layers of plexiglass, I depict isolation experienced from social anxiety and the pandemic. Through the use of dull and bright colours peaking... More

laleh Saramiforoshani
laleh Saramiforoshani

Drawing and Painting

laleh Saramiforoshani

“I was painting to enrich my leisure time, to create something beautiful; then, I discovered the power of art. ”

Hiroshi Nakatsugawa
Hiroshi Nakatsugawa

Drawing and Painting

Hiroshi Nakatsugawa

“Through the slow process of layering marks with coloured pencils, my generative drawings are explorations of natural and spiritual entities. With a profound sincerity, my work evokes a quiet, gauzy intensity through different layers of colours and... More

Emerald Repard-Denniston
Emerald Repard-Denniston

View Medal Winners

Drawing and Painting

Emerald Repard-Denniston

“I question; am I an unreliable narrator or an invalidated one? My work welcomes the viewer into my escapist, coming-of-age recollection. Ruminating on gender biases, identity crises, imposter syndromes, and social statuses, the figure becomes a... More

Cassandra Atter
Cassandra Atter

Drawing and Painting

Cassandra Atter

“Through multiple mediums and techniques, my abstract work is about the contrast of controlled and free flowing paint. I juxtapose stains with thickly applied cold wax and modelling paste by layering them on top of each other. Pouring the paint also... More

Adam Gourlay
Adam Gourlay

Drawing and Painting

Adam Gourlay

“Curveball ”

Alyssa-Jaylene Adato
Alyssa-Jaylene Adato

Drawing and Painting

Alyssa-Jaylene Adato aka. AJs Alley

“Art can be heartfelt, expressive, passionate, and conceptual. My work is not just painting or illustration but a whole vision that brings forth endless creativity. In my work, I use the visual element to communicate an honesty about the world we... More

Clara (Eunkoung) Kim
Clara (Eunkoung) Kim

Drawing and Painting

Clara (Eunkoung) Kim aka. She/her

“My artworks focus on portraying how the state of mind and emotions play a significant role in revealing that interaction between the viewer and the painting, and how that creates in the viewer a path to some truth about tribulations and subsequent... More

Laura Klinard
Laura Klinard

Drawing and Painting

Laura Klinard

“Emotion and memory are observed through everyday experience and represented through a combination of observational and abstract methods. Representational drawings and paintings often morph into atmospheric abstractions, bridging the gap between... More

Raha Alipourfard
Raha Alipourfard

Drawing and Painting

Raha Alipourfard

“In my collections, I critique Iranian patterns and my cultural identity through mixed media paintings and their semiotics inspired by Persian rugs, Farsi calligraphy, and tiles motifs from mosques. Appropriated Farsi Poems, patterns, and figures... More

Gabbi Culham-Putnoki
Gabbi Culham-Putnoki

Drawing and Painting

Gabbi Culham-Putnoki

Yemin Sim
Yemin Sim

Drawing and Painting

Yemin Sim

“One day I picked up a copy of an anime film titled 'Tekkonkinkreet' out of a box of discounted DVD's. I was amazed by the backgrounds and this influenced me to depict my own surroundings beautifully. ”

Sophia Fraresso
Sophia Fraresso

Drawing and Painting

Sophia Fraresso

“The series titled Strangers in Toronto is a cultural cross section of the city; a collection of painted faces of various strangers photographed throughout Toronto. Guiding the spectator to confront the gaze of the individuals, the purpose of... More

Yuefeng(Eileen) Li
Yuefeng(Eileen) Li

Drawing and Painting

Yuefeng(Eileen) Li

“Wildfire is an essential mechanism for ecosystems: fire-affected environments help multi- species germinate, establish, or reproduce. I reserve white space on compositions by applying heat to leave indexical imprints on surfaces covered by snow. My... More

Holly MacMillan
Holly MacMillan

Drawing and Painting

Holly MacMillan

“After the healing process of receiving a new tattoo, the ink sits just beneath the surface of the skin. I always found that so fascinating because that means your tattoos truly become a part of you. A discovery I have made over my years of talking... More

Kira Brown
Kira Brown

Drawing and Painting

Kira Brown

Duo Li
Duo Li

Drawing and Painting

Duo Li

Keana Gauvin
Keana Gauvin

Drawing and Painting

Keana Gauvin

Andrew Hamilton
Andrew Hamilton

Drawing and Painting

Andrew Hamilton

Olivia Jarvis
Olivia Jarvis

Drawing and Painting

Olivia Jarvis

Melissa Marler
Melissa Marler

Drawing and Painting

Melissa Marler

Carson Van Vliet
Carson Van Vliet

Drawing and Painting

Carson Van Vliet

Effy Tang
Effy Tang

Drawing and Painting

Effy Tang

Sarina Antonacci
Sarina Antonacci

Drawing and Painting

Sarina Antonacci

Tristen Amaral
Tristen Amaral

Drawing and Painting

Tristen Amaral

Burak Ka
Burak Ka

Drawing and Painting

Burak Ka

Nick Kovrigin
Nick Kovrigin

Drawing and Painting

Nick Kovrigin

Tariq Saeed
Tariq Saeed

Drawing and Painting

Tariq Saeed

Chenxiao Guo
Chenxiao Guo

Drawing and Painting

Chenxiao Guo

Wanyi Yin
Wanyi Yin

Drawing and Painting

Wanyi Yin

Celebrate the work of OCAD U’s class of 2021/2022!