A Matter of Energy
We are thrilled to announce that sculptor Kathryn Dobbin will join KOAC this November as our next Artist in Residence for 2023. Working alongside Katie Ohe, she will create a body of sculptural work which will encompass research, development, construction and experimentation with her chosen medium. Documentation and exhibition of this new series will close out the residency with an artist talk for the public in the spring.
Dobbin’s sculpture Dandelion was built in1982 and has been on display at the arts centre since 2015.
The KOAC Artist in Residence program provides artists with one-on-one support and a place for research, exhibition, and documentation of visual contemporary art. The KOAC art residency program is open to visual artists of all disciplines and stages of their career who permanently reside in Canada.
In Kathryn’s own personal words she shared the influence Kiyooka Ohe Arts Centre has had on her career as a metal sculptor.
Established amongst the aspen poplars, KOAC provides the perfect setting for creativity, which I find personally meaningful. I feel very much at home, I have roots here. I grew up here, my ‘formative’ years were spent living southwest of Cochrane. This country landscape holds a large place in my heart. When you drive out to KOAC from Calgary on Springbank Road and hit the crest of the hill where the horizon reveals the formidable line of the Canadian Rocky Mountains and the beautiful landscape between, that view says it all. The sky and air unique to the terrain, it is here we have nestled in a rich environment all the conditions conducive to meditation, exploration and creativeness. At this stage of my life, the prospect to reconnect with my soul’s creativity through the medium of steel is very exciting. I consider this occasion to immerse in creative practice essential for my wellbeing. The timing for this involvement is ideal.
This occasion offers to me, an enriched station through which to re-emerge. An opportunity I look forward to honouring with a series of work in need of expression in surroundings that foster inspiration.
KOAC is very excited to have Kathryn contribute towards KOAC’s mission — the research, education, documentation and enjoyment of contemporary visual arts in nature.
