From campus to Canada’s top art fair: Art Volt to debut at Art Toronto

Concordia’s Art Volt Collection will head to Art Toronto this fall — its first appearance outside Quebec — joining over 90 leading Canadian and international exhibitors at the country’s premier contemporary art fair.

Taking place from October 24 to 27, 2025, the Art Volt Collection kiosk will showcase work by five recent alumni—early-career artists whose practices span photography, textiles, sculpture, and performance. This opportunity will help connect these artists with new audiences and potential buyers.

The five alumni to be featured are:

Pedro Barbáchano (MFA 24, Photography)
Recently awarded the 2025 Claudine and Stephen Bronfman Fellowship in Contemporary Art, Barbáchano works between Montreal and Cairo. His practice uses photography, sculpture and digital processes to explore  document veiled histories. Drawing on his personal experience across Spain, Egypt and Canada, he reimagines museum narratives and gives voice to overlooked stories and bodies.

Paulina Bereza (BFA 21, Textiles)
Drawing on her experience as a first-generation immigrant, Bereza creates disorienting, malleable spaces of hybrid identity. Using a personal archive of photographs, from post-communist Poland to transitional homes, alongside online satellite imagery, she builds hybrid textiles that function as landscapes of memory. Through collage and generative editing, these works reconstruct and transform her past, reflecting the shifting contours of her existence. 

Ben Langwieder (BFA, 24, Painting and Drawing)
Based in Montreal, Langwieder is a painter interested in mythology, architecture, non-traditional architectural histories, and personal encounters with the built environment. Exploring what happens when these subjects meet paint, he hopes to reveal truths about lived experience of the contemporary built environment. A recipient of the Guido Molinari Prize, he has exhibited across Canada, including in Montreal, Guelph and Kitchener.

Betty Pomerleau (BFA, 23, Studio Arts)
Pomerleau is a multidisciplinary artist from Quebec City whose work takes shape as performative installations combining sculpture, drawing, projection, printmaking, and mime. After earning her BFA at Concordia, she completed a master’s in Art Espace at the École nationale supérieure des Arts décoratifs in Paris. Her work has been shown at venues in Quebec, France and Belgium, including Dazibao, CRÉDAC and FRAC Île-de-France. 

Paras Vijan (BFA, 20, Photography, MFA, 25)
From New Delhi and now based in Montreal, Vijan works in photography and sculpture to explore postcolonial South Asia, especially staged historical events and their lasting impact. He is interested in extreme postcolonial subcultures of the 21st century, their roots in neoliberalism, and how they shape contemporary life. His practice also reflects on the conflicts that arise from changing technologies, shifting notions of time, and evolving political ideologies.

“Being part of Art Toronto is a milestone — not just for me, but for many Fine Arts alumni-artists who are navigating the early stages of their career. It’s exciting to be in dialogue with the wider Canadian art scene and share work in a space that’s known Canada-wide for connecting artists with curators, collectors and institutions,” says Vijan, one of the participating artist.

A first, made possible with growing support

“This is a major moment for us,” says Camille Lalonde Lachapelle, MFA Sculpture 20, Advisor & Sales Coordinator, Art Volt Collection. “This is truly high-profile exposure — it’s one of the most sought-after events in Canada, and it can open major doors and opportunities for our artists.”

Earlier this year, Concordia announced a $1-million donation from Power Corporation of Canada to expand Art Volt’s impact and initiatives. The gift supports the program’s capacity to connect emerging artists with industry professionals, mentorship and visibility in commercial contexts like Art Toronto. The Collection’s participation in this year’s fair is also supported by a separate gift from long-time supporter John Archer. 

“This national spotlight reflects the calibre of our alumni and the strength of Concordia’s Faculty of Fine Arts’ commitment to their success,” says Annie Gérin, dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts. “Art Volt was created to bridge the gap between graduation and professional practice — and opportunities like Art Toronto are exactly the kind of platform our emerging artists deserve.”

Visibility, validation and opportunity

The Art Volt Collection debuted in 2022 and has grown to include over 350 works 52 artists, all recent alumni of Concordia’s Faculty of Fine Arts. It functions as both a sales and rental platform, and as a springboard for public exhibitions and acquisitions — including its recent highlight at the Plural Contemporary Art Fair, where works by Art Volt artists were acquired by institutions like the Musée d’art de Joliette.

Discover the works in the Art Volt Collection and learn more about Art Toronto 2025.