in loving memory of andy donato

1937 - 2026

The news of Andy Donato’s sudden passing brings a profound sense of loss, especially coming so soon after his official retirement on September 6th 2026 from The Toronto Sun. For 55 years, his internationally recognized and award-winning editorial political cartoons and that iconic little hidden bird were as reliable as the sunrise for readers across Canada.

Andy was hard to keep up with. At 89 years of age, he was looking forward to the next chapter. For most of his career, he maintained a grueling schedule of generating up to five original cartoons weekly. It required an endless well of original ideas, layers of subtle and bold political commentary capable of grabbing the attention of readers. Even politicians, the subject of lampooning, sought to buy the cartoons in which they were featured.  

Andy understood that an editorial cartoon wasn't just a funny drawing; it was an act of public stewardship. His sharp lines held power to account, but his warm spirit kept the Toronto Sun grounded in community. Andy made it look entirely effortless. His cartoons were a constant in our lives, appearing every week with his signature bird.  

And it wasn’t just cartooning that was part of Andy’s contribution to the newspaper. His experience as Art Director for The Telegram, the predecessor to The Sun, was brought forward when he was hired as Art Director at the Sun’s inception. He put forth the name of the paper (inspired by the UK’s The Sun) and he drew the paper’s logo and established the page design, setting the tone and visual identity of the paper.

His tireless work ethic combined with his artistic ability and creativity led to many impressive industry accomplishments:

National Newspaper Award (1976): Canada's highest newspaper honour for editorial cartooning.

Montreal Salon of Cartoons (1980): The prestigious global award for the Best Editorial Cartoon in the World.

Canadian News Hall of Fame (2016): Inducted to honour his monumental lifetime contributions to Canadian media.

Metropolitan Toronto Police Annual News Award: (1993 and 1997) Awarded twice specifically for his cartooning.

Andy was one of the very few Canadians ever elected to serve as President of the International Association of American Editorial Cartoonists (1985–1986), and he also served as President of the Association of Canadian Cartoonists (2000–2001).

He also had the distinction of being inducted into three regional walks of fame: the Italian Walk of Fame in Toronto (2014), the Brampton Arts Walk of Fame (2016), and the Scarborough Walk of Fame (2018) (the latter of which he noted publicly that he shared with the incredible painter Doris McCarthy).

Alongside his legacy as an editorial giant, Andy was an accomplished painter. Even while managing his demanding workload, he painted constantly.

After his retirement he planned to spend his days focusing more on his painting—a transition we were all incredibly excited to witness. We knew how thrilled he was to finally focus entirely on what was truly a lifelong love and profession. We had discussed a celebratory retrospective exhibition in honour of his retirement and were looking forward to a merging of his editorial world with his paintings in what would be an incredible celebration of his lifetime of achievement.  

Andy’s original artwork was so compelling because of his viewpoint of the subject matter he chose to paint. Throughout his career as a painter, he was known for his distinctive urban landscapes, exaggerated angles, and vibrant depictions of Toronto's back alleys and street scenes. He developed a style called "bent realism” where he would bend the lines of a house or car and give it a humorous type of movement. He was exploring the bridge between cartooning and painting which made his work very playful yet sophisticated.  

So much has changed in our world but Andy’s paintings offered a sense of comfort, belonging and a kind of homecoming to our own history. We recently had a visitor to the gallery who caught sight of one of Andy's paintings—a depiction of a man walking a dog down a quiet Toronto alleyway. The gentleman was visibly moved as he explained that the image perfectly captured the essence of his own late dog and their routine walks through the city's alleys. Incredibly, it was the exact one-year anniversary of his dog’s passing. Andy was able to create work that tugged at people’s heart strings, and reminded us of our identity and community and the people and animals who matter the most.  

We will miss Andy deeply. We will miss his booming voice, his boundless enthusiasm for life, and the sight of his red convertible driving by with the top down, his wife Dianne by his side and their dog in tow, simply enjoying life together. We are profoundly grateful to have had a back-row seat to his life, and we honour his incredible creative legacy.