Fernie & Elk Valley Culture Guide Issue 2 Fall 2016 | Page 21

FEATURE ARTIST Katherine Russell After travelling the world and thriving on big city life as a young artist, Katherine Russell has found balance and inspiration in the small and welcoming town of Elkford. Katherine’s introduction to glass came with her BFA studies at Calgary’s Alberta College of Art and Design. A glass elective on her ‘useful and employable’ graphic design course quickly developed into her major in the conceptuallyfocused and encouraging environment. Sampling a range of mediums from photography and sculpture to welding and fibre arts provided a diverse platform from which to work, and allowed the artist to hone her talents without feeling boxed into one discipline. Katherine’s post-graduate apprenticeships with highly skilled glass artists in Black Diamond, AB, and Perth, Australia, added invaluable training in the business of being an artist. Now based in Elkford, she continues to blow glass in Black Diamond and maintain her connections to the Calgary glass community while thriving on new relationships with a diverse array of local craftspeople. Katherine is currently collaborating with the Fernie Forge on an exciting new public art proposal. Katherine’s striking pieces are well known in the Elk Valley, and can be found on Fernie’s colourful art banners, as well as at Eye of the Needle in Fernie and at galleries in Calgary, Edmonton, Regina and Western Australia. Her home studio in Elkford is open by appointment. Katherine has embraced the Elk Valley way of life with her husband and two young sons, enjoying the local trails, gardening, camping, running, and volunteering with the Elkford Nordic Club, Arts Council and Triathlon. In the fall she will be offering glass workshops at her studio and working within the local school system for initiatives including Artstarts and Artist in the Classroom. katherinerussellglass.blogspot.ca. [email protected] 250 665 8005 21