Cosmic Northside 2.0: Afrofuturistic Canadian Arts Conference

Presented by AstroSankofa Arts Initiatives in partnership with Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives (PAMA)

Cosmic Northside 1.0 panel, Ottawa, 2024. Photo: David Pistol.

Cosmic Northside 2.0: Afrofuturistic Canadian Arts Conference

November 20–21, 2026
Virtual and In-Person in Brampton, Ontario
Free conference admission

How can Black artists shape the futures we inherit—and the futures we create? Cosmic Northside 2.0 brings artists, cultural producers, and creative thinkers together to explore Afrofuturism as a living practice of imagination, cultural memory, artistic innovation, and collective possibility. Following its inaugural gathering in Ottawa in 2024, AstroSankofa Arts Initiatives brings this national conversation to Brampton for a free, two-day conference.

Across virtual and in-person programming, the conference considers the role of Black artists in transforming public space, strengthening cultural infrastructure, and connecting ancestral knowledge with contemporary and emerging artistic practices. It also asks who has access to artistic opportunities, resources, and decision-making power. By centring Black creative leadership, Cosmic Northside 2.0 creates space for dialogue about racial equity, barriers to participation, and more inclusive futures for Canada’s arts and culture sector.

GNG’s Salon: Tradition Meets Technology. Artwork: Asia Clarke / Wild Moon.

Virtual Program – Day 1
Friday, November 20, 2026 | 7:00pm ET
Online via Zoom
Register for the virtual program

The conference opens online with a program featuring artist MEDIAH (Evond Blake) and his Decimals Rebuilt project, alongside conversations about Black artistic leadership and cultural futures. The bilingual Black Arts Nexus dialogue connects perspectives on collaboration, artistic sovereignty, and the future of Black arts infrastructure in Canada.

TRILOGIA GRAFICA promo from the Decimal Rebuilt series by MEDIAH, 2024.

In-Person at PAMA – Day 2
Saturday, November 21, 2026 | 12:00–5:00pm
Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives (PAMA), Brampton
Register for Saturday at PAMA

The conference continues at PAMA with an afternoon of contemporary art, public art conversations, artist presentations, live African drumming and dance, and opportunities to meet Black artists and cultural innovators. A display of contemporary art complements the discussions and invites audiences to encounter Afrofuturist and speculative creative practices in person.

Highlights include Black Women in Public Art: Reclaiming Space, Shaping Futures, a conversation on how Black women artists transform shared environments through visual storytelling, cultural memory, and community-engaged practice. Presentations also feature Asia Clarke, whose work connects tradition and technology, and cultural producer Krystal Paraboo. Together, these exchanges consider representation not only as visibility, but as equitable access to commissions, cultural spaces, networks, and the opportunity to shape public narratives.

Saturday conference admission is free. Advance registration is encouraged; tickets will also be available at the door. A conference ticket does not include general admission to the museum.

For more information about the conference, visit:
www.astrosankofa.com/cosmic-northside

Fah Who Dis? AstroBlack Joy unveiling, Emancipation Park, Brampton, 2024. Photo: Garcia Creatives.

Funding Acknowledgement

Cosmic Northside 2.0 is supported by the Government of Canada through the Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Program (MARP), administered by Canadian Heritage. This support helps advance dialogue on racial equity, inclusion, and equitable participation in cultural life.

About AstroSankofa Arts Initiatives

AstroSankofa Arts Initiatives is a Black-led, Toronto-based nonprofit artist centre and collective advancing Afrofuturist public art, cultural production, and creative opportunities for Black artists and youth. Through public art, exhibitions, mentorship, and emerging technologies, the organization honours African and diasporic legacies while helping shape more equitable cultural futures. AstroSankofa was recognized with a 2026 Toronto Community Champion Award.

AstroSankofa Arts Initiatives
www.astrosankofa.com
info@astrosankofa.org
Instagram: @astrosankofa

Image Descriptions:
1. Ytasha Womack speaks into a microphone onstage beside three seated panelists at Cosmic Northside 1.0.
2. A colourful GNG’s Salon poster displays futuristic hairstyles and portraits under the words “Tradition Meets Technology.”
3. Four glossy, futuristic robot figures stand side by side in slanted panels of gold, red, blue-purple, and green.
4. A young person gestures in front of the colourful Fah Who Dis? AstroBlack Joy sculpture at Emancipation Park.