Check This Space looks at how millennials live in Toronto, taking readers inside the homes and lives of some of the city’s favourite social media personalities. Watch for regular instalments of this series on thestar.com.Hatecopy, a.k.a., Maria Qamar, is a 27-year-old Canadian artist and Instagram star known for creating pop art inspired by her life as a young, South Asian woman. With about 125,000 Instagram followers, a recent book called Trust No Aunty, an Elle Canada cover and shout-outs from the likes of Mindy Kaling under her belt, Qamar has come a long way from her days as a junior in advertising. Eager to live on her own away from home, Qamar first moved away from her parents’ Mississauga home when she got into Seneca College’s Markham campus for advertising. After landing a job in Toronto after graduating, Qamar moved to the city and never left.She moved into this one-bedroom, second-floor apartment in the Distillery District last October. As someone who works from home — and works a lot — Qamar loves the open concept, 645-square-foot live-work space and its high ceilings, perfect for large canvases. She says she pays about $1,900 in rent. As you enter the home, you can see some of Qamar’s earliest paintings lined up against the hallway wall — a temporary storage solution, she says, but a nice way to introduce guests to what she’s all about. What do you like best about your home?I love the ceilings. The height is very ideal for me. I love the fact that it’s far away from downtown, that it’s not loud but it’s close enough that I can go wherever I want without time being a huge factor. I like the fact that it’s in the Distillery. I love the Distillery.What is the worst or most challenging aspect of this space?The most challenging aspect of this space is that TV. I don’t watch a lot of TV, much like a lot of people. I watch Netflix whenever I have the time. I bought that TV so I c ...
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