Transitions temporary public art - 16 local artists and writers featured on Civic Square hoarding

Hope Flynn is an emerging neurodivergent Latina-Canadian muralist, face painter and visual artist. She graduated from OCAD University with a degree in Drawing and Painting. Her art is rooted in community and the stories of the people around her.

Artist Statement - Petals of Change

The cherry blossoms at Spencer Smith Park return every spring as a reminder that change can be breathtaking. In the digital illustration, flowers shift from roses to drifting cherry blossoms, echoing that same passage of time. Over the past twenty-five years, Burlington has bloomed the same way, transitioning from a quiet community into a culturally rich place that celebrates difference.

Petals of Change is a digital illustration that brings those two transformations together. The women pictured represent Burlington's growing diversity: different backgrounds, faiths and identities, standing side-by-side as naturally as blossoms on the same branch. Two of them have a pride heart patch and trans flag colours, honouring Burlington's 2SLGBTQ+ community and how far inclusion has come.

Charlotte Heron is a multimedia interdisciplinary artist based in Burlington and Hamilton, Ont. Using vibrant colour palettes and surreal imagery her work aims to convey the complex facets of self, gender and identity.

Artist Statement - The Robins

This work reflects the continuous nature of change, inspired by my experience living in Burlington and embracing how the city transforms. Icons of downtown are featured, such as the Skyway Bridge and transistor towers, are static and unwavering. Despite this, their visual surroundings are in vibrant movement. The robins represent transformation. Flying in a cyclical motion, they visualize how transition is persistent; something that ourselves and our surroundings will endure time and time again. The imagery of textile practices represents the past looking towards the future. The visual of hand stitching represents creation, as transition, although sometimes unclear, is always a tool to craft new beginnings.

Sylvia McNicoll is the long-time author of over 40 internationally published children’s books. Blue to the Sky, her novel about a 12-year-old with multiple food allergies, won the Hamilton 2025 Children’s Literature book award.

Artist Statement - The Colours of Possibility

Following the seasons, I used colours to thread together some of my favourite scenes of Burlington with the idea of underscoring the city’s diversity. Evocative images, smells, sounds and even words can raise our spirits and inspire hope. The most beautiful experiences arise from tangible evidence of kindness and acceptance.

Nuria is a local Burlington artist, came to Canada from Spain 25 years ago. She specializes in landscapes, animals and portraits in oil. She discovered Plein air painting, leaving the studio to explore nature around her. She describes her style as realist, influenced by impressionism

Artist Statement - Dawn

This painting explores the transition after a stressful day in these uncertain times to a calm and relaxed place; beautiful Burlington Beach.

I am very inspired by nature, humanity and the relationship between them. Using a prismatic palette and an oil technique, the scenery is serene and peaceful in an effort to take the viewer into a zen moment.

Jeff van Leeuwen is an intermedia artist and sculptor based in Burlington Ont. He transitioned from a career in construction and trades to art so his work incorporates materials and structures that shape daily life.

Artist Statement - (Im)Balance

The (Im)Balance series is a collection of self-portraits made using casting techniques and found object assemblages. Producing these works has helped navigate my grief after losing my mother to mesothelioma (cancer caused by asbestos exposure).

These sculptures are my attempt to revalue the discarded. Each work uses some element of balance – the physical act of which helps me solidify my own emotional stability; as I reharmonize found materials with the human form. Rather than imposing a predetermined structure, I listen closely to the thingness of things; responding to the textures, histories, and tensions already present within the objects I collect.

Cadence McGillicuddy grew up in Burlington, Ont. She is completing a degree in Computer Science with a minor in Creative Writing at Western University. Cadence writes poetry, creative non-fiction and fiction. She draws inspiration from aspects of nature, everyday life, family and friends, hoping to inspire others herself.

Artist Statement - Inertia

Inertia attempts to capture the sense of exhilaration that comes with transition: the feeling of existing between solid states and seeing the many avenues open to you. Writing with the Transitions theme in mind allowed me to explore the reluctance to choose just one path forward and have to settle into a sense of permanence again. I hope that this piece will evoke an eagerness to see what Civic Square will become and that viewers will be able to experience Burlington from a similar perspective, admiring how the construction underway teems with possibility.

Kulsoom Abbas is a self-taught visual artist with over 15 years of painting experience. He began painting in Pakistan at a young age, on a small scale with simple materials and a deep love for creativity.

Today, he is an artist in Canada, exploring new ideas and techniques.

His work reflects personal growth, cultural roots and the experiences that have shaped him along the way. Each piece reflects his story, emotions and connection to the natural and imaginative world.

Artist Statement - The Girl Between Sky and Water

This painting reflects the quiet beauty of transition through nature, light and reflection. The flowing landscape symbolizes emotional growth, healing and the movement between uncertainty and peace. Soft blues and greens represent calmness and renewal, while gold textures suggest resilience, hope and moments of transformation within life’s journey. The birds, water and distant architecture create a dreamlike space between reality and imagination, inviting viewers to pause and reflect. Inspired by the idea that change can be both delicate and powerful, this piece explores how transitions shape our inner and outer worlds while offering moments of stillness, connection and possibility.

Winnipeg-born, Rhonda moved to Burlington in the 1980s. She currently splits her time between New York and Burlington and teaches sculpture at Sheridan College (Oakville) and the University of Toronto. Her work is in collections including the Vancouver Art Gallery and National Gallery of Canada.

Artist Statement - Gerdany

This is an image of a small piece of glass and thread off-loom bead weaving that Rhonda Weppler made, inspired by traditional Ukrainian netted beadwork. Normally part of a collar-shaped necklace, this beadwork was made specifically for the Civic Square Hoarding Project. Transformed by enlarging its scale and now embellishing a public space, this artwork reflects the artist’s own pride in heritage, shared by many other Ukrainian Canadians who have made Burlington their home. This piece suggests the possibility of the updated Civic Square welcoming cross-cultural festivals and events in the future.

William H.N Forbes is a Canadian settler living on the beautiful land of the Brant Tract treaty. When he isn't writing, he can be found in the stacks of the nearest library.

Artist Statement - Concrete

This piece touches upon the environmental and ethical ramifications of the built environment, highlighting our duty to build urban spaces which honour future generations.

Stephanie is an illustrator and fine artist based in Burlington, Ont. that works primarily with her XP Pen Tablet and watercolour paints. She loves to paint landscapes of Northern Ontario from her own photos.

Artist Statement - Burlington through Time

Inspired by the theme Transitions, Burlington through Time shows the evolution of Burlington from past to present by highlighting some of the businesses that have shaped Brant Street.

This is a detailed piece that encourages viewers to linger and reminisce. Whether it was a walk to the hardware store with your father or a drive with your mother to pick up a birthday cake, these businesses hold cherished memories for all generations. Even for those that no longer exist, this piece serves as a reminder of what was there before and celebrates what we have today.

Tamara Kwapich is a Burlington painter and sculptor. Siobhan Lynch is a stained-glass artist. These two have been studio companions for seven years sharing ideas, inspiration and collaborating on projects and exhibitions. They work and teach out of their studio in Ancaster, Ont.

Artist Statement - CH Ch Ch Ch Changes

CH Ch Ch Ch Changes is a collaborative work on a raised wood panel painted to represent a stylized pond. The four embedded circles are stained glass panels depicting the life cycle of a frog. The panel is backlit with alternating light patterns and colours which emphasizes the dynamic cycle of life and highlights the vibrant glass and detailed painting. Ch Ch Ch Ch Changes speaks to the beauty and necessity of transitions in life and our ever-changing natural environment.

Andrew Dunlop is an author and poet, living and working in Burlington, Ont.

Artist Statement - The Shape the Future Takes

This work is inspired by the idea that the materials and the hand that shapes them together create the form that an artwork or an object becomes. Marble is said to ‘have a statue within it’, that the sculptor reveals; metal in contrast, must be unearthed and beaten. The future – that which we head toward, like it or not – is invariably shaped by our will, and the constraints upon us.

I chose the form of a sonnet for this piece, because a sonnet is an extremely structured work, that is somewhat outdated. Nevertheless, despite the restraints of its structure and the dated nature, sonnets have the power to move, with each stanza and the concluding couplet progressing the reader’s understanding of the work as a whole; in essence, transitioning from innocence to understanding.

Oriana Confente is an artist-researcher and mess-maker exploring sustainable photographic practices. She holds an MA from the University of Waterloo and will begin a PhD at Concordia in 2026. Oriana is an artist-in-residence at the Art Gallery of Burlington, supported by Canada Council for the Arts and the Cannonbury Foundation.

Artist Statement - Lake Ontario 010826

The lake is constant and it is constantly changing. It has historical ties to mass-manufactured photography (home to industrial Kodak parks for over a century), yet holds so many possibilities for making careful, interconnected art with the environment and its inhabitants.

To engage with Lake Ontario as an equal artistic subject and contributor, this piece is its own photochemistry with its water and foraged plants. This is a film photograph of one of the lake’s recent moods. Confente developed it using a decoction of collected lake water and staghorn sumac branches, a native plant that grows densely at the beach.

Rebecca Remme is a Burlington artist, architectural technologist and digital media designer. Her work has sold through galleries, festivals and exhibitions throughout Ontario as well as by commission. Her public art is displayed in Wasaga Beach, Midland, Collingwood and Toronto.

Artist Statement - Bridging Inclusivity

The iconic Burlington Canal Lift Bridge stands as a powerful symbol of structural and societal evolution. Historically, it has transitioned from ferry to swing bridge to lift bridge. Having studied structural engineering, I find immense beauty in the complex geometry of truss structures—a testament to mathematical genius transformed into a fixture of our skyline. Digitally reimagined as vibrant vector art, this piece reinterprets the bridge as a physical gateway and as a celebratory threshold of human connection.

Infused with a bold rainbow palette to mark the beginning of June, the artwork honors Burlington’s multicultural strength and spirit of inclusivity. The spectrum of colour transforms the industrial landmark into an open invitation, gesturing toward a future of total acceptance for the 2SLGBTQIA+ and trans communities. In this space, Transitions represents both the historic paths we have crossed and the beautiful, diverse community we continue to build.

Joanna Sparrow is a Burlington-based writer with a passion for books and nature. Her writing is influenced by her previous career in healthcare, her curiosity about human behaviour and the interconnectivity of all living things. Joanna’s poetry has been featured in Burlington’s Culture Days and Inspiration Initiatives.

Artist Statement - Taking Comfort in the Constants

I have lived in Burlington for most of my life. I have seen this city change and grow in ways I both like and dislike, but what I love most about Burlington are the things that haven’t changed: the constants. These are the wondrous natural elements that have been my favourite lifelong neighbours. Lake Ontario and the Niagara escarpment deeply connect me to this place, and I am very grateful to live so close to them. I always feel better after visiting the shore of the lake or the trails on the ridge.

This poem invites others to see our city as I do and perhaps take comfort in these beautiful unchanging landmarks that continue to make us so lucky to live here.

Caleb Smolenaars is a queer photographer and artist, whose work explores the relationship between community and place. They seek to use photography as a means for environmental advocacy and resistance. Caleb is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Photojournalism at the University of Arts London. Their work has been featured by numerous Canadian publications.

Artist Statement - Good Morning Burlington

Good Morning Burlington is part of an ongoing series of photographs capturing the first sunrise of the year. For the past eight years, this series has documented the evolving nature of Lake Ontario and our environment.

Captured on the morning of Jan. 1, 2021, Good Morning Burlington is the third installment in the series. The transitory nature of a new year is reflected in the calmness of a sunrise over Lake Ontario’s complex natural ecosystem contrasted by the industrial factories in the distance. The pier extends into the lake, bridging the gap between worlds.