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Art Project Brings U.S. and Canadian Students Together

When Emma Sambaer, an Art Education student at Michigan State University, was paired with Shiva Mohseni, an OCAD University student from Toronto, for a unique cross-border art project, she noticed how much they had in common despite being separated by an international border.

Students from MSU and OCAD U were tasked with creating portraits of each other to capture the likeness of their partner. But first, they had to get to know each other.

Seven people stand smiling outside a gallery with the exhibition title “Faces and Traces: A Cross-Border Collaboration” visible on the window behind them. Reflections of city buildings appear in the glass.
d’Ann de Simone (far right) and Rebecca Malouin (second from right) with MSU students at the Faces and Traces: A Cross-Border Portrait Project exhibition at Stackt Market in Toronto.

The students connected in a virtual exchange over two months during the Spring 2025 Semester to learn as much as they could about the lives of their cross-border partners. Focusing on themes of site, place, and identity, they shared information and stories about themselves through email and virtual meetings. The artists also mailed each other photographs of themselves and a collection of personal or creative materials that represented their personalities and their locations.

These exchanges provided an artistic challenge for the artists to translate their partner’s presence into a work of art. What resulted are drawings that capture the likeness of their partner and explore their relationships and friendships across the Canadian-American border.

Four portraits in varied media: a face emerging from painted ocean waves; a woman with glasses and a golden background; a man with a cityscape and the text “REAL INDIVIDUALS”; and an abstract portrait over a black-and-white patterned background.
Four artworks in a square layout: a red-toned portrait with overlaid text; a grayscale drawing of a woman repeated multiple times with colorful typography; a lime green line drawing of a person with glasses; and a bright pink portrait of a young woman with braided hair.
Four artworks arranged in a 2x2 grid: a graphite portrait of a woman looking to the side; a stylized portrait with balloon-like spheres and a brick wall; a red-and-blue line drawing over an animal print background; and a portrait overlaid on a design resembling a postage stamp.
Two mixed-media portraits displayed side by side: at left, a woman with dark hair against a textured yellow and pink background; at right, a woman in a striped shirt with a floral patterned background.
Left portrait depicts a woman rendered in graphite in the style of a playing card, paired with small Hello Kitty graphics. Right portrait shows a man in a knit cap, drawn in colored pencil with houses faintly visible in the background.
Some of the portraits created by MSU and OCAD U students as part of the Faces and Traces: A Cross-Border Portrait Project.

“Shiva is originally from Ahvaz [Iran]…so I knew I wanted to incorporate her connection to both places,” Sambaer said. “For her ephemera, she sent me a KitKat, a keychain with ‘Canada’ on it, a packet of tea, a leaf, and a coaster.” 

Sambaer reflected on the significance of these objects, noting, “These items really showed me that across the border our lives aren’t so different in the grand scheme of things. There are borders created by people separating us because of one reason or another, but that doesn’t define who we are.”

The cross-border art project was part of a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) course sponsored by MSU’s Department of Art, Art History, and Design in partnership with OCAD U. Led by d’Ann de Simone, Professor of Studio Art in MSU’s Department of Art, Art History, and Design, and Dr. Rebecca Malouin, Director of Canadian Studies at MSU, the initiative grew from a shared vision of the importance of cultural exchange and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Woman in a long black winter coat and black knit hat carrying a fake fur covered purse and a cell phone looking at a wall of painted and drawn portraits at a gallery.
The Faces and Traces: A Cross-Border Portrait Project exhibition at Stackt Market in Toronto. (Photo courtesy of OCAD U)

In Spring 2024, de Simone and Malouin made two exploratory trips to Canada. Backed by the U.S. Department of State, the MSU delegation — faculty and students alike — sat down with their counterparts at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario; toured the historic halls of Queen’s Park in Toronto; and even met with Baxter Hunt, Consul General at the U.S. Embassy.

The partnership with OCAD U was forged after de Simone and Malouin attended the Global Digital Humanities Conference on MSU’s campus. There they connected with Ilene Sova, Associate Professor at OCAD U, and Alla Myzelev, Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Art History at the State University of New York, Geneseo. 

“The four of us quickly found common ground and ideas clicked,” de Simone said.

Soon after, de Simone and Malouin traveled to OCAD U’s downtown campus in Toronto to finalize the agreement that would open new doors for students and faculty on both sides of the border.

Two women sit at a round marble table in front of large windows with a city view, smiling toward the camera. A signed document and green pen rest on the table between them.
Rebecca Malouin (left) and Ana Serrano (right), OCAD U President and Vice-Chancellor, signing the agreement that established the cross-border portrait project.

Because de Simone was on an unexpected research leave in Spring 2025, Candice Chovanec, Assistant Professor in the Department of Art, Art History, and Design at MSU, agreed to step in and worked with Sova, who managed the Canadian component of the project, and Morgan Reneé Hill, a recent MFA graduate from MSU, to develop the art project details.

The project was an opportunity to build unique, personal, and positive relationships between countries. It took place during a time of political tension and economic uncertainty between the United States and Canada, fueled by cross-border policy conflicts and tariffs, which created unexpected creative tension and political context for the drawings.

“The project was a valuable opportunity to build unique, personal, and positive relationships across borders while presenting an artistic challenge for the artists to translate a stranger’s presence into a work of art.”

Ilene Sova, Associate Professor at OCAD U

“It’s more important than ever for students to engage with and learn about their nation’s neighbors,” Sova said. “The project was a valuable opportunity to build unique, personal, and positive relationships across borders while presenting an artistic challenge for the artists to translate a stranger’s presence into a work of art.”

OCAD U student Anna Tanner was inspired by the ephemera sent by her partner, Joe Jones, an Apparel and Textile Design student at MSU. 

“Using the ephemera he provided — gems, scrap textiles, and a tree air freshener — I incorporated nods to these items into the background,” Tanner said. “Hearing about Joe’s artistic inspirations, precisely blending the urban decay of East Side Detroit with his love of French and Rococo art, I created my interpretation of this enmeshment.”

A photo showing an exhibition of the cross-border portrait project images.
The Faces and Traces: A Cross-Border Portrait Project exhibition held at Stackt Market in Toronto in April 2025. The exhibition will now travel to MSU in November 2025 where it will be displayed at (SCENE) Metrospace. (Photo courtesy of OCAD U)

The project culminated in an exhibition, Faces and Traces: A Cross-Border Portrait Project, in April 2025 at Stackt Market in Toronto, located near OCAD U’s campus,.

Curated by Museum Studies students at the State University of New York (SUNY), Geneseo, and under the direction of Dr. Myzelev, the exhibition featured the portraits created by the MSU and OCAD U students. The exhibition will now travel to MSU in November 2025 where it will be displayed at (SCENE) Metrospace.

The project was supported by funding from a Strategic Partnership Grant from MSU’s Canadian Studies Center and matching funds from MSU’s Department of Art, Art History, and Design. The funds provided scholarships for several MSU students to attend the Toronto exhibition opening where they gained international gallery exposure, met their Canadian portrait partners, and explored Toronto, including the city’s world-class museums and galleries.

“This assignment was an exciting and influential opportunity to connect with others across borders.”

Breanna Chaput, Spring 2025 MSU alum with a BFA in Art Education

This unique collaborative online international learning experience also is supported by the International Programs & Collaborations Office and Faculty of Art Office at OCAD U and the Art History Department at SUNY Geneseo.

“This assignment was an exciting and influential opportunity to connect with others across borders,” said Breanna Chaput, who graduated from MSU in Spring 2025 with a BFA in Art Education. “The COIL project is a beautiful assignment that connects us to our neighbors while expanding our knowledge of the border and culture outside of our school and giving us a way to make relationships with new people.”

Written by Natalie Pavlenko, Senior Strategic Communications Advisor at OCAD University, and updated by Kim Popiolek, Senior Editor for MSU’s College of Arts & Letters

Categories: International Impact / News / Student / Student