Artist Biography
Maisa Mreiwed is a Syrian-Canadian multidisciplinary artist, designer, researcher, and educator based in London, Ontario, Canada. She holds a Fashion Design Diploma from LaSalle College, a BA in Religious Studies, and an MA in Art Education from Concordia University in Montréal.
Deeply passionate about the arts in all its forms, Maisa creates intricate artworks that incorporate signs and symbols to explore thought-provoking themes from both historical and contemporary contexts. She views art as a powerful visual narrative that fosters meaningful connections between people and their environment.
Maisa’s work has been presented nationally and internationally through exhibitions, residencies, public art projects, and academic conferences. She has exhibited at venues such as Forest City Gallery in London, Ontario, the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair, and Art à la Carte at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Her public art practice includes contributions to the London Arts Council’s Live Mural Walk Program and Joy, a permanent mural created through the Songlines Project and installed at the South London Community Centre.
Her temporary public installation The Rag-and-bone Man / Le Chiffonnier was presented during Promenade Parlante: Episodes in a Changing Neighbourhood, part of the Cultural Programming 2018 Conference at Concordia University in Montréal. The project explored neighbourhood histories and community engagement through site-responsive artistic practice.
Her work has also been featured in academic contexts, including presentations at the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), the International Society for Education through Art (InSEA), The European Association for Research in Learning and Instruction (EARLI) and the Canadian Association for Curriculum Studies (CACS). Maisa further expanded her research and studio practice through an artist residency at the Icelandic Textile Centre in Blönduós, Iceland.
In 2022, Maisa received the Arts Integrated Research Award from Lakehead University in recognition of her work inspired by climate change and environmental action. Her most recent publication is “Storytelling through Textiles: The Re-birth of a Phoenix Called Damascus,” published in Connections in and through Arts-based Educational Research(2023), and her artwork is on the cover of the book Art as an Agent for Social Change (2021) and featured in the climate action art and research catalogue One Cell, The World (2024).
Her current academic research-creation project, explores how traditional Syrian costumes function as narrative forms serving as living archives of memory, identity, and resilience. Maisa is also interested in the stories and messages that textiles relay before and after being transformed into useable and artistic items. She believes that textiles and traditional costumes are not just passive cultural artifacts but legitimate forms of storytelling that can provide insights, particularly into Syria’s rich and diverse history as well as its present.
Artist Statement
My artwork reflects my personal, academic, and professional journey as a Syrian Canadian artist, educator, and designer within an interconnected global world. Drawing inspiration from both the tangible realities of my surroundings and the ethereal landscapes of my dreams, each artwork tells a story of survival through the eyes of different living beings embedded within layers of geometric figures, intricate details and symbols inviting viewers on a journey of exploration and wonder. The overarching message is one of unity emphasizing the importance of safeguarding our oceans, skies, lands, and all beings for a more promising present and future.
The artistic process for each artwork varies as it is guided by the story, canvas and scale. To tell each story, I use a quill and ink with black as a dominant colour complemented by secondary colours such as gold, copper, and silver acrylics, to create a harmonious balance and accentuate key symbols. Each stroke of the quill helps capture the beauty and emotions that manifest in my subconscious transcending the limitations of verbal communication inviting the audience to join me in the exploration of a world where words are unnecessary, and the language of the soul is depicted in shades of ink.
I see art as a powerful visual narrative that enables reflection, critical thinking, and connects people to each other and the environment. Each element and symbol that I weave into my artworks is intentional. While the meaning may vary, the intention is for the viewers to discover something new every time they look at a piece and use their imagination to decipher the messages.