Wendy Van Riesen
i. I work as a:
textile artist; designing clothing as canvases to paint.
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ii. I do this creative work because:
I love to tell stories through sculpture, movement, imagery and colour.
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iii. Personal qualities that help me in my work are:
Curiosity, humour, trust and boundless energy.
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iv. The greatest challenges around doing this work are:
distraction (curiosity), doubt (humor), solo process (trust), exhaustion (boundless energy)
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v. Creative childhood hobbies:
Sewing with Grandma, painting pictures to accompany mailed letters , acting in home plays, troublemaker/prankster.
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vi. Other creators who inspire you:
Chagall, Caldwell, Leonardo, Matisse, David Bowie, John Fluevog.
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vii. Training that has helped me succeed in this career:
Cap U Textile Program (now redundant.)
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viii. The biggest myth about this type of work is:
that creativity comes as fairy dust. Design is a focused practice of seeing and experimenting. The more I practice, the more trust I have in the connections I make and the better I am at executing them. Art is a practice similar to the skill of building a wall of stone or creating a balanced budget or a healthy meal; practice.
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ix. Some proud career moments:
The fashion show “Ravens, Eagles, Polka Dots” at Eco Fashion Week; based on the art work of the Haida artist Reg Davidson, I created a line of clothing for Indigenous women of all ages to wear on the catwalk, drummed in by Reg and sung to live by M’Girls.
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x. If you want to work in my field, I suggest that you…
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xii. If you want to see my work, go to: