Gloria C. Swain

Artist with CANCER Gloria C. Swain [she/her] is an Ontario-based abstract artist, known for her work within the mediums of installation, painting, performance, and photography to challenge systemic oppression against Black women and Trans people. Gloria has always been an advocate for mental health, ageism and intergenerational trauma. At age 60, she went back to university to obtain a degree. At 62, she beat ovarian cancer. In 2023, age 67, she was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. Copyright 2016-2025 All rights reserved. No part of this site/artwork may be reproduced or used, without written permission of the artist or named famiiy member.

[glcarissa]

Breast Cancer Update by Gloria C Swain

You wake up in the early morning not knowing what the day will bring ... will there be pain, will you spend the day in bed, or will you be able to smile and cover the tears?

Looking in the mirror is scary because the stranger staring back is so sad and there's nothing you can do to help her.

You are hesitant to do the things you once enjoyed because the physical pain and mental anxiety is more than your mind can handle. And there's no one to call and nobody is coming to save you. Mental health ... 'remember to love yourself.'

You wonder why all the people you once knew are now strangers. You miss the ones you once called friends who have become strangers. People come. People go. People don't stay too long. They soon forget you.

Sometimes, you forget you.

The family you grew up with never treated you like you belonged. You can't run back to something you never had.

For so many years [in my case, it started in 2018 with ovarian cancer and returned in 2023 as breast cancer] Cancer is all you know and all you have left. You're unable to fight something that has taken over your body, mind, and life. It isn't a fair fight. No one should have to fight this monster alone ... the world is filled with people ... but it is what it is.

You move on. 

You take one day at a time, knowing what is to come, and putting all your faith and hope in the creator who made your existence possible. 

"You have breast cancer" are the words that echo in your head and send chills throughout your body. The permanent radiation tattoo dots that cover your torso screams "It's breast cancer". 

Sleep is difficult because closing your eyes every night takes all your strength and courage ... just because ... tomorrow is not promised. There is no plan b. There are no do-overs.

You text good night to those you love ... turn off the lights ... whisper a prayer of gratitude for the day that is done ... close your eyes [with hopes of seeing the wind blow through the trees outside your window and hear the birds sing one more time ... to welcome another day].

Your only escape is your art because art is healing.

Instagram handle: swainartist

gofundme: Fundraiser by Gloria C Swain : Stage 4 Metastatic Breast Cancer

[glcarissa]

Note to Art Galleries, Art Collectors, and Lovers of the Arts:

I would love ... to see my work being appreciated and loved by everyone who loves creative freedom and self-love through the arts. ~ Gloria C Swain [May 23, 1956 ...]

I would love to share with the world, my collections of 100+ various sized canvas paintings [that I was able to create before the devasting news of my stage 4 metastatic breast cancer diagnosis].

Through the eyez and life journey of an older Black woman abstract artist.

Just because "Time belongs to no one ...."

[glcarissa]

You can't put a face on Breast Cancer ... #BreastCancerAwareness. Get tested. Get your annual mammograms. Look out for each other. Cancer is a lonely journey, if you don't have support.

Cancer is a journey no one should have to navigate alone ... I'm lucky God still loves me.

The Friends: "... people you thought you knew will disappear and that's okay. They're on their own journey."

The Family: "... just be thankful that it's you who is going through this uncertainty without the love or support of family."

Community: "... in another universe, the true definition of community - unity, empathy, and compassion."

When people show you who they are, believe them the first time. ~ Maya Angelou

I will be okay. I think I've been here before. Reincarnation. ~ Gloria/2025

[glcarissa]

CANCER does not take away from your creativity, it just takes a little more time. ~ Gloria C Swain [1956 ...]

[glcarissa]

Amazon.ca

Perseverance and knowing when to ask for help will unleash your potential. ~ Maya Angelou [April 4, 1928 - May 28, 2014]

[glcarissa]

I haven't posted about my art in a while due to my major health issues.

From March 12, 2023, when I first located the lump in my left breast, to the present, it has been heart wrenching and challenging. I no longer have my father or mother, both have sadly passed away, to help me through this.

And I don't want to be a burden on my children.

My siblings ... have always been and continues to be distance ... which is the saddest part of going through any terminal illness alone. But sometimes, you have to walk away from what hurt you and you can't go back [no matter how much it breaks your heart ... God knows your journey.].

After being in remission for ovarian cancer from 2018 until 2023, I was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer with numerous bone metastasis.

The illness and treatment have drastically impacted my physical and mental health to the point where I have not been fully active. It has taken a toll on me.

Everything has changed. I am sad to admit, also, that many people have also changed. This is a devastating and horrible disease that no one should have to journey alone. But 'it is what it is' and I must keep fighting, whether with support or on my own.

I will always have God.

Cancer takes away everything. Each day is a battle, but this is my journey and forward I must go.

Stay safe. Be kind. Be humble. Be human.

Gloria C Swain [May 23, 1956 - ]

[glcarissa]

Today [December 1, 2023] Toronto Transit [TTC] in partnership with Tangled Art & Disability, launched Transit as a Canvas.

The Transit as a Canvas project is an opportunity to use the poster spaces throughout the stations at the TTC to create an artistic intervention. They’re partnering with a number of artists throughout the year.

This is my 'final project for 2023' and I am proud to say that my artwork, [un]SEEN, is part of this amazing and city-wide project. I am hoping that 2024 will have more art opportunities for folks with disabilities and that my cancer journey will allow me to continue making art for years to come.

Thank you all very much.

[un]SEEN - About the Art

This square abstract painting prominently features the silhouette of a Black woman with a big afro hairstyle set to a colourful geometric pattern. The artist used black acrylic paint to craft the striking side-profile, accentuating her eyelashes, nose, and lips. The hair is textured, composed of a blend of black acrylic paint and natural soil, providing a tangible quality. The silhouette of the woman is adorned in a multi-colored top embellished with geometric cross stitching.

The woman stands out against a vibrant background of vertical streaks of yellow, green, teal, blue, red, and black spray paint to situate the silhouette in a dynamic backdrop. To make the clothing and background, the artist employed a technique using spray paint and painters tape to create hard-edge abstract geometric cross-patterns. Tape is first placed on the surface of the canvas before painting and then removed once the paint has dried to create striking geometric shapes, forms, and lines.

Titled [un]SEEN, this artwork is part of the artist’s 'Black Hair' series, centred around its tactile quality. The series delves into the connection between Black hair and untold stories, particularly those of Black women throughout history. The artist's use of soil in the textured hair symbolizes the link between stolen Black women from ancestral land, the forced reproduction of Black bodies, and the enduring struggle against racism and inequality today.

This piece encapsulates the artist's personal journey of self-expression and empowerment, inspired by their experiences with trauma related to race, sex, age, and invisible disabilities.

[glcarissa]

Collection of 6 - 40" x 60" unframed canvases paintings

Acrylic Paints. Abstract Geometric Art.

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Full Collection of 14

Textured 16" x 20" Canvas

Acrylic Paints

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"My work evokes the way Black culture has always found its strength and catharsis in movement. Geometric shapes in my work illustrate the rhythms of life, with sharp edges that collide and shatter to break through oppression.

My art practice is inspired by a legacy of intergenerational trauma and lived experiences as an elder Black feminist artist. I create large canvases of abstract and geometric paintings using lines and strong staged colours to look at what bodies are welcome in certain spaces and what bodies are unwelcome.

                                                                                      Gloria C Swain/2023

[glcarissa]

Between Art and Life [publication]

Using art as a vehicle to empower other older Black women artists, I work in painting, photography, film, installation, and performance. My art reflects a unique technique of layered and textured abstract and geometric compositions using lines, shapes, and colours. My non-figurative paintings address issues of colonialism, police brutality, inequality, racism, the historical impact [intergenerational trauma] of enslavement on Black mental health, and stereotypes about Black women and aging.

Order your copy here:

https://www.amazon.ca/Between-Art-Life-Gloria-Swain/dp/B0BQ9N768P/ref=sr_1_1?crid=I13TCLO90ZA0&keywords=gloria+c+swain&qid=1675728886&sprefix=gloria+c+swain%2Caps%2C829&sr=8-1

Publisher: ‎ Independently published (Dec 19 2022)

This project fully funded and supported by Canada Council for the Arts https://canadacouncil.ca/ 

[glcarissa]

Exhibit Title: Transforming Grief: Loss and Togetherness in COVID

Mixed Medium, Acrylic Paints, Spray Paints, Modeling Paste, Netting, and Craft Glue. Varnish. Natural Collage Materials – dried flowers, dried leaves, seashells, stones and soil.

This work is fully funded and supported through Toronto History Museums.

[glcarissa]

BLACK HISTORY MONTH 2023

Union Station Presents I Am Still Here: Black Joy is Resistance

Union Station art exhibition, I Am Still Here: Black Joy is Resistance, sponsored by TD, to kick off Black History Month, is now closed.

February 6 – May 31, 2023

[glcarissa]

BLACK HISTORY MONTH 2023 - Ottawa, Canada

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BLACK HISTORY MONTH 2023

Diasporas: Threads Connecting Our Origins is now closed.

https://themuseum.ca/exhibitions/current-exhibitions/diasporas/

[glcarissa]

BLACK HISTORY MONTH 2023

Black Women in Leadership

City of Toronto Archives Black Women in Leadership an exhibition that celebrates and highlights contributions from Black women leaders across sectors including arts and culture, business, health and wellness, and activism.

[glcarissa]

ART PRACTICE

Texture is an important component to my art practice and hints at the unspeakable stories that lie underneath the surface of both the art and the artist.

The geometric patterns in this work illustrate the range of movement associated with the process—sharp edges colliding, shattering and realigning— and allude to the ways that oppressed groups might eventually break through.