Frank Pio

I was born in Italy and immigrated to Canada with my family when I was three. For the next twenty years, I loved looking at art — but never imagined I could be an artist myself.
After graduating high school, I planned a short two-month trip to Europe before attending Teachers College. Those two months turned into two years of travelling around the world. When I finally returned to Canada, I completed my studies and became a teacher.
My first teaching position took me to Lima, Peru, where I worked at Markham College, a private British boys’ school. While there, I began taking drawing classes with renowned Peruvian sculptor Cristina Gálvez. Over the course of a single year, she changed the course of my life — inspiring me to leave teaching and pursue art full-time.
When I returned to Canada, I enrolled in art school and studied Visual Arts for four years. Like many artists, I quickly learned how challenging it can be to make a living from one’s work — but I was determined. My love of travel continued to guide my path, taking me back to Peru for solo exhibitions and later to New Mexico, where I studied for six months in the M.A. Studio Arts program at the University of New Mexico.
A year later, I completed my M.A. at NYU and remained ...

I have an ED. D in Indigenous Aesthetics and Philosophy; a M.A. in Studio Art (both from New York University); and a graduate of Ontario College of Art in Visual Arts.

I have exhibited in Peru, NYC, Tel Aviv and Toronto. My recent exhibit (July 2025) in Toronto - We Are Not Alone at Wychwood Barns Park - was an immersive outdoor art installation that transformed public space into a sanctuary for stillness, memory, and connection.