Teen artists from Cape Dorset leave their mark on Toronto

An incredible mural project in Toronto for teens from Nunavut almost didn’t see the light of day.

Latch Akesuk, Audi Qinnuayuaq, Parr Etidloie, and Cie Taqiasuq travelled down to Toronto from their homes in Cape Dorset for a project spearheaded by artists Patrick Thompson and Alexa Hatanaka. The artists co-founded Embassy of Imagination, a youth initiative that seeks to create empowerment and resilience in young people through creation and arts.

Thompson and Hatanaka met the teens in Cape Dorset, when they were visiting for a mural project last year.

"Some of these kids don't really have an outlet,” Hanataka told VICE. “They don't really want to go home after school. They want to do something. It seems pretty obvious that would be a positive and useful thing to develop: creativity."

The wall originally selected for the mural fell through and it looked like the project might not be more than a dream for the four teenagers. But, just days before the group was set to arrive in Toronto, a new was was found, not too far away.

And the results are impressive. The mural on Church Street, north of King, is a large, colourful image of an old man carrying the weight of the world on his back. It's titled Piliriqatigiingniq, which means "to work together towards a common goal.”