FIBRE
Anna Wagner, BA
Anna has studied Fashion Arts at Vancouver Community College
Anna has studied Fashion Arts at Vancouver Community College
and fibre at Kootenay School of the Arts. She holds a BA in Psychology and English Literature from the University of British Columbia. She is currently self-employed, part-time as a jeweller.
VISUAL ART
Deb Thompson, MFA
She received an MFA in painting from the University of Montana (1997), a BA in Outdoor Education from Prescott College and an associate degree from the Ontario College of Art and Design (1984). She has taught for various outdoor education schools as well as for the art department of the University of Montana. Her paintings have been exhibited in the USA and Canada. She has travelled and taught in the back country of Alaska, Northern Canada, Utah and East Africa.
Anita Levesque, BFA
Anita possesses a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a major in Drawing from the Alberta College of Art and Design, as well as a Bachelor of Art Education degree from Mount Saint Vincent University (in correlation with the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design). She has experience working with children, adolescents, and adults.
Anita possesses a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a major in Drawing from the Alberta College of Art and Design, as well as a Bachelor of Art Education degree from Mount Saint Vincent University (in correlation with the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design). She has experience working with children, adolescents, and adults.
Natasha Smith
Natasha is a printmaker, painter and collage artist. She holds a B.A hons in Fine Art Printmaking from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, Scotland and a Diploma in Art and Design from York College, England. Since moving to the Kootenays Natasha has instructed drawing, design and printmaking at the Kootenay School and the Arts the Nelson Fine Art Centre (now the Oxygen Art Centre). Natasha has also instructed printmaking at Malaspina Printmaking Workshop in Vancouver and at Red Deer College AB.
Courtney Andersen, MFA
Courtney has lived in the Nelson area since 1993. His family dates back here to the late 1800s or earlier. He lives between Ymir and Salmo in a cabin about 1.5 km. off the highway with kids, chickens, rats, and dogs.
He studied at ACAD in Calgary, as well as the U of C, NSCAD in Halifax, as well as the Banff Centre in the Alberta Rockies. Courtney has taught painting, drawing, printmaking, and design beginning in 1984. He has a Master of Fine Arts degree from NSCAD. His work deals with painting, drawing, printmaking, wall sculpture and installations. He also likes to make soup.
Charlotte Erlandsson, BFA
Charlotte holds a BFA from Emily Carr Institute in photography and painting.
She has done performance art in Vancouver, where she used storytelling, music and photography. Her graduation work was an installation piece with photography, paintings and storytelling. The content of her work is focused on her Scandinavian female ancestry, dating back about 20,000 years, when matriarchal or woman-centred cultures co-existed on Earth.
Mirja Vahala
Having spent twenty years in the graphic design field, Mirja now directs her energy toward her passion: painting and instructing art.
Her main purpose is to paint landscape images that symbolize our life’s journey and inspire the viewer. She is motivated by her imagination, time spent outdoors, scuba diving and her dreams.
Using acrylics and watercolour, Mirja loves the challenge of painting only enough shades of dark and light to create form while leaving room for the viewers imagination.
faculty
WRITING
Nicola Harwood, BFA, MFA
Nicola writes plays and creative non-fiction and her work has been produced and published in Canada and the United States. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University and a BFA in Writing from UVic. She has taught writing and theatre for the University of Victoria, San Francisco State University, Selkirk College and for many art and theatre organizations.
Nicola writes plays and creative non-fiction and her work has been produced and published in Canada and the United States. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University and a BFA in Writing from UVic. She has taught writing and theatre for the University of Victoria, San Francisco State University, Selkirk College and for many art and theatre organizations.
Susan Andrews Grace, MFA
Susan has a BA (Phil.) from the University of Saskatchewan and an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is the author of Ferry Woman’s History of the World (Coteau, 2000) Water is the First World (Coteau, 1991)and Wearing my Father (underwhich editions, 1990) and has taught at UNLV, KSA and NFAC. Susan is also a visual artist. She has exhibited her works for 25 years in Canada & the USA. See www.susanandrewsgrace.com.
Susan has a BA (Phil.) from the University of Saskatchewan and an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is the author of Ferry Woman’s History of the World (Coteau, 2000) Water is the First World (Coteau, 1991)and Wearing my Father (underwhich editions, 1990) and has taught at UNLV, KSA and NFAC. Susan is also a visual artist. She has exhibited her works for 25 years in Canada & the USA. See www.susanandrewsgrace.com.
Natasha Jmieff
Natasha Jmieff’s chapbook manuscript, Our People was the winner of the 2006 Nelson Arts Council 30-Hour Writing Contest in the poetry category. Poems from Our People were featured on Kootenay Co-op Radio and CBC Radio’s North By Northwest. Her poems and articles have been published in Horsefly Magazine and ISKRA: Voice of the Doukhobors, with more publications soon to come. She has a degree in English Literature from UBC. While her first book of poetry, Sing, Don’t Think, seeks publication, she is at work on her second.
Luanne Armstrong, MFA, Phd
Luanne Armstrong is a novelist, freelance writer, editor, and publisher. She is deeply interested in writing about place and nature. Her new book, Blue Valleys, An Ecological Memoir, a book about growing up in the Kootenays, will be published in 2007 by Maa Press. Luanne has taught Creative Writing at UBC, Langara College, and in venues across Canada. She holds a Masters in Creative Writing from UBC and a Ph.D in Education from UBC. She presently lives on her organic heritage farm on the east shore of Kootenay Lake.
Shayla Wright
Shayla lived for 25 years in India where she was a writer, speaker and teacher of the expressive arts in her community, as well as a meditation teacher. She worked with people of all ages, from all over the world. As the years passed, she became more and more drawn to expression which comes forth spontaneously, innocently, without attachment to the result. For the last six years in the Kootenays, Shayla has worked at various writing contracts and taught ‘The Alchemy of Writing’ as a course and as a workshop. Her published writing has been poetry and essays.
FILM
Amy Bohigian, MA
Amy Bohigian holds her Advanced Degree in the International Digital Film Program at Selkirk College. As the Executive Director of After School Productions she integrates her passion for documentary film with her life-long dedication to youth development and adult education. She earned her Master’s Degree in Education from Harvard University and has worked in the fields of experiential education, youth programming, and community development for 15 years.
Katherine Pettit, BFA, MA, MFA
Katherine holds a Master of Fine Arts in Film Production from UBC and her documentary, “Sand For Now” about sand sculpture artists has appeared on “Bravo”, ABC Australia and at the Montreal and Calgary International Film Festivals. She has taught media studies, documentary directing and film production.
