Akin members at the Artist Project, March 26-29
The countdown to the 2026 Artist Project has begun!
We're thrilled to announce the participation of six current Akin members alongside numerous alumni. Join them at the Enercare Centre from March 26-29, along with over 250 independent artists. Immerse yourself in an atmosphere crafted to spark meaningful dialogues and forge intimate connections with art. Delve into a vast array of artworks and large-scale installations, partake in curator-led art tours, and discover that perfect piece that speaks to your soul.
AKIN MEMBERS
Amita Sen Gupta, Akin Niagara
Amita Sen Gupta is a painter living and working in Toronto. Her recent series of dream sky-scapes describe a play of light, bringing the viewer into an introspective journey. The work allows for perception to play with perspective, and awareness to move from pictorial to interpretive. ‘I translate a felt inner energy into rhythmic brush strokes through layers of thinned paint, which contour movement and expose space through their transparency’. Amita’s paintings enable a look at a space never explored, and in looking outward, to actually look inward. Her paintings have been exhibited throughout Ontario, including at The Art Gallery of Hamilton, Gallery 1065, Art Quarters Gallery, The Gladstone Hotel, and Art Rental + Sales Gallery at the Art Gallery of Ontario.
View their Artist Project profile here
Carlos Olavarrieta, Akin Richmond-Bathurst
Carlos Olavarrieta is an oil painter. Geometric and abstract oil paintings are brought to life through the act of painting, without sketches or preconceived images. Dry brush on canvas maintains a rough texture and light touch, which does not overwork the painting.
View entire Artist Project profile here
Miles Ingrassia, Akin Dupont
Miles is a painter and printmaker based out of Toronto.
View their Artist Project profile here
Haley Meyer, Akin Queen East
Haley Meyer is an oil painter based in Toronto. Her work explores the connection between memory loss and transitional places, using fleeting images taken while in transit to reflect how memories slip, fade, and blur over time. The world seen from these spaces is impermanent and distorted, mirroring the way memory loss fractures and reshapes past experiences. Through painting, she is able to organize, preserve, and remember fading experiences. In 2025, Haley received three Career Launcher opportunities in association with OCAD University and was awarded the Arts & Letters Club of Toronto Foundation Ina Gilbert Visual Arts Award. She has exhibited her work across Ontario and graduated from OCAD University’s Drawing & Painting program with a minor in Printmaking & Publications.
View their Artist Project profile here
Isabella Ramirez, Akin Davisville
Isabella Ramirez is a Colombian contemporary artist based in Toronto. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drawing and Painting with a Minor in Illustration from OCAD University. Her work draws inspiration from her personal environment; family, friends, and lived experiences, while exploring themes of cultural identity, and the process of coming of age.
Ramirez works across a variety of mediums, including oil paint, acrylic, colored pencils, markers, and ink. Her practice reflects a strong commitment to self-discovery and an ongoing exploration of the world around her, often enriched by her travels and encounters with different cultures.
A central element of her work is her deep connection to her homeland, Colombia. Recently, she has been creating pieces that bridge her life in Canada with her Colombian roots, reflecting on her childhood and the ways her upbringing continues to shape her perspective and artistic voice today.
View their Artist Project profile here
Janne Reuss, Akin Yonge-St Clair
Janne Reuss was born and raised in Mexico City and is currently based in Toronto, Canada. She has been a professional practicing artist for more than two decades, having lived, worked and exhibited her artwork in Mexico, United States, Germany, Italy and Canada. She studied Fine Arts at the Academy of Art & Design in Stuttgart, Germany and History of Art in Mexico City. Her preferred media are photography and collage, but she also paints, often cycling fluidly between the three. Through the metaphor of trees and branches she inquires how experiences of home and place are imprinted deep inside of her. She layers her photographs - often overpainting them - in order to recreate the intricate process of remembering. Janne’s work is held in private and public collections including the Donovan Art Collection at St. Michael’s College (Canada) and the Municipal Gallery of Ostfildern (Germany).
View their Artist Project profile here
Melika Saeeda, Akin 2025 Space Award Recipient
Melika Saeeda is an Iranian-Canadian visual artist based in Toronto. Working across mural, painting, and narrative image-making, her practice explores memory, migration, and identity through layered compositions and luminous colour. Rooted in storytelling yet grounded in contemporary art discourse, her work moves between public space and the intimate scale of the page. Her work has been recognized with the Best of Art Fair distinction at the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair (TOAF) 2025.
View their Artist Project profile here