5 new site-specific artworks transform Union Station into a whimsical, flora-filled world, bringing elements of calm and joy to the commuter experience
Union Station is proud to unveil Aura, a series of new artworks by acclaimed Filipino-Canadian artist Jason Zante, now on view in Canada’s busiest transit hub. This vibrant body of work transforms Union Station into a sanctuary of colour, flora, and contemplation, offering a moment of stillness in the heart of downtown Toronto.
As part of Union’s ongoing commitment to placemaking and showcasing contemporary public art, Aura is part of Unionnale, a dedicated art corridor located in the south end of Union Market. Inspired by Toronto’s vibrant laneways and alleyways adorned with street art, Unionnale brings that same spirit of creativity and surprise into the station. Designed as a space for visual storytelling and artistic discovery, Unionnale showcases the work of local artists through rotating exhibitions every two years, selected through a juried process. Toronto Union collaborated with the City of Toronto through their combined city-wide public art initiatives, helping to animate the daily commute with dynamic, accessible, and thought-provoking works.
Zante’s site-specific works are a celebration of Ontario’s ecological richness. Drawing on his multidisciplinary practice, Aura brings together large-scale digital paintings across three major surfaces: a vaulted ceiling, the bench wall mural, and a series of art panels throughout the station.
Using his signature style of bold colour, surreal geometry, and layered landscapes, Jason Zante brings Aura to life with vibrant depictions of native Ontario flora. Across the artwork, visitors will find species such as blue false indigo, butterfly milkweed, pale purple coneflowers, cardinal flower, and staghorn sumac. Overhead, a majestic maple tree stretches across the vaulted ceiling, its leaves shifting through all four seasons, a visual invitation for viewers to look up, pause, and reconnect with the natural world.
“Aura is about restoring a sense of harmony and reflection within the everyday,” says Zante. “Even brief encounters with biophilic imagery can have a profound impact on our well-being. This work offers a visual escape, but also a return, to ourselves, and to the land.”
Born in the Philippines and based in Toronto, Jason Zante has made his mark on the art world with large-scale murals and digital works that fuse nature and imagination. With major commissions for Fallsview Casino, The Four Seasons Hotel, and TD Bank, Zante is known for his distinctive ability to transform public and commercial spaces through immersive colour and layered symbolism.
“Our goal is to make Union Station more than just a place to pass through—we want it to be a destination where art and culture are part of the experience,” says Syma Shah, Vice President and Executive Director of Programming at Union. “Jason has transformed Unionnale into a space that encourages and uplifts. We believe visitors will pause and feel inspiration through this work.”
Union Station is proud to present Aura as a continuation of its mission to support emerging and diverse Canadian voices while enriching the daily experience of its millions of visitors.
Jason Zante’s Aura will launch on May 30th with an artist Q&A from 6-8pm at Union Station, and will then be free for all to enjoy during the station’s operational hours.
About Jason Zante
Jason Zante (b. 1998 Aklan, Philippines) is a Filipino-Canadian artist based in Toronto, Cana da. With a multidisciplinary background, he creates large-scale mural installations, paintings, and digital illustrations. His work embraces escapism, capturing nature’s essence to depict the liminal space between reality and imagination. Exploring themes of biophilia, surrealism, and landscapes, his works use visual metaphors to personify plants, shapes, and symbols in his multilayered narratives. His bold and saturated approach to colour has a transformative effect on both the environment and the viewer. Zante’s creative process involves both digital and tra ditional methods. He builds his works in layers by adding, subtracting, covering, and revealing using digital tools and acrylic mediums.
Zante earned a Bachelor of Design at OCAD University and has created notable site-specific commissions including a mural for The Four Seasons Hotel Toronto (2021) and a 1200-square foot mural for Fallsview Casino Resorts in Niagara Falls (2022). Works by the artist are in presti gious and private collections, including TD Bank of Canada, CIBC, Bentallgreenoak, Cboe Global Markets, and Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts. His clients include Justin Bieber, The Globe & Mail, NBA Canada, Klick Health, Deciem, and the Government of Canada.
About Toronto Union
Union is committed to reflecting the diversity of Canadians in all our programs. Our programming vision celebrates creativity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility. Our goal is to strengthen the connection between public art and civic engagement and ultimately create connectedness amongst our communities.
We support innovation and collaborate with artists and cultural organizations throughout the GTA and internationally. The projects we curate are uplifting, grand scale, impactful, accessible and, above all, foster meaningful thought and emotional dialogue about our collective/shared and individual experiences. It is our goal to curate meaningful and thoughtful public art projects that animate Union Station.
The City of Toronto
The City of Toronto’s Public Art Strategy outlines the City’s commitment to public art created for, and with the input of, Toronto communities, and to create opportunities for artists of diverse backgrounds, experience and practice. The Public Art Strategy recommends opportunities for temporary public art and career-development.
