Last April I attended an inspiring art exhibit in the outskirts of Burlington, Ontario. This exhibit, entitled the "Latin America Showcase", was put on by Colombian artist Edward Robin Hoyer and was the opening of his very own art gallery, the Robin's Nest Gallery and Fine Arts Studio. Part of the exhibit was also being auctioned off to raise money for the earthquake in Ecuador on April 16, 2016. Tucked away in his backyard, bordering on a ravine, Hoyer's opening exhibit at the Robin's Nest Gallery and Fine Arts Studio was an intimate and heart-warming show I'll never forget. It was art with a cause.

I immediately wanted to publish an article on my interview with Hoyer and my visit to his gallery to bring awareness to the work he was doing for victims of the 2016 earthquake in Ecuador - an issue not many people in Toronto were aware of. But after numerous pitches to various editors, I kept getting the same response: 'The exhibit and artwork are just not relevant enough.'

I disagreed.

Any piece of work or art that is coming from the heart is relevant enough to share, especially art with a cause. Art makes us think about deeper issues and brings awareness to deeper issues. Art can also illicit movement for a cause and that's what makes it so powerful. So here, I have shared my visit to the "Latin America Showcase" and the amazing work Hoyer's Robin's Nest Gallery and Fine Arts Studio has done.

I arrived with a friend of mine at the Robin's Nest Gallery and Fine Arts Studio that afternoon last May expecting to quietly walk around and check out the art, but instead was immediately welcomed in as if I were family by Hoyer and the other two artists featured at the exhibit, one being Hoyer's mother. The rest of my afternoon was spent chatting to Hoyer about the transformation of the shed in his backyard into an inviting workspace and gallery, and how he finds inspiration in the birds and ravine. I also talked with all three artists about their different styles, as well as their South American roots. This, Hoyer told me, was one of the reasons he wanted to incorporate the auction for relief for earthquake victims in Ecuador into his gallery's opening exhibit.

Hoyer received a call from the Ecuadorian community in Toronto to collect funds for the terrible earthquake that hit Ecuador in April 2016, resulting in 660 deaths and approximately 4,600 injuries. Because Hoyer had the pleasure of working with Toronto's Ecuadorian community when he directed the Latin American Cultural Centre of Canada in Toronto, he immediately felt a connection to the cause.

"Ecuador is a nation with limited financial resources to cope with this kind of catastrophe. It is a nation with a wealth of wonderful and kind human beings," Hoyer wrote to friends the week before his opening showcase/auction.

So during the opening of his gallery, Hoyer set aside art made by him for the purpose of auctioning off to gather funds for humanitarian help for the 2016 Ecuador earthquake. In just a week, these 17 abstract paintings were bid off (one of which I bid on and is now beautifully hanging in my home) and all the money collected was sent directly to the Canadian Red Cross.

"Gate One Blue Arch" By: Edward Robin Hoyer

The rest of the "Latin America Showcase" exhibit featured works inspired by Colombian art and culture, as well as Indigenous Colombian art and jewellery.

Having grown up in Colombia with a mother who's art drew on the people, customs, and sceneries in the country, Hoyer's art is also very much inspired by Latin beauty. But where his mother's work focuses on realism, Hoyer takes a more abstract and surreal approach.

Hoyer also puts an emphasis on colour in his works. Hoyer teaches art lessons to adults and children in the Burlington area and said he notices a difference in how different age groups and cultures approach colour.

Some of the children he teaches actually helped Hoyer paint the floor of his gallery.

The sense of community Hoyer gets from communally working with others is something he cherishes. He also expressed a deep appreciation to live in a country as diverse and connected as Canada. Hoyer talked to me about how important it is for us to unite together during times of crises, such as the 2016 Ecuador earthquake, and do what we can to help. That is what he was hoping his gallery and auction would do. Hoyer wanted to use "The Latin America Showcase" as a way to initiate movement for a cause or else there would be no change, he said. Hoyer believes we can use art to bring awareness to deeper issues and use art as the solution to deeper issues in the world. And this passion for his art and the responses his art can produce is what drew me in so much and pushed me to want to create a platform here at Purple Glow where other artists could share their passions without being shut down for not being relevant enough.

Hoyer's Robin's Nest Gallery and Fine Arts Studio continues to put on exhibits and events promoting South American art and culture. If you have the chance, check out his next upcoming show this Mother's Day!

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Art with a Cause - "The Latin America Showcase"