Discover Five TBA 2026 Artists from Across Canada |
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From left to right: Chiedza Pasipanodya, Dawit L. Petros, Rouzbeh Akhbari, Simranpreet Anand, and Taqralik Partridge |
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This week we are thrilled to spotlight five Canadian artists participating in the 2026 Toronto Biennial of Art. With the generous support of RBC, each of these artists are creating new works commissioned by TBA.
"RBC is proud to support the Toronto Biennial of Art and its mission to help make contemporary art accessible to everyone," said Gayle Corcoran, Senior Director, Social Impact, RBC. "We are directly supporting the careers of five exceptional Canadian artists, helping to create paid opportunities and equip them with the networks, visibility and skills they need to thrive in national and international art markets. We look forward to seeing these artists' new works come to life and the conversations and connections their work will spark on the world stage."
We are so excited for you to discover their work when the Biennial opens this coming September. |
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| | | | Chiedza Pasipanodya, Mauuyu, 2025, Raku ceramic, steel, 38 x 15 x 13 in. Photo Credit: Em Moor.
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Chiedza Pasipanodya (b. 1987, Harare, Zimbabwe) is a sculptor and writer whose work explores material culture, diasporic memory, and transformation. Drawing on post-minimalism, Afro-diasporic thought, and speculative frameworks, they create sculptural forms that shift perception and examine how culture is carried, changed, and transmitted over time. Shaped by migration and alternative spiritual traditions, their practice reflects an ongoing interest in metaphysics, considering how time, matter, and meaning are deeply interconnected.
Co-presented by the Toronto Biennial of Art and the Art Museum at the University of Toronto. Made possible with the generous support of RBC and the Women Leading Initiative. |
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| | Dawit L. Petros, Emergent Formations, Work In Progress, Archival Photography and text, dimensions variable, 2026. Courtesy of the Artist and Bradley Ertaskiran
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Dawit L. Petros (b. 1972)is a visual artist and educator whose work examines the layered and often overlapping histories of African and European colonialism and modernity. Working primarily in photography and installation, Petros explores how these histories continue to shape identity, migration, and global systems today, revealing the complexities and contradictions embedded within them.
Commissioned by the Toronto Biennial of Art and the Aga Khan Museum and made possible with the generous support of RBC and Fonds Hamelys.
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| | Rouzbeh Akhbari Of Wool and Diesel (2026), single-channel HD video, approximately 30 minutes. Courtesy of the artist.
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Rouzbeh Akhbari (b. 1992, Tehran) is an artist, filmmaker, and human geographer based between Toronto and Lisbon. His moving-image practice brings together documentary, fieldwork, and poetic speculation to examine the relationships between politics, ecology, trade, and infrastructure. Through film and research-based practices, Akhbari explores the systems and networks that shape our environments, revealing the often unseen connections between landscapes, resources, and human activity.
Co-commissioned by the Toronto Biennial of Art, Mercer Union, a centre for contemporary art, HANGAR Centro de Investigação Artística (Lisbon), and the National Gallery of Canada’s National Engagement Initiative. The exhibition is organized by Mercer Union, Toronto, co-presented with the Toronto Biennial of Art, and made possible with the generous support of RBC. The artist would like to acknowledge support from Partners in Art, the Ontario Arts Council, the Alserkal Foundation and the Canada Council for the Arts.
The exhibition is curated by Aamna Muzaffar, Curator & Head of Exhibitions, Mercer Union, and Allison Glenn, TBA 2026 Curator, Toronto Biennial of Art.
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| | Simranpreet Anand, Installation view from Living with the Eternal, 2024. LED signs, variable dimensions.
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Simranpreet Anand is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, and cultural worker creating and working between the traditional territories of the Kalapuya people (Eugene, OR) and the unceded territories of the Kwantlen, Katzie, and Semiahmoo peoples (Surrey, BC).
Informed by family and community, Anand’s practice engages materials and concepts drawn from Punjab and its diasporas, exploring their histories, movement, and the seen and unseen labour connected to them.
The artist’s site-specific installation at Terminal 1 is commissioned by the Toronto Biennial of Art and co-presented with Toronto Pearson Airport. Their work is co-presented with Harbourfront Centre and made possible with the generous support of RBC, Eleanor and Francis Shen, and the Women Leading Initiative.
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| | Taqralik Partridge, Tuktujuq (2024), installation view at the National Gallery of Canada. Reindeer hide and skull, glass beads, dental floss, red fox, Celine Dion CDs, vinyl floor, soundtrack, four wall videos.
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Taqralik Partridge (b. 1975) is an Inuk and Scottish curator, artist, and writer originally from Kuujjuaq, Nunavik. Her multidisciplinary practice spans writing, performance, sound, film, and visual art. For more than 20 years, Partridge has performed across Canada and internationally as both a spoken word poet and Inuit throat singer. Her visual and film work has also been shown in exhibitions across North America, Australia, Norway, New Zealand, and the UK.
Commissioned by the Toronto Biennial of Art and co-presented with the Art Museum at the University of Toronto. Made possible with the generous support of RBC, the Women Leading Initiative, and the Canada Council for the Arts. |
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| | Stay Tuned to Explore the Exhibitions |
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This month we unveiled the first installation of Dawit L. Petros’ work at the Aga Khan Museum. The work will continue to be installed in two more phases and will be completed for the opening of the 2026 Toronto Biennial of Art on September 26. Stay tuned to learn more about the sites each of the other artists will be showing at. We can’t wait for you to experience these projects!
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