“A Day in the Life” with local visual artist Kathryn Blair

January 21, 2019 Ann Baek Arts, Visual Arts

Kathryn Blair has always had an interest in visual art and a knack for seeing things from many perspectives at once. Born in Calgary, she was in the GATE program from elementary through Highschool, while also dabbling in some I.B. courses. She particularly enjoyed her arts and science classes, and played in concert and jazz bands simultaneously.

After highschool, Kath’s desire to pursue an education in the arts led her to attend the University of British Columbia. During her time there, she immersed herself in both the program and the immense local art scene, while also working in the Co-op program. She graduated with a BFA Honours in Visual Art in 2009.

After graduation she moved back to Calgary and before long was in charge of marketing at a downtown theatre company. Her passion for learning then led her to volunteer and eventually work at the Telus Spark science centre, where she designed public programs and became fascinated with the way the public can learn about complex subjects when they are presented well. Before long, Kath found herself involved with several organizations in the Calgary arts community, and served on the Board of Directors for The New Gallery. From there she branched into other groups including Make Fashion, in 2013, for which she has showcased at least one piece every year since.

In 2016, Kath went back to school full time to pursue a Masters of Fine Art. During this time she leveraged her knowledge of Fine Art and public programming to create interactive pieces aimed at exposing the inherent flaws in various algorithms created by human beings, and making people more aware of how these algorithms can influence our daily lives without us understanding how they work, or indeed even knowing about them. Finished with her Masters degree in 2018, Kath decided to further build upon her Masters work, and is now continuing on for a PhD in Computational Media Design. There, she is using public engagement strategies to improve public awareness of how algorithms can impact our daily lives.

-written by husband Ryan

Kathryn Blair - Sept 9, 2018 - Setting up for a wearable tech demo at a University of Calgary Alumni Weekend event. Got to talk to a bunch of young people about making wacky things, and I also snagged some waffles.
Sept 9, 2018 – Setting up for a wearable tech demo at a University of Calgary Alumni Weekend event. Got to talk to a bunch of young people about making wacky things, and I also snagged some waffles.
Kathryn Blair - Oct 27, 2018 - View of my installation for the Body In Space Art Party, part of Springboard Performance’s Fluid Festival. I was there as the Logician working on logic puzzles as people came through the event.
Oct 27, 2018 – View of my installation for the Body In Space Art Party, part of Springboard Performance’s Fluid Festival. I was there as the Logician working on logic puzzles as people came through the event.
Kathryn Blair - Sept 18, 2018 – testing light diffusion in my Make Fashion piece which went down the runway on September 21, 2018 in the Make Fashion 2018 Gala as part of Beakernight.
Sept 18, 2018 – testing light diffusion in my Make Fashion piece which went down the runway on September 21, 2018 in the Make Fashion 2018 Gala as part of Beakernight.
This was one of the last Adults Only Night events I worked on for my job as a Public Programmer at TELUS Spark. I loved the effect of these jellyfish made from bumper balls in front of the inflatable whale. Later in the night we deflated the whale and got visitors to sing whalesong to it to reinflate / save it. It’s a magical memory now.
This was one of the last Adults Only Night events I worked on for my job as a Public Programmer at TELUS Spark. I loved the effect of these jellyfish made from bumper balls in front of the inflatable whale. Later in the night we deflated the whale and got visitors to sing whalesong to it to reinflate / save it. It’s a magical memory now.
Sept 15, 2018 – I was at an art conference in Latvia (Open Fields 2018) and we went on a tour of the Kemeri Bog to take in some sound art. This is a picture from a lookout point, it was stunningly gorgeous and I loved how it smelled! Also the moss you was really fascinating close up.
Sept 15, 2018 – I was at an art conference in Latvia (Open Fields 2018) and we went on a tour of the Kemeri Bog to take in some sound art. This is a picture from a lookout point, it was stunningly gorgeous and I loved how it smelled! Also the moss you was really fascinating close up.
Dec 21, 2018 – the electronic wasteland on my desk a little bit after a prototyping session for a project with Phi Illuminated Design for Glow Fest Calgary 2019. The prototyping session was really productive.
Dec 21, 2018 – the electronic wasteland on my desk a little bit after a prototyping session for a project with Phi Illuminated Design for Glow Fest Calgary 2019. The prototyping session was really productive.
Nov 21, 2018 – Modelling the electronics for a device that tracks my galvanic skin response, heart rate and skin temperature and sends it to the cloud for mood analysis. This was for a project for an app development course. This was the part of the project that wasn’t actually an app.
Nov 21, 2018 – Modelling the electronics for a device that tracks my galvanic skin response, heart rate and skin temperature and sends it to the cloud for mood analysis. This was for a project for an app development course. This was the part of the project that wasn’t actually an app.
Aug 11, 2018 – Ball run set up at the Emerge YYC / Fuse 33 Market on International Ave in Calgary. I was wrangling young attendees to make this ball run with me, and they made some really cool loop the loops and an elevator for the balls.
Aug 11, 2018 – Ball run set up at the Emerge YYC / Fuse 33 Market on International Ave in Calgary. I was wrangling young attendees to make this ball run with me, and they made some really cool loop the loops and an elevator for the balls.

What ‘hood are you in?

I live in Shawnessey, in the far south of Calgary. I grew up in Inglewood, and can be found hanging out at my parent’s house and shopping in that neck of the woods at least weekly.

What do you do?

I’m a PhD student in Computational Media Design at the University of Calgary, where I’m just beginning my studies. I’m working on developing participatory art experiences to engage the public with how algorithms control our lives. Until the summer of 2018, I worked as a Public Programmer at TELUS Spark where I got to make up weird activities for adults to do at the Science Centre, so I’m applying that to how we understand the ethics of technology as a society – or that’s the idea, anyway!

What are you currently working on?

Currently, I’m working on the literature review stage of my PhD, so I’m trying to do as much reading as I can, and taking classes. Luckily those just wrapped up for the semester. I’m also giving some workshops for Education staff members in wearable technology, as I’ve been involved with Make Fashion, a wearable technology fashion show, since 2013 and love sharing the tinkering bug with others.

Where can we find your work?

http://kathrynblair.com is my somewhat neglected portfolio… I really want to start blogging there so I have a record of what I’ve been up to! I’m working with Phi Illuminated Design on a project for the Glow Festival in February, which has been really fun.

 

 

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