Henderson Art House Blonde Ale

Keep it in the neighbourhood, we say! Drake Art is partnering with Henderson Brewing Company, our Drake Commissary neighbours, to create an art-inspired beer that captures the creativity of Sterling Road and Toronto’s thriving arts scene. Henderson not only shares the made-from-scratch philosophy that drives our food operations at the Commissary, their beers are perfect for creatives in need of an easy-going, crushable brew after their shift. Food Truck is a classic Canadian Blonde—neither malt nor hop dominant—and designed to be refreshing and thirst-quenching, while letting you know that you are drinking a hand-crafted beer. Plus, they’re a perfect vehicle for getting art into the hands of more people, bridging the gap between artists and thirsty creatives. This year, we’re featuring works by established Toronto artists Kendra Yee, Luke Painter, Maxwell Burnstein and Rick Leong. Art House Blonde is available at all Drake locations. 

Kendra Yee

Emerging Artist, Designer, and Curator Kendra Yee is quickly building a following with her infectious and charming illustrations. Yee's work spans many mediums from ceramics, to textiles, to digital renderings, but her off-beat signature character and style repeats itself in every form. Yee has exhibited at Xpace (Toronto), Little Sister (Toronto), and The Drake Hotel, and her clientele & collaborators include Hulu, Rookie Magazine, and Toronto Public Library.

Luke Painter

Luke Painter (b. 1977, Canada) is a Toronto based artist, whose work combines elements of canon architecture, painting and design movements. Much of Painter’s work is created by combining methods of traditional watercolour and digital painting, giving it a unique quality and hand drawn brush strokes. Painter is currently a Professor at the Ontario College of Art and Design University and had previously taught at Concordia University. He exhibits internationally, including at The Whitney and Museum of Moving Image (NY).

Maxwell Burnstein

Confronting the rise in digital collage art with traditional analog techniques, Canadian artist Maxwell N. Burnstein's handmade artworks have prompted over fifty collaborations across five continents since entering the art world in January 2015. Every work of his is built through reconstructing, weaving, and layering exclusive photographs that are sliced and merged by hand into forms before being scanned into their final pixelated state. Visitors to The Drake may recognize his work from a series of installations and photographic work produced and installed at the hotel in 2016, when Burnstein participated in our Artist in Residence Program.

Rick Leong

Rick Leong (b. 1973) is a Canadian artist with a history of group and solo exhibitions at prolific institutions across the country. Leong received his MFA in 2007 from Concordia University in Montreal, and is currently represented by Parisian Laundry. His work is derived from an interested in nature, perspective, subject and object, and viewer experience. Visitors to the Drake Devonshire in Prince Edward County might recognize Leong’s work; his had painted murals adorn the walls of every hotel room and depict life-like renditions of various insects, flora, and fauna.