Holly Schmidt is an artist, curator and educator who engages processes of embodied research, collaboration and informal pedagogy to explore the multiplicity of human relations with the natural world. Her work involves the creation of temporary site-specific projects and residencies, along with material-based explorations in the studio. Her national and international exhibitions, projects and residencies include: Vegetal Encounters (2019-21) with the UBC Outdoor Art Program, Quiescence (2019) at the Burrard Arts Foundation, A-Y with Locals Only (2018) at AKA Gallery, Pollen Index (2016) at the Charles H. Scott Gallery, Till (2014-15) at the Santa Fe Art Institute, Moveable Feast (2012) at the Burnaby Art Gallery and Grow (2011) with Other Sights for Artists’ Projects. Schmidt is grateful to live and work in Vancouver, Canada, the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.
Lorna Brown, Associate Director and Curator at the Belkin, interviews Holly Schmidt, the Outdoor Art Program’s artist in residence at UBC. Schmidt’s residency at UBC that she has titled Vegetal Encounters began in the fall of 2018 and will extend into 2021, taking the framework of a slow, unfolding process of exploration and research with different departments and communities on campus. During this period of self-isolation and physical distancing necessitated by COVID-19, Schmidt discusses her practice in the context of this tumultuous moment and how it relates to embodiment and her own sense of materiality that encompasses both the manipulation of matter as well as the historical and social context of the present situation. The interview took place on Friday, April 24, 2020 in Vancouver, BC.
Holly Schmidt is an artist, curator and educator who engages processes of embodied research, collaboration and informal pedagogy to explore the multiplicity of human relations with the natural world. Her work involves the creation of temporary site-specific projects and residencies, along with material-based explorations in the studio. Her national and international exhibitions, projects and residencies include: Vegetal Encounters (2019-21) with the UBC Outdoor Art Program, Quiescence (2019) at the Burrard Arts Foundation, A-Y with Locals Only (2018) at AKA Gallery, Pollen Index (2016) at the Charles H. Scott Gallery, Till (2014-15) at the Santa Fe Art Institute, Moveable Feast (2012) at the Burnaby Art Gallery and Grow (2011) with Other Sights for Artists’ Projects. Schmidt is grateful to live and work in Vancouver, Canada, the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.
Students from UBC’s Department of Biology practice botanical drawing – and immersive observation – with artist in residence Holly Schmidt.
[more]Like most of the world right now, the Belkin is looking at the way we work and wondering how to move forward in this moment of unprecedented change. We are looking at the world through a different lens now – the texts we’ve read are no longer relevant in the same way; the ways we have been working will be forever changed. We’re asking ourselves, what will the art world look like when this is over? How does cultural work proceed when we move to virtual space? What is the status of our collective experience? How are artists imagining production and practice in their changed material conditions? What does intimacy look like? Until we can welcome you back in person, here are just a few ways to connect with us and share our common (and unique) responses to this moment.
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