Paul Aloisi & Charlie green – Open Canvas Project: GATHER
Open Canvas Project in Partnership with Toronto History Museums
Open Canvas Project: GATHER, installation view, Todmorden Mills Papermill Gallery, 2026. Photo: Paul Aloisi.
Paul Aloisi & Charlie green
Open Canvas Project: GATHER
September 2–27, 2026
Public Reception: Saturday, September 26, 1–4pm ET
Todmorden Mills Papermill Gallery, Toronto
The Exhibition
Now on view at Todmorden Mills Papermill Gallery, Open Canvas Project: GATHER presents collaborative paintings created through 2026 public activations at Toronto History Museums alongside selected works from the project archive.
Created by Paul Aloisi and Charlie green in 2001, Open Canvas Project invites public participants to contribute to large-scale collaborative paintings in shared spaces. Over 25 years, the project has gathered marks, gestures, stories, and encounters through participatory artmaking, co-creation, and self-expression.
The exhibition features two new paintings created through Open Canvas Project’s 2026 partnership with Toronto History Museums at Todmorden Mills and Spadina Museum. These works are presented alongside archival paintings and documentation from earlier moments in the project’s history, including works by Aloisi and green with participating artists, musicians, community members, and passersby. Together, the exhibition traces the project’s evolving relationship to public space, collective authorship, and spontaneous creative exchange.
GATHER zines written and designed by Lana Hoang with unique covers cut from a one-to-one scale photograph of a giant Open Canvas painting, with limited-edition risograph centre-fold inserts, 2026. Photo: Paul Aloisi.
Public Reception
A public reception will take place on Saturday, September 26, 1–4pm ET. Artist Paul Aloisi will be present, and light refreshments will be served. Visitors are invited to gather at Todmorden Mills Papermill Gallery to experience the exhibition and celebrate 25 years of Open Canvas Project.
Zine Giveaway
The reception will also feature a limited giveaway of GATHER, a text zine by Lana Hoang, a Master of Inclusive Design student who participated in the project through an OCAD University Field Placement.
Each zine has a unique cover cut from a one-to-one scale photograph of a giant Open Canvas painting and includes a limited-edition risograph centre-fold insert. The first 25 guests at the public reception will receive a free copy, limited to one per family or group. Additional copies will be available on a pay-what-you-can basis.
Open Canvas Project, Rhythmicru Open Canvas archival display, including album artwork, vinyl record, and original collaborative painting. Installation view, Open Canvas Project: GATHER, Todmorden Mills Papermill Gallery, 2026. Photo: Paul Aloisi.
About the Artists
Paul Aloisi (Toronto-based interdisciplinary artist and educator) and Charlie green (Brooklyn-based visual artist) created Open Canvas Project in 2001 as a participatory painting project rooted in public space, collective expression, and spontaneous collaboration. Since then, the project has unfolded through public activations, residencies, cultural events, and informal gatherings in Toronto and internationally, producing a 25-year archive of collaborative paintings and documentation.
The project also intersects with Toronto’s independent music and artist-run communities. Archival works in the exhibition include the Rhythmicru Open Canvas album cover and original painting, as well as the Rhythmicru Crazy As A Loon video painting featuring collaborators Elicsr, EGR, Nicholas Di Genova, Lease, and others.
Todmorden Mills Papermill Gallery
67 Pottery Road
East York, Toronto ON M4K 2B9
Hours:
Wednesday–Sunday, 11am–4pm
Admission:
Free admission and parking
Accessibility:
Todmorden Mills Papermill Gallery is partial accessibility. Please contact the museum for full details.
Open Canvas Project
www.opencanvasproject.com
opencanvasproject@gmail.com
Instagram @opencanvasproject
Acknowledgements
This exhibition is supported by the Ontario Arts Council and the Government of Ontario. Materials support provided by Above Ground Art Supplies.
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