14th of 15 works found
Untitled
Artist
Craig, Kate
Title
Untitled
Technique
photographic print
Date
1986
Dimensions
40.5cm height x 50.7cm width
Type
print
Accession Number
2016.6.50
Collection
Permanent Collection
From the Estate of Kate Craig
Kate Craig was born in Victoria, BC, in 1947 to Charles and Sidney Craig. Her parents later separated, and her mother married Doug Shadbolt, a well-known architect and brother of the artist Jack Shadbolt. The family moved to Halifax in the early 1960s, and Craig began her training as a costume designer at age fourteen, when she took a summer job as a seamstress at the Neptune Theatre. Craig went on to study at Dalhousie University but quit after three years and moved to Montreal, where she took a job in the costume department at le Théâtre du Nouveau Monde. In 1967, she moved back to Victoria and studied general arts at UVic. There, she met artist Eric Metcalfe in an art history course. In 1969 they were married and soon took on the personas of Dr. and Lady Brute. In March of 1973, Craig and Metcalfe, along with seven other artists, purchased a building in East Vancouver and established the Western Front artists-run centre, one of the first in Canada. Later that year, she and Metcalfe separated, but continued to live and work together. The Western Front became a hub of artistic activity on the West Coast, and Craig was involved in all aspects of the organization, initiating the artist-in-residence program (1977), spearheading the media arts program, and producing many video works for visiting artists. Since 1975, Craig's work has been presented at venues throughout North America, Europe and Asia, and she has developed an international reputation for her video and performance-based art. Craig died following a battle with cancer in 2002.