Artists in Residence at Parks Canada Places in Cape Breton

Kira Varvanina

Kira is a multi-dimensional artist from Ontario. Formally trained as an architect, she has been pursuing her artistic career since 2011. She started out with installation art and then created a body of work exploring fibre-optic technology and light. Most recently, Kira has explored laser-cutting techniques and honed her silk-screening skills.

As a natural progression that brings in elements of her earlier works, Kira’s artistic work studies and represents natural formations: cliffs, mountains and coastlines. Her unique vision and expertise are manifested through intricate multi-dimensional art pieces. She looks to “find and create harmony in the chaotic beauty of nature.”

Kira holds a Bachelor of Architectural Studies and a Master of Architecture from Carleton University and has participated in over 15 tradeshows and exhibitions since 2010.  Examples of her work can be found at instagram.com/bymiloshka.

Frances Dorsey

Frances is a textile-based artist from Halifax. She holds undergraduate degrees from the Ontario College of Art and the University of Pennsylvania, as well as a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Michigan. She is also a retired Associate Professor (Foundation and Textiles) at Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. Since retirement, she spends most of her time in her studio and garden.

The act of weaving allows Frances to build the image or pattern directly into the structure. Dyeing and printing the yarn or cloth permits a different kind of intervention on an already existing material – changing colours, patterns or graphic marks without altering the physical form of the cloth. Her growing expertise in plant based dyeing and printing has also sparked a renewed interest in plant life.

Her work has been shown in Canada, the United States, Australia and Korea, and is held in private and public collections including the Canada Council Art Bank, Nova Scotia Art Bank, Cambridge Library and Gallery Collection of Contemporary Fibre and Mount Saint Vincent University Art Gallery Collection. Examples of her work can be found at francesdorsey.com.

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