Return to Innocence, 2025

Queeny Rebel Empire

Recycled latex and acrylic on wood
3 ft x 3 ft
Edition 1/1 original
Unframed
Provenance: Acquired directly from the artist, Toronto
Includes delivery and installation within the Toronto area

In Return to Innocence, a crimson tractor rolls through a field of golden stalks, evoking a memory retrieved from a simpler future. A goose rests atop a nest of eggs, while farmers—rendered in vivid hues—hold steady in a world teetering between nurture and neglect. Beneath the charm lies a deeper call: a critique of industrial agriculture and the global erosion of organic farming. As glyphosate seeps into our soil and bloodstream, Queeny asks—how can we transcend when we’re soaked in poison? This work is a vibrant plea for sovereignty over land, food, and the body.

About The Artist

Queeny Rebel Empire is the alter ego of Toronto artist Ursula Queeny Krubnik—a painter, graffiti alum, and self-described “visual sociologist” whose work radiates defiance, joy, and deep-rooted feminine power. Raised by Eastern Bloc immigrants and shaped by the underground art scene of the late ’80s and ’90s, Queeny merges raw grit with playful mysticism. Her paintings—often built on salvaged materials—are ecstatic, story-rich worlds of bright color, divine feminine energy, and found-object alchemy. With The Green Contemporaries (April 25–June 23, 2025), Mania proudly presents our first solo show by a female artist—an artist whose work doesn’t just speak to rebellion, but paints it in full bloom.