This work is dedicated to…

I’ve been invited by Tangled Art + Disability Gallery to provide artworks for their booth at Toronto Outdoor Art Fair (TOAF) 2025. This is a big first and very meaningful for me! Back in 1975 or thereabouts, my maternal grandfather, Joseph Farrall Wright, showed his works at Nathan Phillips Square, and I’m thrilled to follow in his footsteps!

I’m dedicating the works I’ve created for TOAF to my sister, and to my Grandpa, who loved to paint landscapes in acrylic on canvas, from photos and postcards. He asked each of his grandchildren what we’d like him to paint for us, and went from there. He encouraged me to draw and paint from my imagination, as he declared that to be the mark of a true artist!

We each have works by him and my sister especially treasured hers, of the pool in the garden of the house in Toronto where we grew up.

The works on display and for sale at the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair are a coming back to life and creativity after the loss of my sister, and the first time I’ve been able to go back to painting and drawing in the 18 months since she died. It makes me happy now to focus on remembering her sparkly, vivacious self, as we were, in the photo below!

I’ve created 2 original works on paper: one large and one small. My original paintings, along with a limited edition of three panel prints, plus a set of bookmarks derived from the smaller work will be available for sale at the Gallery booth. The bookmarks include words that allude to the place we hold now in relation to each other, both my sister (who has outlived her body) and I (still in mine), and perhaps also, to the place of humanity in relation to nature, earth, water, and sky.

A copy of my book, The Beloved Equation is included as a gift with the sale of each small bookmark as a way of honouring my sister. It’s an affirmation of love, love that can never be lost, when it comes from within, and an encouragement to persevere for all who grieve among us.

Find out more about my paintings for The Toronto Outdoor Art Fair here!

L-R Marina (artist and author with crutches) and her sister Christina, (1964-2023) in childhood