Ry Van Der Hout (b. 1987, Canada) is an interdisciplinary artist based in Toronto and New York whose practice investigates transformation through fragmentation and reflection, using glass and mirrors as both material and metaphor for queer experience and becoming. Working across stained glass, darkroom photography, sculpture, and public art, Van Der Hout creates works that challenge how we see ourselves and our environment — inviting viewers to witness how breaking can reveal new possibilities. Central to their practice is the use of traditional stained glass repair techniques to reconstruct deliberately shattered photographic imagery, exploring how acts of destruction and mending produce stranger, more authentic forms.
Van Der Hout's monumental sculpture "To Reflect Everything" was presented by NYC Parks at Washington Square Park (2025) and the Toronto Sculpture Garden (2023). They have been selected by the City of Toronto for a major public art commission integrating permanent artwork into three bridges in the Parkdale neighbourhood, and their permanent public work "Narcissus Twice" is held in the collection of La Napoule Art Foundation in France. Solo exhibitions include "the shadow holds" (United Contemporary, 2026) and "Mending Shards" (United Contemporary, 2024). They have created public art for NYC Parks, the City of Toronto, and Nuit Blanche. Van Der Hout holds an MFA from Parsons at The New School and a BFA in Photography from Toronto Metropolitan University. They are the 2026 recipient of the Barbara Spohr Fellowship at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity and were awarded the Emerging Artist Award by the Robert McLaughlin Gallery. Their work has been supported by the Toronto Arts Council, Ontario Arts Council, and Canada Council for the Arts.
Upcoming: Van Der Hout will present new work at Ottawa City Hall Art Gallery (2026-2027) and Spadina Museum (Toronto History Museums, 2026), and will have a solo exhibition at United Contemporary during Contact Festival (2027).