Under the lights of Nuit Blanche, artist Nile X prepared his paints and shared a story that stretches from Toronto's streets to the California coast.
For Nile, the all-night celebration of contemporary art is more than a chance to display his work. It is a chance to bring his art directly to people who might never encounter it otherwise.
On a small pedestrian landing at the intersection of Bay and Queen Streets, Nile’s table sat among crowds navigating through the city, turning his corner of Nuit Blanche into a temporary studio.
He adopted X as his last name, he said.
"X is my artist name," he said. "It's currently a form of rejection of holding any other last names."
A Material Art and Design student at OCAD University, Nile has spent the past eight years developing a practice that has grown from oil painting into textiles and wearable art.
While studying, Nile created a set of pillowcases in the Material Art & Design studios using screen printing with fabric paint on cotton. From the first pour to the final stitch, he found ways to bring his design to life.
“I dyed it, I screened it, printed it, and I sewed it together. Everything. That’s something you can do at OCAD”
As Toronto transformed into a citywide gallery for Nuit Blanche’s 20th anniversary this weekend, Nile spoke with visitors about the history of his paintings and prints. For him, those conversations make the event meaningful.
“It’s the only night in the city where people’s intention is art and people actively look for art,” he said.
Without gallery representation, outdoor events like this allow him to put his work directly in front of people and connect with them one conversation at a time.
Nile shared the stories behind his artwork, much of which has travelled with him across eight U.S. states and into Quebec. He is now planning his most ambitious ride yet, a bike ride from Toronto to California.
His road to becoming an artist did not begin in a gallery or studio. Eight years ago, he came across inexpensive acrylic paints and canvases at a local dollar store and decided to try painting. His first painting was a sunset.
That same year, he and his family had immigrated to Canada from Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Soon after arriving, he began spending his summers painting and selling his artwork publicly in what was once known as Yonge-Dundas Square.
At age 12, Nile was already learning through experience, finding new ways to develop his skills and discovering how art could connect him with the people around him. Long before studying Material Art and Design, the streets of Toronto became part of his education as an artist.
For Nile, art has meant continuing to learn rather than waiting until he feels finished.
“As an artist, you're always evolving and changing,” Nile said. “That's how it should be.”
He also emphasizes drawing as the foundation, a way to train the eye to understand composition, proportion and what is in front of you.
This philosophy follows him beyond his canvas and onto the road.
“Draw, draw, draw, drawing is very important,” he said.
On his previous rides through the United States, Nile has painted along the way and brought the work back to Canada. His bicycle and handmade wire basket return carrying his art supplies and memories of how he connects the communities around him.
“Yes, I made the basket to be able to, you see all of this; it fits in that basket,” Nile said, pointing to his bike and belongings.
He illustrates all he encounters, turning the journey itself into part of his artistic practice. Each trip creates another collection of places, people and moments depicted in his artwork.
“It’s a slower pace, and you get to take it in.”
The route he has envisioned would take him from Toronto through the northeastern and central United States before crossing the Southwest and reaching California.
Nile anticipates stopping along the way to experience the communities he passes through, continuing a tradition he has developed on his travels. He has been collecting Trader Joe’s reusable state bags with hopes of gathering all 51.
Now, he is looking into ways to fund the trip while working toward getting a new bicycle suitable for the journey.
For an artist who began with a few inexpensive paints, his next trip will be another extension of the same ideas. Create first, learn along the way and keep moving.
“You just keep creating. Keep innovating. Keep thinking: how can I improve, develop? Build upon that,” Nile said.
Those practices come together in the different paths Nile is pursuing. He is an artist selling creations, a student developing his craft and a cyclist planning a journey across a continent.
At Nuit Blanche, all three were visible at once.
