Celebrating Brad Turner
V Vallières and Hannah Faas

Meet this year’s TOAF Awards recipients in Craft & Design.

Brad Turner’s glass works are just dreamy, striking a balance between precision and poetry. He takes home a high honour, the Best of Craft & Design Award, a $2,000 prize generously supported by Robert K. E. Mitchell & Brian H. Wade of Mitchell Studios, supporters of thoughtful material practice.

V Vallières’ ceramic sculptures are tender, humorous, and leave a lasting impression. It’s an honour to have our longtime champion of ceramics, acclaimed collector Aaron Milrad, select V for the Best of Ceramics Award of $2,000.

Hannah Faas’ intentionally sweet, playful, and inquisitive works received the Ceramics Excellence Award, a $500 gift card from Tucker’s Pottery Supplies.

And some wonderful news: we’re proud to introduce a new Best of Textile Award, generously supported by Chung-Im Kim and Steve Heinemann—celebrated, prolific artists and makers. With a $1,650 prize, this new award shines a spotlight on textile practices. We can’t wait to see innovative textile artists step forward for TOAF65.

Let’s celebrate craft and design, and the incredible makers and designers shaping it, over the next two weeks in Toronto with our favourite festival, DesignTO.

Enjoy exploring and learning more about Brad, V, and Hannah.

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Brad Turner 
Best of Craft & Design

“I create sculptural and functional glass objects with a focus on diversity, superb craftsmanship, and conceptual originality. Using the medium’s unique characteristics, I seek to create well-made, thoughtful objects that add relevant content to the world’s creative landscape.” 

— Brad Turner

Hear from Award Judge Janna Hiemstra

“Brad’s Vitridome pieces are an incredible approach to glass as a material. Overall, highly refined designs and flawless execution. Simply stunning.”

— Janna Hiemstra, Manager, Craft & Design at Harbourfront Centre 

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V Vallières
Aaron Milrad’s Best of Ceramics

V on their practice 

“I have a practice of working on multiple pieces in varying mediums at the same time, making sure I don’t get stuck on one piece and I can work on pieces both at the studio (clay) and at home (textiles/ drawing etc.) Each sculpture takes me about 2 months to complete. My textile pieces at home are more long-form and freestyle. Mostly made on the couch or bed, their slow-pace acknowledges the fluctuations in my life.”

— V Vallières

Hear from Judge Aaron Milrad

“For me — this could be a best of sculpture award — also best humorous award. The works were full of personality! Charming too. Fun to live with!”

— Aaron Milrad, Art Collector & President, Surreal Holding Inc.

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Hannah Faas
Ceramics Excellence Award

“My work explores themes of femininity, domesticity, sweetness, and frivolity, and challenges the perception that sweet and frivolous things are submissive, naive, unprofessional, and overall lacking value. I am interested in my work exploring and inhabiting seemingly opposing identities simultaneously, being both joyful and melancholic, confident and gauche, and beautiful and off-putting at once.”

— Hannah Faas

Hear from Judge Janna Hiemstra

“Already a master of form and decoration with a unique aesthetic. Glazing approach is incredible, with lots of joy in each piece and design. Functional lamps are a delight.”

— Janna Hiemstra, Manager, Craft & Design at Harbourfront Centre

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Fun Rapid-Fire with the crafty award winners

Get to know Brad, Hannah, and V through their off-hours hobbies, late-night creative habits, studio soundtracks and fun facts…

Your non-art hobby?

“Antiquing home goods- my favourite things to collect are vintage glass and ceramics (who would’ve guessed!)”

— Hannah

Midnight or morning creator? 

“Definitely midnight, that’s when I feel more relaxed.”

— V

Fun fact about your career?

“I was featured in Season 2 of Netflix’s Blown Away!”

— Brad 

Your go-to studio sound track?

“Depending on the day- true crime and historical podcasts or my own playlist that has a little of everything on it.”— Hannah