What began as one enthusiast’s idea of a better event has become one of the most visually striking Porsche gatherings in Canada. Founded by London, Ontario materials supplier Ryan Oatman, Kaleidoscope blends automotive culture with artful staging, industrial venues and an obsessive attention to colour and composition. Each edition transforms carefully selected Porsches, and their owners’ stories, into an immersive visual experience.
“There’s this invisible force field around Porsche owners,” says Ryan Oatman. “From the outside, it feels like there’s a barrier to entry—like you don’t belong unless you already do.” That illusion shattered the moment Kaleidoscope opened its doors.
“I think there’s two types of car people,” Oatman says. “There’s the people who want to drive and pile miles, and there’s the people who want to stare at their pride and joy. And I feel the pull of both. Kaleidoscope pairs those drivers’ stories and their cars as art.”
A lifelong Porsche owner Oatman is not. He didn’t purchase his first one until 2019 and he didn’t grow up wrenching on his car in the garage. What he did have was an eye for design, a deep respect for cohesive spaces and a whole lot of time spent thinking about what he would do differently if he ever ran a show of his own.
Readers should note that Kaleidoscope isn’t Oatman’s full-time gig. He owns and operates a London-based company that supplies material to builders and designers across Ontario. By all accounts, it’s a fairly normal life: full-time dog dad, steadfast tea drinker, appreciator of good pizza. But when it comes to Kaleidoscope, the details are anything but ordinary — bringing it to life was going to take more than just imagination.
“It just boils down to – it’s a bit cliché – but I wanted to create something that I wanted to attend,” he says. “I spent years attending various types of car events and enjoying them, but also considering how I would do things differently.”
So he did.
Set in the courtyard of a 130-year-old cereal factory in London, Ontario, the inaugural Kaleidoscope in 2023, dubbed a “celebration of the cars and colours of Porsche,” felt more like an immersive art experience than a car meet. The design was deliberate. The cars and owners were curated. And the photographers were absolutely giddy. It was gritty, atmospheric and full of possibility.
“This sort of event requires such a monumental amount of planning,” he says. “It’s not as simple as pulling up and parking. We need to measure a site, sketch it, then visit multiple times in advance to mark car locations. The staging of each vehicle is critical to the final product I want to achieve.” Oatman then goes on to use a line he repeats multiple times during our time together: “We stage it, and our wonderful photographers turn it into art”.
Kaleidoscope isn’t just about cool cars. It’s about crafting an atmosphere and making sure every detail works together to deliver it. That idea of fit—of cohesion—is his guiding star. It extends to everything, from the authentic signs on venue walls to the captions on Instagram.
He laughs. “It may look raw, but it’s all carefully envisioned and conscious.”
The commitment to that vision wasn’t performative — it was personal. The aesthetic mattered because the experience mattered. His own car is a 2023 718 Cayman GT4 finished in Mint Green and has rightfully become something of a pillar at the event. “I’m essentially the caretaker for the car,” he says. “People don’t necessarily know me, but they know the car.” It’s often swarmed by photographers at events, not because it’s the fastest thing there, but because it perfectly captures the kind of unexpected colour and character Kaleidoscope celebrates.
“Sometimes, a colour and a car just come together perfectly, and I like to think I’ve got an eye for that. It could be Miami Blue on a Macan or it could be Signal Yellow on a 911. Sometimes, it just fits,” he says. “I arrange our show settings with those car-to-colour partnerships in mind and a distinct clarity of vision.”
That clarity became Kaleidoscope’s calling card. For Oatman, the biggest win wasn’t the viral photos or videos. It was watching people walk into the spaces he designed and visibly shift.
In 2024, the event took place at a former rubber stamp factory — a mid-century building with a lived-in feel that gave the show a warmer, more personal atmosphere. “I had an icon shot in mind when creating that layout, and multiple photographers innately saw it and snapped it without a hint.”
In 2025, the event moved to Hamilton, Ontario within the alleys of a multi-use industrial complex that introduced Kaleidoscope to a bigger audience. This third event also pioneered a new and fitting partnership with Fujifilm, a brand synonymous with the precision and build quality that Porsche owners are used to. “It made so much sense. We attract the best photographers in North America, why wouldn’t we offer them some of the best equipment to shoot on?” Creators were able to borrow cameras from their team and shoot with their iconic equipment, including brand new releases not even available for sale through retail channels.
“It was so rewarding,” he says. “Because you could feel that people were into it. I’ve now had three different guests tell me they purchased cars in specific colours after seeing and experiencing them at Kaleidoscope. What a wonderful compliment to this whole thing I do.”
That ‘whole thing’ didn’t happen by accident.
Oatman is already deep into the planning of next year’s event. He recently made sure his attendees and partners were given insight into where it’s heading, telling them “change is challenging and necessary”. In future, Kaleidoscope will move to multiple different environments, with full intention.
“Cars are just the medium,” Oatman says. “It’s about connection, clarity and cohesion.”
Connection, clarity, cohesion: not the usual building blocks of a car show, but then again, Kaleidoscope was never meant to be just another Cars and Coffee.
“It’s not just a lineup of cars,” he says. “It’s an experience.”
And that experience – raw, welcoming and consciously envisioned – is what keeps people coming back.
