Hi again, my name is Ayo Tsalithaba and I am a visual artist, writer, researcher and award-winning filmmaker, from Ghana and Lesotho and based in Toronto.

My work explores questions of home, (in)visibility, liminality and (un)belonging as they relate to Black queer and trans* African diasporic subjectivity.

I have been featured in Huffington Post Canada, The Fader, Flare Magazine, TFO, The Kit; and have worked with Converse, Luminato, The Queer Songbook Orchestra, TIFF, Ugg, the ROM, the Canadian Academy, and more.

My films have screened at Canadian and international festivals, and garnered widespread media attention, including my film Atmospheric Arrivals being listed as one of BFI’s best films of 2024. I also co-directed a Heritage Minute honouring the pioneering transgender soul singer Jackie Shane.

I use they/he pronouns.

Photo by Sarah Bodri

At 13-years-old, I started a greeting card company called The Bacon Berry Card Co.

After running The Bacon Berry for 7 years, I pivoted to freelance and personal projects in film, photography, graphic design and illustration.

This is a photo of me at 14-years-old.

I created and illustrated the designs, did the product photography, marketing and sold my products at craft shows and through an online store.

Running The Bacon Berry taught me a lot about branding, design, illustration, customer service and how to make a cupcake with a face look cute and not creepy.