Save the date: The NSCAD Alumni Association Annual General Meeting will be Tuesday, October 6, 2026 (Time TBC). The meeting will be online. Alumni who are interested in participating on the Alumni Association Board can write to alumni@nscad.ca.  A call for nominations and more AGM details will be coming soon!

Award: Tanya Tagaq's (BFA 1998, DFA 2015) album Saputjiji has been selected as one of 10 records for the 2026 Polaris Music Prize short list. Saputjiji, which means designated protector, is a potent counter-strike against billionaires, genocide, abuse and colonial systems. Tagaq ventures further with ambient, electronic and filmic sound design elements. From pulsing trip-hop ambience to sonic turbulence. Tagaq’s musical and literary worlds further interlock with a second forthcoming project in 2026, Split Tooth: Saputjiji, a new stage production that will feature songs from the album. The winner of the $30,000 Polaris Music Prize will be announced September 22, 2026. Congratulations to Tanya! Read more.

FIFA meets fashion: Fashion and textiles graduate Matthew Brown (BFA 2026) was part of the team from elite fashion house Dust of Gods that designed bespoke, one-of-a-kind pieces for well-known professional footballers Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr., along with celebrity performers like Demi Lovato and Jason Derulo. Though he always dreamed of working in fashion, Matthew says NSCAD University gave him the skills and confidence he needed to build a career collaborating with internationally recognized brands and artists. According to Matthew, "One of the greatest strengths  of NSCAD is how hands-on the education is. Those technical skills became invaluable throughout my career because they allowed me to understand every stage of the design process." Read more.

Photo credit: Ros Morley

Exhibition: New paintings by Robert Storr (DFA 2019) are part of an exhibition in the Hamptons this month. The well-known painter, writer, curator and academic has been painting full time in his studio in New York in recent months. The exhibition runs until the end of July at Madoo Conservancy Art Gallery, 618 Sagg Main St, Sagaponack, NY. Read more.

Endowed Chair: Performance artist Cassils (BFA 1997) has been appointed to the Maria Manetti Shrem Endowed Chair in the Maria Manetti Shrem Art Studio Program at University of California, Davis. Cassils is a transgender artist who makes their own body the material and protagonist of powerful performances that examine the histories of LGBTQIA+ violence, representation and struggle while illuminating narratives of resilience and empowerment. Prior to joining UC Davis, Cassils has held teaching, faculty and visiting artist positions at institutions including University of Toronto, Pratt Institute, Stanford University and Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. Training and mentoring have long been part of Cassils’ career as an artist. Their teaching style emphasizes building connection with people to understand their art. "As more of our relationships become mediated through social media and technology, the importance of liveness and embodiment as ways of connecting intellectually and emotionally has become important to both my artistic practice and my teaching,” said Cassils. Read more.

photo by Jennifer Samet/Hyperallergic

Installation view of KELTIE FERRIS: FEEEEELING at Mitchell-Innes and Nash, New York, in 2021 (photo Mark Woods, courtesy Mitchell-Innes and Nash)

In the news: Keltie Ferris (BFA 2003) is featured in a recent article in Hyperallergic. The Q&A was done at Ferris' studio in the Catskills area of New York. The reporter describes Ferris’s abstract paintings as all about contradictions. "They teach us how to ​break down binaries by embody​ing both sides, literally and metaphorically: alone and together, presence and absence, hard and soft, opaque and transparent. Many paintings utilize a combination of multiple painting approaches — spray gun mists, direct brushwork, palette knife-carved hard edges, looping drawings in paint, and erasure with turpentine-soaked rags. They are simultaneously all-over paintings and grid-like, organized structures. The range of marks that Ferris uses, and his robust color, feels both urban and rural, digital and analog; historic and distinctly of our time." Read more.

Book: The Khyber Centre for the Arts is pleased to announce ECHO PAPER: Arjun Lal, a new publication created in partnership with Jayme Spink's (MDes 2015) Copy Shop Books & Studio. Almost five years after Arjun Lal’s (BFA 2019, MFA 2025) solo exhibition at the Khyber, this artist book is a party balloon tied to a paper card, inviting you to stay afloat with their work. Images from past projects and responsive writing accompany Lal through cruising sites, colour-drenched forests full of latex fruit, and unassuming bodies of water where a flamingo has found home. This book is the inaugural in a potential series called ECHO PAPER. The Bridgewater launch is Saturday, July 18, 2026 from 4-5 p.m. Bring your reading glasses, swimsuit, and floaties for a poolside book launch at the Michelin Bridgewater Outdoor Pool, 154 Jubilee Rd., Bridgewater, NS. The Halifax Launch is Sunday, July 19, 2026, 6-8 p.m. at the Khyber Centre for the Arts, 1880 Hollis St., Halifax, NS. Read more.

Exhibition: Viewpoint Gallery is hosting one its largest photographic gatherings ever. Called +1, this month-long, full gallery show features Viewpoint members plus invited photographers showcasing more than 50 works, including landscapes, street photography, abstract, documentary, wildlife, and nature photography. Some of the featured photographers include former NSCAD faculty Kathleen Flanagan, Andrew Maize (BFA 2011), Lorraine Field (BFA 1997, MA 2003), NSCAD photo technician Alex Chisholm (BFA 1993) The exhibition runs until August 2 at ViewPoint Gallery, 1475 Bedford Highway Unit 109, Bedford, NS. Read more.

Exhibition: Work by Christiane Poulin (BFA 2017) has been selected to be in the World of Threads Festival 2026-27. The festival is a leading international showcase of local, national and international contemporary fibre and textile art. Organized, co-curated and promoted by Dawne Rudman and Gareth Bate, the festival has exhibited some remarkable textile and fibre artists and brought them to the attention of Canadian and international audiences since 1994. There will be an opening reception on Saturday, September 26 and the festival runs September 23, 2026 to January 17, 2027 at Queen Elizabeth Park Community & Cultural Centre, 2302 Bridge Road, Oakville, ON. Read more.

Exhibition: Work from the artists in Visual Arts Nova Scotia's 2025-26 Mentorship Program is on display at The Craig Gallery this month. The exhibition, called What Holds, highlights the talents of emerging artists Jordan Johnson, Kamila Orbegoso (BFA 2024), Shane Song (MDes 2010), and Jessica Steele. The exhibition also features their mentors former Anna Leonowens Director Melanie Colosimo, Margarita Fainshtein, Mathew Reichertz (MFA 1999), and Christopher Webb.  Since the Mentorship Program’s inception in 2006, Visual Arts Nova Scotia has paired emerging artists with established artists to take part in a 10-month mentorship. There will be a Emerging Artist Talk (in-person at The Craig Gallery) on Saturday, July 18 at 1 pm. The exhibition runs until July 26 at The Craig Gallery,  Alderney Landing, 2 Ochterloney St., Dartmouth, NS. Read more.

Exhibition: Paintings by Rielle Doucette (BFA 2026) will be on display all summer at Alteregos Cafe, 2193 Gottingen Street, Halifax, NS. Follow Rielle.

In the News: Amber Solberg (BFA 2013) recently completed a community mural project at Escuela Vista Grande in Red Deer, AB. More than 200 students, from kindergarten to grade 8, took part over one week to help fill in a pre-designed background (even though the weather had other plans!). The project was coordinated by Amber and the Vista Grande Association, a school-based group that raises funds to enhance Spanish culture and language education at what is the city’s only Spanish bilingual K-8 school. This marks seven collaborative mural projects Amber has coordinated between NS and AB, involving the work of 550+ community members and 15+ professional artists. Read more.

Award: Comic artist/illustrator Sofia Alarcon's (BFA 2011) graphic novel, Endsickness, published by Conundrum Press, was recently named a Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize honour book. The novel is an anthology of a self-published comic series from 2021 to 2023. Each of the vignettes in this eight-story collection of speculative fiction explores their own facet of the same existential issue: climate change and eco-anxiety. Her visuals range from full-color to black and white, and the stories zig and zag from weird/satirical to poetic/contemplative (and never didactic). The simple illustrations evoke a level of absurdity that both softens the message and underscores the importance of mitigating man-made climate change. The narrative intersperses looming tragedy with humor and sadness in a way that keeps the reader fully engaged until the end.” Read more. 

Exhibition: If you're in Lunenburg, check out the new exhibition All Lobsters All the Time at Marian Bantjes Design Art Gallery. Featuring lobster-themed work by artists including Katherine Knight (BFA 1980), Carley Mullaly (BFA 2015), Michael Peters (BFA 2012), Brianne Williams (BFA 2012) and many others, the exhibition runs until August 31 at Design Art Gallery, 183 Lincoln St., Lunenburg, NS. Read more.

Event: Alberta-based artist and educator Brandi Hofer (BFA 2008) is organizing an art retreat in southern Portugal for June 2027. Students will learn Brandi's signature portrait method that blends watercolours, acrylic washes, pastel and coloured pencil. She will teach participants to build portraits in layers so there is always room to adjust, soften and correct. This retreat is set on an estate with botanical gardens, a private chef, morning yoga, and access to a beautiful studio. Registration is now open for the retreat that runs June 1 to 8, 2027. Read more.

Workshop: Join artist Alan Syliboy (1975) for Paint with Alan Syliboy, a guided studio tour and hands-on drum-painting workshop at his Millbrook studio. Participants will explore his creative space, learn about the stories and traditions behind his work, and create their own painted drum to take home. The tour and workshop run 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, July 19, Sunday, August 23, and Sunday, September 27, 2026, at Alan Syliboy Art Studio, 42 Legends Ave., Millbrook, NS. Read More.

Exhibition: Recent work by Liam Miron (BFA 2026) is on display at Our Place Coffee House. Liam's practice combines painting and ceramics to explore memory, nature, and whimsy. This collection features quiet landscapes, soft figures, and animals in motion, reflecting on the contrasts and connections between the prairie landscapes of Western Canada and the forests and neighbourhoods of the Maritimes. Our Place is located at 1873 Granville Street, Halifax, NS. Follow Liam.

Artist Talk: Yuting Song (MFA 2026), Sheila Smyth (BFA 1999), Rebecca Cooper, and Omen Mather will be part of an artist talk as part of the HEAT WAVES residency program. HEAT WAVES was created to give local, early-emerging artists facing systemic barriers to entry and limited professional experience the opportunity to participate in a funded residency. The talk will take place 2-3 p.m. on Saturday, August 1 at the Eye Level Gallery, 2482 Maynard St., Halifax, NS. This is a masked event and will be live streamed. Read more.

Exhibition: Work by Rebecca Fisk (BFA 1993) will be on display as part of Swallowed Whole, a provocative self-portrait portrait series that confronts the intersection of race, food, and cultural stereotype. Through striking compositions, monochromatic skin tones, and vivid symbolism, these works explore how food—particularly fast food and sweets—has been weaponized, exoticized, and commodified in ways that often reduce racialized bodies to caricature or consumption. Using exaggerated hand gestures, confrontational gazes, and visual codes like the KFC bucket or licorice candies, this series challenges viewers to reflect on how race is packaged, consumed, and digested in both literal and metaphorical ways. Read more.

Shortlisted film: The Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) has announced the final slate of competition films for its 50th anniversary, which runs September 23-27 at venues throughout downtown Ottawa. NSCAD student Gaoyuan (Jenny) Song's film Crocodile Tears was selected among 15 films in the Canadian Student category. Gaoyuan made this film as a project for Becka Barker’s (BFA 2000) class, Animation Studio 1. "I had the opportunity to walk through the full process from animation production to festival submission, which gives me a lot of confidence to start a career and connect with the community of animators and filmmakers," she explains. Winners will be announced live at the OIAF Awards Ceremony on September 26 at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. Read more. 

Exhibition: Paintings and site-specific installations by NSCAD faculty member Jordan Bennett are on display as part of Souvenir, a current exhibition at The Rooms. The exhibition explores history and heritage through immersive experiences, using bold colour palettes informed by quillwork, Bennett’s everyday life, and familiar landscapes. "...one word that I like to use a lot is remembering. I think through travelling and through talking to folks, and through looking at the land, and through [our] languages, it’s getting easier and easier to remember these designs and what they meant,” Jordan explains. Jordan's work inspires joy and curiosity, reflecting the inherent beauty and humour of Mi’kmaw culture. Souvenir runs until August 30 at The Rooms, Level 3 Main Art Gallery, 9 Bonaventure Avenue, St. John's NL. Read more.

How We Stay So Bright, Jordan Bennett 2022, acrylic on birch panel

Research project: NSCAD design professor Glen Hougan is leading a Brain Canada funded research project called In-Home Dementia-Centred DIY Adaptations and Innovations with Dalhousie University, and the Alzheimer’s Society of Nova Scotia. NSCAD alumni are invited to share their "home-grown" solutions, whether it’s a modified household object, a unique organization system, or a simple DIY fix that improves safety and comfort. To learn more or submit your ideas.

New Project: NSCAD’s exciting new student employment program: The Summer Studio & Campus Renewal Project kicked off just before Canada Day. Under the direction of Studio Services Manager John Deal, students have been hired to undertake painting, minor repairs, organize storage, improve signage, and restore furniture in the historic Fountain Campus. Funded through the Head, Heart, and Hand Fund: Powered by NSCAD Alumni, donations are directly supporting student salaries, as well as the supplies and equipment needed for painting, repairs, and improvements to studios and shared spaces. Petra Bouwers (BFA 2026) is one of the students working on the project."I hope these fresh studios can serve in a way, as a blank canvas, ripe for students to imagine new possibilities and find their own unique artistic voice within. I like to hope that a space that feels loved, respected, and cared for might reflect that same feeling on to new and current students while they are in and creating within these spaces." Read more and support!

Top: The Summer Studio & Campus Renewal Student Team (L to R): Haley Nicholson, Petra Bouwers, Rafi Islam, Qing Wang, Remi Geraci. Bottom: One of the studio spaces that have been worked on by the students. Credit: John Deal

Call for applications: The Black Arts Centre (BAC) is currently calling for proposals for artists, exhibitions and public programming. Exhibition proposals will be considered for Spring 2027 and beyond while programming proposals will be considered for projects taking place from September 2026 onward. The submission portal will be open until Saturday, August 8. To access the BAC submission form portal CLICK HERE. For questions, more information or to submit PDF proposals/portfolios, please contact info@theblackartscentre.ca. Read more.

Call for applications: Dartmouth Makers is now accepting applications for its 2026 Winter Market that takes place Friday November 27 & Saturday November 28. Applications are open to all craftspersons and are carefully reviewed by active board members. Work is considered for its craft and quality, with an emphasis on design, local fabrication and production processes. The deadline to apply is Sunday, July 26 at 11:45 p.m. AST. Learn more.

Call for applications: The Atlantic Filmmakers Cooperative’s Grants for Filmmakers is now accepting submissions for grants. AFCOOP’s filmmaking grants support the production of local independent films through in-kind equipment and resources. Only Nova Scotia residents are eligible for grants, with the exception of the Analogue Film Grant, which is open to residents in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island as well. Grant categories include: First Thing Grant, Super-8 Bursary, Feedback Loop, Analogue Film Grant, and Independent Filmmakers Grant. Applications are due August 1, 2026 by 11:59 p.m. AST. There will only be one intake period this year. Read more.

Call for applications: Ontario Arts Council (OAC) is inviting applications for exhibition assistance from Ontario-based artists and artist collectives working in visual arts, craft and media art practices in the presentation of their artwork in a confirmed public exhibition.This is a third-party recommender program. Using Nova, OAC’s online grant application system, artists apply to the galleries and organizations designated as recommenders for the program. These recommenders assess applications and submit grant recommendations to OAC. The 2026-2027 program is open from early June 2026 until January 15, 2027, 1 p.m. EST. Read more.

Call for applications: Applications are open for the Dorothy Waxman International Textile Design Prize, awarded to a current or recently graduated student in Textiles or Fashion who exhibits sustainable thinking and innovative creativity in textiles. The prize is part of the TALKING TEXTILES initiative that promotes textile education and creativity. The finalists will present their work online in front of a professional jury on Zoom at the beginning of September 2026. The finalists’ work will be featured on various online and social media platforms throughout September 2026. The competition is international and open to students who are currently enrolled in an educational institution teaching textiles, fashion, interior or lifestyle textiles. Graduates from 2025 and 2026 are eligible to enter. The prize is $5,000 US. Read more.

Event registration: Vendor registration is now open for the 2026 Art of Disability Festival hosted by Independent Living Nova Scotia. Artists, makers, crafters, bakers, performers, authors, and creators with disabilities from across Nova Scotia are invited to register for a day celebrating creativity, inclusion, and community. The festival is a welcoming and accessible event that showcases incredible local talent while bringing together hundreds of community members in support of inclusion and artistic expression. The festival will be Saturday, August 15 at Pier 21, Halifax, NS. Register here.

Call for applications: The Clark Centre for the Arts Artist Residency program provides emerging and mid-career Toronto artists with opportunities to think, experiment, work and create in an artistic lakeside urban environment. Residencies conclude with a one-month exhibition in Gallery 191. Applications will be accepted from artists working or living in Toronto. The residency program is dedicated to engaging and supporting Toronto-based artists from equity-deserving communities. Artists interested in applying to the Clark Centre Artist Residency must complete the online form below. The deadline is July 27 at 11:59 p.m. Apply here.

Artists in Residence: During the summer season, Craft Nova Scotia’s Centre for Craft invites emerging craft artists to participate in a three-month creation residency. Participants in this program are granted access to the studio of their chosen medium, where they will have the freedom to work independently on a project. Additionally, they will collaborate to plan and install a group exhibition at the Mary E. Black Gallery,  showcasing the works created during this time. This summer 2026, Craft Nova Scotia is hosting eight artists-in-residence in ceramics, jewellery/metals, glass, and textiles. Artists include Cameryn Mattie (BFA 2025), Ensiyeh Dekhani (BFA 2026), Eula Palmer (BFA 2026), Lara Sturzenbaum (BFA 2023), and Lily Lin (BFA 2026). The program runs June 1 to September 5, 2026. Read more.

Event: The Halifax Mural Festival (July 4–11) transformed downtown Halifax into an open-air gallery with murals created live across the city. Among this year’s participating artists were Swade Owens (BDes 2016) and Victoria Brumwell (BFA 2013) who collaborated on a new mural at the front of NSCAD’s Port Campus. Some of the other participating artists included Emily Clark (2019), Craig Baltzer (BFA 2005), Madeline Filipps (BFA 2021). Read More.

Summer hours: Wonderneath continues its Open Studio program with new summer hours. Open Studio sessions give participants access to supplies and expertise from art facilitators to do needle felting, hand and machine sewing, embroidery, acrylic, watercolour, and mixed-media painting, printmaking, sculpting, collage, and more. Learn more.