Artists Announced for Shift Health Art Commissioning Program with OCAD University

Shift Health is thrilled to partner with OCAD University’s RBC Centre for Emerging Artists & Designers.

Five emerging artists have been selected to create original works for our new office space in downtown Toronto. This remarkable group from OCAD University will bring diverse perspectives to the question “What does the future of health and wellness mean to me?”

A heartfelt congratulations to the following artists who have been selected for this commission:
Ada Bierling
Alysha Rocca
Grace Hotchkiss
Jasper Urbina
Justin Mezzapelli

We are proud to have all of you on board and eagerly await the unveiling of your distinct artworks. Thank you for sharing your collective talents and contributing to a more inclusive life sciences future.

“As an organization that’s helping to create the future of healthcare, Shift Health has an important responsibility to ensure that we’re creating a future for everyone. These five extraordinary artists are helping us to imagine that future, and their powerful works will remind our team of our responsibility every day. We thank OCAD University’s RBC Centre for Emerging Artists and Designers for partnering with us on this inspiring commissioning program.”— Ryan Wiley, President, Shift Health

This partnership will bring forward artworks that represent different artistic practices and create an inclusive space that welcomes diversity, honours lived experience and uplifts the voices of marginalized individuals who have been historically absent from the healthcare conversation.
Stay tuned for more information about the program and the unveiling of the final commissioned works this spring.

ABOUT OCAD UNIVERSITY AND RBC CENTRE FOR EMERGING ARTISTS & DESIGNERS
Founded in 1876, OCAD U is dedicated to art and design education, practice and research and to knowledge and invention across a wide range of disciplines. OCAD U continuously builds on its traditional, studio-based strengths, adding new approaches to learning that champion cross-disciplinary practice, collaboration and the integration of emerging technologies.

The RBC Centre for Emerging Artists and Designers is committed to supporting the early career advancement of all students and recent alumni at OCAD University. It delivers specialized programs and services that connect creative individuals to professional opportunities, communities of practitioners, skill-building resources and facilitated learning experiences. The Career Launcher program supports the professional development of emerging creative talent from OCAD U as they transition out of school and into their early careers. Developed with industry partners like Shift Health, it delivers unique, high-profile opportunities created exclusively for students and new alumni, which are tailored to their professional goals and needs.

Image: (L to R): Justin Mezzapelli, Travelling On (Allan Grant, 1944), ink on paper, 8″ x 10″, 2021; Grace Hotchkiss, Obsidian, 40 x 40″ gesso, joint compound and acrylic on canvas, 2021; Ada Bierling, Celestial connections, acrylic, 4’x5’, 2019; Jasper Urbina, When I Didn’t Have Bills to Pay, Spraypaint, Dye, Acrylic ink/paint, 42×72″, 2020; Alysha Rocca, Lady Touch, Recycled Textiles and Oil Paint on Canvas, 9×9”, 2021.