Jabari "Elicser" Elliott is a visual-artist based in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Early life and education

While Elliott was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, he spent his formative years living in Saint Vincent. Elliott helped his mother recreate costumes for the local

carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...

with which his father was heavily involved. Upon his family's return to Canada, Elliott was introduced to street art while studying at the

Etobicoke School of the Arts The Etobicoke School of the Arts (ESA) is a specialized public arts-academic high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located in Etobicoke, it has been housed in the former Royal York Collegiate Institute facility since 1983. Founded on September ...

. His high school's guidance counsellor directed him to Sheridan College's program in Animation and affirmed for the young artist the possibilities of a career in the arts. Elliott studied animation at

Sheridan College Sheridan College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning (formerly Sheridan College of Applied Arts and Technology) is a public polytechnic institute of technology located in the west-Greater Toronto Area in Ontario, Canada. Founded in ...

Career

Since graduating from Sheridan College's

animation Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...

program, Elliott has amassed a collection of murals and public artworks that have come to help define

's cityscape. Moving beyond notions of the streets being his only canvas, Elliott has exhibited works at The

Art Gallery of Ontario The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO; french: Musée des beaux-arts de l'Ontario) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The museum is located in the Grange Park neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, on Dundas Street West between McCaul and Beve ...

, The

Royal Ontario Museum The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year ...

, and LE Gallery. Elliott has also acted as an arts educator working with the Art Gallery of Ontario's "Free After Three" youth arts program, and the Toronto Jazz Festival, teaching youth

aerosol paint Aerosol paint (commonly spray paint) is paint that comes in a sealed, pressurized container and is released in an aerosol spray when a valve button is depressed. Aerosol painting is one form of spray painting; it leaves a smooth, even coat, unlike ...

techniques. Elliott's most notable works can be described as a highly improvised collage of soft characters and organic shapes, layered and blended through transparencies. His character work is often mediated by past experiences and relationships while also drawing on the likenesses of passers-by to complete his community-based murals. Elliott has also illustrated and produced a small run of books titled "Know Love". In 2011, Elliott met with Toronto Mayor

Rob Ford Robert Bruce Ford (May 28, 1969 – March 22, 2016) was a Canadian politician and businessman who served as the 64th mayor of Toronto from 2010 to 2014. Before and after his term as mayor, Ford was a city councillor representing Ward 2 Etobi ...

to advocate for the significance and vibrance of graffiti murals as

public art Public art is art in any Media (arts), media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and phy ...

. At the time, Councillor

Cesar Palacio Cesar Palacio ( , ) is a Canadian politician. He was the Toronto city councillor for Ward 17 Davenport during the years 2003–2018. He was the first Hispanic person to be elected to Toronto's City Council. Biography Born in Ecuador he followed h ...

had advocated for more

street art Street art is visual art created in public locations for public visibility. It has been associated with the terms "independent art", "post-graffiti", "neo-graffiti" and guerrilla art. Street art has evolved from the early forms of defiant graff ...

as part of combatting blighted urban communities.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Elliott, Elicser Living people Artists from Montreal Etobicoke School of the Arts alumni Sheridan College alumni Graffiti artists Year of birth missing (living people)