Art Nest
A home for public art explorations
In 2023, Art Nest featured commissioned artwork by five artists responding to the structure, architecture and meaning of Nathan Phillips Square.
2023 Art Nest was curated by Fatma Hendawy Yehia with participating artists: Kristi Chen, Michelle Cieloszczyk, Rana Nazzal Hamadeh, Studio Rat, Stephanie Singh.
From the Curator
Toronto holds inextricable layers of cultural diversity that make up the unique narratives and histories, including those of several marginalized and precarious communities. Public spaces in Toronto tend to reflect the city’s temporality, particularly as the pace of development has intensified over the past years. As a result of this dynamic, artists are often occupied with finding ways to activate and revitalize public spaces.
This year, Art Nest focuses on these narratives of precarity and diversity and how they overlap in Toronto. The artists in this exhibition share their personal and collective histories and use sustainable materials to immerse and engage us within this particular public space. They create an opportunity to contemplate Toronto as a place where differences are celebrated as a concept, while not yet fully activated and experienced within the public realm.
– Fatma Hendawy Yehia
Jasmine Scented Garden, Kristi Chen, 2023, jasmine scented incense sticks, douglas fir plywood, baltic birch plywood and greenhouse, 73″ W x 99″ L x 82″ H.
Soft Monument, Studio Rat, 2023, Reclaimed L.D.P.E plastic sheeting, wood, air, axial fan, misc. Hardware, 12′ W x 13′ L x 10′ H.
Carapace Pillar, Michelle Cieloszczyk, 2021, Silicone, steel, hardware, 17.5″ W x 17.5″ L x 72.75″ H.
105 Threads, Rana Nazzal Hamadeh, 2023, textile on concrete.
a seat at my table, Stephanie Singh, 2023, Table base: Ash wood, India ink stain, OSMO black oil, OSMO polyx matte oil, Top Slab: Resin slab immersed with Organics from Jamaica: botanicals, plants and spices, 34” W x 72” L x 29” H.
Participating Artists
Kristi Chen
Jasmine Scented Garden, 2023, jasmine scented incense sticks, douglas fir plywood, baltic birch plywood and greenhouse, 73″ W x 99″ L x 82″ H.
Kristi Chen is a multidisciplinary artist utilising sculpture and installation to explore the nature of identity, diaspora and the recultivation of lost familial archives. A recent graduate from OCAD University with a bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture/Installation, she has showcased across Toronto and Ontario in various sites from a farm to a greenhouse. She has shown at the Downtown Haliburton Sculpture Exhibition, ON (2023), Between Pheasants Contemporary, ON (2023), Art Gallery Mississauga ON (2022), Artscape Gibraltar Point ON (2022), Elora Sculpture Project, ON (2022), Xpace Cultural Centre ON (2021), Good Family Farms, ON (2021), Abbozzo Gallery, ON (2021) and the J-spot x the plumb (2021). In July 2023, this will be Kristi’s first exhibit in the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair with Art Nest.
Kristi Chen
Jasmine Scented Garden, 2023, jasmine scented incense sticks, douglas fir plywood, baltic birch plywood and greenhouse, 73″ W x 99″ L x 82″ H.
Kristi Chen is a multidisciplinary artist utilising sculpture and installation to explore the nature of identity, diaspora and the recultivation of lost familial archives. A recent graduate from OCAD University with a bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture/Installation, she has showcased across Toronto and Ontario in various sites from a farm to a greenhouse. She has shown at the Downtown Haliburton Sculpture Exhibition, ON (2023), Between Pheasants Contemporary, ON (2023), Art Gallery Mississauga ON (2022), Artscape Gibraltar Point ON (2022), Elora Sculpture Project, ON (2022), Xpace Cultural Centre ON (2021), Good Family Farms, ON (2021), Abbozzo Gallery, ON (2021) and the J-spot x the plumb (2021). In July 2023, this will be Kristi’s first exhibit in the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair with Art Nest.
Kristi Chen
Jasmine Scented Garden, 2023, jasmine scented incense sticks, douglas fir plywood, baltic birch plywood and greenhouse, 73″ W x 99″ L x 82″ H.
Kristi Chen is a multidisciplinary artist utilising sculpture and installation to explore the nature of identity, diaspora and the recultivation of lost familial archives. A recent graduate from OCAD University with a bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture/Installation, she has showcased across Toronto and Ontario in various sites from a farm to a greenhouse. She has shown at the Downtown Haliburton Sculpture Exhibition, ON (2023), Between Pheasants Contemporary, ON (2023), Art Gallery Mississauga ON (2022), Artscape Gibraltar Point ON (2022), Elora Sculpture Project, ON (2022), Xpace Cultural Centre ON (2021), Good Family Farms, ON (2021), Abbozzo Gallery, ON (2021) and the J-spot x the plumb (2021). In July 2023, this will be Kristi’s first exhibit in the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair with Art Nest.
Kristi Chen
Jasmine Scented Garden, 2023, jasmine scented incense sticks, douglas fir plywood, baltic birch plywood and greenhouse, 73″ W x 99″ L x 82″ H.
Kristi Chen is a multidisciplinary artist utilising sculpture and installation to explore the nature of identity, diaspora and the recultivation of lost familial archives. A recent graduate from OCAD University with a bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture/Installation, she has showcased across Toronto and Ontario in various sites from a farm to a greenhouse. She has shown at the Downtown Haliburton Sculpture Exhibition, ON (2023), Between Pheasants Contemporary, ON (2023), Art Gallery Mississauga ON (2022), Artscape Gibraltar Point ON (2022), Elora Sculpture Project, ON (2022), Xpace Cultural Centre ON (2021), Good Family Farms, ON (2021), Abbozzo Gallery, ON (2021) and the J-spot x the plumb (2021). In July 2023, this will be Kristi’s first exhibit in the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair with Art Nest.
Kristi Chen
Jasmine Scented Garden, 2023, jasmine scented incense sticks, douglas fir plywood, baltic birch plywood and greenhouse, 73″ W x 99″ L x 82″ H.
Kristi Chen is a multidisciplinary artist utilising sculpture and installation to explore the nature of identity, diaspora and the recultivation of lost familial archives. A recent graduate from OCAD University with a bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture/Installation, she has showcased across Toronto and Ontario in various sites from a farm to a greenhouse. She has shown at the Downtown Haliburton Sculpture Exhibition, ON (2023), Between Pheasants Contemporary, ON (2023), Art Gallery Mississauga ON (2022), Artscape Gibraltar Point ON (2022), Elora Sculpture Project, ON (2022), Xpace Cultural Centre ON (2021), Good Family Farms, ON (2021), Abbozzo Gallery, ON (2021) and the J-spot x the plumb (2021). In July 2023, this will be Kristi’s first exhibit in the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair with Art Nest.
Curator
Rafi Ghanaghounian,
Independent Curator
Rafi Ghanaghounian has been a staple in the Toronto visual arts and design community as an artist, independent curator and consultant for the last twenty years. He has exhibited and organized exhibitions and events that have represented national and international artists, many of whom have moved on to become representatives in international exhibitions and fairs through respected galleries and museums.
Advisor
Rui Pimenta
Rui Pimenta practiced as a visual artist from 2000 – 2014, exhibiting his work extensively in Canada and internationally. Since then his creative focus has shifted towards programming and curation. In 2009, he founded Art Spin, an arts organization now entering its 13th year of presenting site-specific, multidisciplinary programming in unique/alternative spaces and best known for its bicycle art tours. He was the Co-Director for Median Contemporary (2008-10) and has curated projects for the Toronto Artists Project, the Toronto Outdoor Exhibition, Eastern Front Gallery and the Government of Portugal. He has served on various arts council juries, was a member of the City of Toronto’s Public Art Strategy Advisory Committee and currently sits on The Bentway Advisory Committee. His curatorial aspirations are largely motivated by the enthusiastic pursuit of creating engaging and accessible ways to present art in public space.
Technical Director
Calder Ross
Calder Ross is a Stage Manager and Designer with over 10 years of experience executing events and arts exhibitions. With a background in building and construction, Calder has developed an ability to see the project vision and work collaboratively to deliver a polished and well constructed final product. For Art Nest, Calder evaluated and analyzed the technical requirements, safety, and liability requirements of each work, and liaised with the building permit engineer and artists to ensure the artists’ ideas were attainable.
Thank You
