Onsite Gallery, OCAD University

Wednesday, November 6, 2024, 12pm – 2pm
Onsite Gallery, 199 Richmond Street West, Toronto
Register Here

Join invited panelists, Nabeela Yasmeen Malik, Ehiko Odeh, Diane Mikhael and Par Nair, as they delve into the captivating realms of language, cultural identity, and materials expressed through their stories and artworks. Through the panelists’ creative practices and artistic works, they will explore the transformative power inherent in these narratives. This is a remarkable opportunity to witness and learn firsthand how these narratives transcend boundaries, empower agency, and carve out essential spaces for cultural empowerment. Stay engaged with the live Q&A session moderated by Onsite Gallery’s Programs & Community Coordinator, Susan Jama.

Exploring Languages in Different Forms coincides with Onsite Gallery’s current exhibition _other tongues part I communication.

Currently on view at Onsite Gallery, _other tongues part I communication, Jean Marshall: Anikoobijikewin, Doktor Karayom: No One’s at Home (Walang Tao Sa Bahay) and Maureen Gruben | Up Front: Inuit Public Art @ Onsite Gallery.

About the Panelists

Images (left to right): Nabeela Yasmeen Malik and Diane Mikhael

Nabeela Yasmeen Malik is an artist and entrepreneur with expertise in calligraphy, geometry, and metalsmithing. She crafts immersive experiences by integrating light, architectural elements, and language, drawing on scientific, historical, and religious research to add layers of meaning and depth to her work.

Diane Mikhael is an Associate Professor in the Graphic Design Department at OCAD University. Her research interest revolves around multilingual typography, design, and culture, design for social change, design activism, the politics of design, radical futures and the new narratives, and technology in design. She is the author of the book Bilingualism in Visual Communication: Visible Forms and Meaning in Arabic and Latin Typography (2017) and the co-founder and former President of the Middle East Design Educators Association (MEDEA).

Images (left to right): Par Nair and Ehiko Odeh

Par Nair (she/her) is an Indian-born interdisciplinary artist, researcher and educator who lives and makes in the GTA (Canada). Her practice, which centers on hand embroidery, oil painting, installation, and creative writing explores lived experiences of diaspora using decolonial methods and a return to ancestral practices. Her recent work is an attempt at unravelling and reimagining historical narratives of Indian women. Par currently teaches drawing at OCAD University. www.parnair.format.com

Ehiko Odeh is a multidisciplinary artist, arts facilitator, arts educator, memory worker and researcher rooted in mysticism and play. Through her exploration of painting, collage techniques, and textiles, she intertwines themes of coiffure—encompassing the products, ingredients, and distribution across African countries. Ehiko incorporates ethnobotany into her practice to educate and promote sovereignty through the knowledge of herbalism & wellness. Ehiko holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and a minor in Creative Writing from OCAD University (2021). Her paintings have been exhibited across the GTA at multiple galleries and is currently an artist-in-residence at the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga.

About the Moderator

Susan Jama

Susan Jama is an art worker with over 5 years of experience leading community engagement and public arts programming with strong grassroots experience. She is the Programs and Community Coordinator at Onsite Gallery. Susan has worked with various institutions that approach heritage in a community-minded manner including Toronto Ward Museum (TWM) and Black Artists’ Networks in Dialogue Gallery & Cultural Centre (BAND). She graduated with a Masters of Museum Studies from University of Toronto and completed her Bachelor in Psychology & History at York University. She currently serves on the Museum Education Roundtable board as co-treasurer.

Onsite Gallery is generously supported by The Delaney Family.

About Onsite Gallery
www.ocadu.ca/onsite

Onsite Gallery, OCAD University’s flagship professional gallery, presents contemporary, Indigenous, and public art and design to advance knowledge creation and stimulate local and international conversations on the urgent issues of our time.

Onsite Gallery
199 Richmond Street West
Toronto, ON M5V 0H4

Gallery Hours
Wednesday: 12 to 7pm
Thursday to Saturday: 12 to 5pm

Gallery admission and all events are free.

Onsite Gallery is an accessible venue with all-gender, single-user washrooms.
» Detailed accessibility information found here

About OCAD University (OCAD U)
OCAD University (www.ocadu.ca) is Canada’s university of the imagination. Founded in 1876, the university is dedicated to art, design and digital media education, practice and research and to knowledge and invention across a wide range of disciplines.

Contact Information:
Susan Jama
Programs & Community Coordinator, Onsite Gallery
susanjama@ocadu.ca

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