Over the past year, Fineline and OCADU Live have collaborated to create Housewarming - a series for people who have a love for art, for authenticity, and for celebrating diversity. Each episode features heartwarming stories about the impact of art in our daily lives and the connection with those who purchase local art from artists and creators. It was an amazing privilege to work on the series, and gain insight into the practices, lives, and relationships of each artist highlighted in the first five episodes. With the first season now complete, we're excited to share our experience creating and filming the series and the meaningful impact it’s had on the Fineline community. 

The Concept Behind Housewarming

The reason we produced the series was to explore the rich stories and the impact of connections between artists and their community of art buyers, friends and family. The series set out to celebrate local artistry and the relationships that form from that support. Each episode truly displayed the impact local artists and their art have within the community, and how meaningful the connection to art in the home can become. The series also inherently displays the diversity within the Toronto art community and highlights the differing journeys these artists and art supporters have experienced to arrive at their current practices.

The framing and name "Housewarming" grew out of early conversations about the purpose of the series and a dialogue between the Fineline and OCADU LiVE teams. We all love the feeling of showing off a new apartment or home to guests. Welcoming people into our spaces, giving a tour and telling stories about our lives and the meaningful pieces in our homes. That's the experience we wanted to bring to life on screen.

Housewarming isn't about a home "makeover", it's about an exploration and about celebrating people for who they are and where they are in their journey.

Authenticity Shines Through

It was a profound experience on set meeting the artists. The stories revealed through the conversations were fascinating, emotional and heart warming. The framing of a home tour and the "housewarming" vibe came to life. The connection and dialogue between the artist, guest and host, Evangeline Fitz, was rooted in trust and the authenticity shone through.

It's clear through the conversations how connected art is to identity, self-expression and community building. We made sure that each artist and art supporter was not confined to a script but were able to speak about their experiences, relationships, and practices openly and honestly. Without constraints and in an informal home setting, participants were able to share in unexpected ways, showcases the vibrant personality of each person and bringing magic to each episode of the series.

Reflections and Looking Ahead

The series was jointly presented by Fineline and OCADU LiVE in the main auditorium throughout OCADU GradEx109–Toronto's largest free art and design exhibition. Thousands of people attended and visited, watching the series, meeting Housewarming participants and the production team. The event was a fantastic chance to reflect on the production of Housewarming and hear feedback on the series. We are so grateful for the ideas that have been shared about how the series could evolve and be expanded in the future.

Looking ahead, we are excited to continue this journey with potential future seasons of Housewarming, delving even deeper into the diverse local art scene, across the GTA. We firmly believe in collaboration and co-creation. We hope you viewers will stay engaged by sending us feedback and signing up to get updates.

Thank you for joining us on this journey. We hope Housewarming inspires you as much as it has inspired us! 

Meet the Team

Along with the talented Fineline artists and their supporters who featured in the series, the project was a creative collaboration of team members from Fineline and OCADU LiVE, working behind the scenes. The celebration and support for the arts inspired the team throughout development of the project; meet the team members from Fineline who worked on season 1 below:

Evangeline Fitz (Fineline Social Media Coordinator): Housewarming Series Host

Evangeline Fitz was the host of the Housewarming series, while also being part of the behind-the-scenes team at Fineline creating social media content. She has pursued many creative endeavors; touring as a musician, writing, drawing and painting, and now makeup art. Her overarching passion is for curating creative online spaces that feel authentic, calming, and inspiring. 

Kristina Pavao (Fineline Design & Marketing Coordinator): Housewarming Project Lead

Kristina Pavao (she/her) is the Design & Marketing Coordinator at Fineline and served as the Project Lead of Housewarming Season 1. She is a recent alumnus of OCAD University and is also a practicing Illustrator and Designer. Kristina aided in the concept development, artist selection and onboarding, general planning, and co-ordination of the series. As an artist and alumni of OCAD University herself, the work on Housewarming was particularly poignant for her. Learn more about Kristina on her portfolio website here!

Chris Cowperthwaite (Fineline Director & Product Lead): Housewarming Executive Producer

As an entrepreneur and producer, Chris draws on experience in fundraising, digital marketing, and community organizing. Chris explained his motivation for initially pitching the Housewarming series:

"The idea came from being inspired through working with and listening to artists and designers through the process of forming the Fineline Co-operative and seeing the talent of the OCADU LiVE student film crews. I've been so inspired by the thoughtfulness these artists and designers bring to everything they do. I firmly believe their alternative perspectives on society hold critical insights for building more meaningful communities and cities. It starts with individual relationships formed through experiencing their work. I see the Housewarming as a way to celebrate and share those perspectives."

OCADU Live

A huge thanks to the team from OCADU LiVE who filmed and edited the series. Team members include Housewarming Executive Producer Leonardo Dell'Anno, Director Wrynn Geswin, Production Manager Rebecca Van Fraassen, and Crew Members Tunika Mhlanga, Julie Messner and Elmer Bauman-Enriquez.

OCAD U LiVE is a an on-demand video channel, production house, and content creator studio featuring original media produced by the student body. Since its inception in 2020, participating students have produced a wide variety of programs that reflect the vast diversity and climate of inclusion within our student body.