About
Naim Jain

Bridge The Gap: Niam Jain Paints for the City of Brampton

‘Bridge the Gap’ is a collaboration between Peel Regional Police (PRP) and various community partners in the City of Brampton to increase awareness surrounding Autism. Showcasing the work of Autistic creators, ‘Bridge the Gap’ would serve as a clear measure of the talent and skill inherent in that community as well as its potential to make a lasting and positive contribution to society.

Based on his accomplishments as a fine artist and his reputation within the Autisic community, Niam Jain was chosen to paint a large-scale mural. As Niam is quasi-non-verbal and unable to author a formal proposal for the project, he would not be able to express his artistic vision to community stakeholders in either written or verbal form. In reality, the only person who knew how the mural was to appear was Niam. The PRP supported Niam, trusting that he would produce a worthy public art installation for the City of Brampton.

In early September 2024, Niam purchased a spectrum of exterior paint from Home Depot – blues, greens, pinks, reds, greys, yellows and purples – along with the tools required to complete his first outdoor mural. He would be working with a paint medium he had never experienced before.

Niam began painting the mural in early October and we watched patiently as the work unfolded. For his safety, he was securely harnessed atop a scaffold, his mother by his side. Over several days, his vision slowly came to life.

The completed mural was unveiled on Tuesday October 15th, 2024. Notable attendees included Board Member of Police Service Board, Sumeeta Kohli, Deputy Chief Mark Dapat, Constable Mandeep Sahdev, Peel Regional Police, Seva Food Bank, and Executive Director of Autism Ontario, Marg Spoelstra.

The event was recorded for broadcast by both CTV News and Autism Ontario.

The Game Changer: Niam Jain and Cambridge University Press

In 2020, Cambridge University Press approached Niam Jain with a proposal to include his biography and work in an upcoming textbook publication. The book, titled “The Game Changer” and authored by Mauricio Shiroma and Veronica Teodoroy, would serve as a reference companion to a four-level lower Secondary course – one designed to prepare young teens for a world where critical thinking and creativity are paramount.

For his part, the book would chronicle Niam’s development as a creative, highlighting the challenges he met in his path to success. It would feature his photo and a recently completed painting ‘Seeing beyond the Boundaries’.

Through the inclusion of Niam’s story, the authors make a strong case that we are not strictly a language-based society&nbsp– that there are different and equally effective means of communication available to everyone. The hope is that, as a successful autistic creative, Niam Jain’s story will inspire readers to reach their full potential, no matter the personal hurdles they face in their lives.

The book was released in July of 2021, published in many languages and in all forms of media.

Live Painting At The Mosiac Festival

In the summer of 2019, Niam Jain was asked by the Canadian Community Arts Initiative (CCAI) to participate in the Mosaic Festival as an Honorary Guest.

The CCAI represents visual art, literary art, dance, theatre, film and music for the enjoyment and education of the community. CCAI regularly collaborates with artists and organizations to support artistic activities in and around Mississauga and the GTA. Events typically attract an exciting array of talent, from musicians to A-List celebrities to rising stars.

Niam was asked to do a live painting exhibition. Although he usually does not like to paint in front of an audience, the Festival was able to isolate and maintain a traffic-calmed area with a tent for Niam to work. His large audience was politely asked to keep a respectful distance from the artist.

Niam appeared in the Mosaic Festival Magazine, with a spotlight on his accomplishments as an artist and his most recent commission by the CNE.

Raccoons Reimagined: CNE Commissions Artist Niam Jain

The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) has long supported the arts. With the opening of the Withrow Common Gallery in 2018, they broadened their commitment to art exhibition and to forging new and valuable relationships with various arts communities and local galleries.

In August of 2019, Niam Jain was contacted by the CNE to contribute to ‘Raccoons Reimagined’, an installation of twelve large-scale fibreglass raccoons surrounding the Princess Margaret Fountain. Niam was one of twelve artists selected for the unique opportunity to adorn a single raccoon with original artwork.

Niam began painting his raccoon sculpture a month before the CNE opened. Completing his hand-painting of the sculpture took him over 40 hours. He worked in layers, blending colours in his impasto style.

Following several days of public display at the CNE, the project culminated with a formal closing ceremony, attended by various politicians – inlcuding former Mayor of Toronto, John Tory. The twelve raccoons were auctioned off to raise much needed funds for the local community.

The College Of Family Physicians of Canada Feature Niam Jain

In 2018, The College Of Family Physicians of Canada approached Niam Jain to use one of this paintings for the cover of their April 2018 (Vol. 64, Issue Suppl 2, 1 Apr 2018) medical journal, an issue focused on the capabilities of Autistics. Titled “Garden of Hope”, the 2017 painting imbued the journal cover with an explosion of purples, pinks and greens.

The following text was included:

“The cover image of this special issue is entitled ‘Garden of Hope’. The 15-year-old artist, Niam Jain, has autism and limited verbal speech and understanding. Through painting, he communicates emotions such as hope and has discovered a community and possible career. Niam specializes in gestural abstract art and abstract expressionism and is the youngest recipient of the Anokhi Award. He paints in layers. Each layer expresses a thought or emotion, with the entire painting telling a story. Niam reminds us that a canvas is a medium for communication. His paintings can be purchased at Abbozzo Gallery, where he is a resident artist, and online at www.niamjain.com.”

Samsung Canada partners with Autism Speaks Canada to launch #WhoEyeAm

In March of 2016, Samsung Canada partnered with Autism Speaks Canada to launch #WhoEyeAm, a campaign designed to demonstrate the potential benefits of technology for children and families living with autism. As part of Samsung’s ongoing ‘Look at Me’ project, #WhoEyeAm centred around Niam Jain, the then 13 year-old Canadian abstract artist living with autism, and the many ways in which technology dramatically improves his day-to-day life. This included a particular focus on the Samsung-developed ‘Look At Me’ application, developed for dissemination via tablet.

Leveraging his identity as a known member of the autism community, Niam Jain helped Samsung Canada and Autism Speaks Canada donate 500 Samsung tablets – 300 tablets directly to families in need and the remaining 200 to teachers, schools and private educators.

Torontonians were invited to experience Niam Jain’s #WhoEyeAm story and his stunning abstract artwork at a special one-day only #WhoEyeAm Gallery event on April 1, 2016 at the city’s Yonge-Dundas Square.

The launch was followed by a presentation at Samsung Canada’s Head office. It was attended by Vice President Mark Childs and Jill Farber, Executive Director of Autism Speaks Canada. It was at this moment that Niam truly embraced his role as Brand Ambassador for the event.

“Inspired by the successful launch of the ‘Look at Me’ application and the many stories of families living with autism, Samsung is excited to launch the #WhoEyeAm project,” said Mark Childs, Chief Marketing Officer, Samsung Canada. “Alongside Autism Speaks Canada, we look forward to partnering with children like Niam and his family to encourage Canadians to learn more about how technology can help children living with autism connect with the world and share their #WhoEyeAm stories.”

Continuing throughout April, Canadians were invited to post to their social channels using the #WhoEyeAm and #LIUB hashtags, with posts auto-generated to feature select pieces of Niam’s artwork. Between April 1st and 2nd, Samsung’s Yonge-Dundas Square billboard was dedicated to displaying select tweets and posts with those hashtags.

Niam’s story was showcased in a special campaign video, developed by Samsung Canada and playing in-store at each of Samsung’s four ‘experience’ store locations (Metrotown in Burnaby, B.C.; Richmond Centre in Richmond, B.C.; West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton, and Sherway Gardens in Ontario) as well as on billboards across Canada. The video detailed the unique collaboration between the artist and Samsung Canada, his technology provider.

As a tie-in to the campaign, Niam was invited to Metro Morning Radio show to speak. As Niam is quasi-non-verbal, his mother Nina spoke on his behalf. The show’s producer was so impressed by Niam’s work that a painting was purchased on the spot.

Niam’s alignment with #WhoEyeAm not only provided a face for the campaign and a means for real-world technological demonstration, but also a means for Samsung to build positive brand identity and awareness amongst the autism community.