Spanning six decades of curiosity and creation, Mountains of Wonder and Tangles of Truth: Kathy Hooper, a Retrospective is the first comprehensive survey of Kathy Hooper’s prolific art career. Curated by Amy Ash, the exhibition filled the main level of the Saint John Arts Centre in November 2023, across both galleries and foyer. It included work dating back to the early 1960’s and through to 2023, some pieces gathered from the artist’s studio, others borrowed from private and public collections. On display were painting, printmaking, carving, ceramic, drawing and book works which reflect the inherent curiosity, creative diversity and range of Hooper’s work, as well as her skill in various media.
Ash, who received support from The Canada Council for the Arts for her research, stresses the importance of celebrating artists achievements while they are able to collaborate in the process:
“Kathy’s imprint on the New Brunswick arts ecosystem has been revolutionary, and working with her over the past year has been an immense privilege and such a time of learning for me. Being invited into Kathy’s creative world and collaborating with her to bring this exhibition to life has been an honour.”
—Amy Ash, Curator
The exhibition also toured the Andrew and Laura McCain Gallery in Florenceville-Bristol, and the Beaverbrook Art Gallery in Fredericton, in 2024.
About the Artist:
Kathy Hooper (she/her) is an award-winning multidisciplinary visual artist (painter, printmaker, sculptor and ceramist), activist and community organizer based in Hampton, New Brunswick.
Born in Kenya and raised in South Africa, she studied at Rhodes University of Fine Art, in Cape Town, and Central School of Art, in London, before immigration to rural Atlantic Canada, where she’s lived since the early 1960’s.
In 1994, Kathy was the recipient the Sheila Hugh MacKay Foundation’s prestigious Strathbutler Award for Excellence in the Visual Arts & Craft in New Brunswick, and the first woman to be presented with this honour. She went on to receive the Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Arts, in 2008.
Her prolific art practice and dedicated advocacy can be felt throughout the province, in both the vibrancy of the arts community and the infrastructure in place to support professional artists today. As a member of the Premier’s Advisory Committee for the Arts, from 1986-89, Kathy was a catalyst in the formation of The New Brunswick Arts Board, and remained an Art Representative after the board formed. She also served on the Advisory Board of the Canada Council Art Bank and has participated in national and provincial juries.
Kathy has been the recipient of numerous grants from The New Brunswick Arts Board and the Canada Council for the Arts, and has been commissioned by the Town of Hampton, the City of Saint John, The National Film Board, and The Dr V A Snow Centre, among others. She has exhibited across Canada, Europe, the US, and Mexico.
Her works can be found in public and private collections in Canada and beyond, including the collections of The Beaverbrook Art Gallery, The New Brunswick Museum, The UNB Art Centre, Memorial University, Collection Art NB and the National Art Bank.
About the Curator:
Amy Ash (she/they) is an independent curator, writer, and interdisciplinary artist.
Based in Menahkwesk/Saint John, New Brunswick, their projects have been commissioned by the National Gallery London (UK), Orleans House Gallery (UK), Stiwdio Maelor Wales (UK), Platform Centre for Photographic and Digital Arts (MB, Canada), and the Beaverbrook Art Gallery (NB, Canada) among others.
Amy is a juried member of the International Association of Art Critics, and serves on the editorial committee for Visual Arts News Magazine. She is the former Learning & Participation Curator for Gerald Moore Gallery (2013-2015), Learning Curator for the New Brunswick International Sculpture Symposium (2018-2022) and is an Instructor with the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design (2019-present).
Across disciplines, Amy’s work engages with collective care through processes of shared meaning-making. Recent curatorial commissions include HOST (2021), for Third Space Gallery (NB), it comes in waves (2022) for UNB Art Centre (NB), and Wayfinding (2022) for ArtsLinkNB’s Atlantic Arts Symposium.
Her independent practice has been supported by The Sheila Hugh Mackay Foundation, The Peter McKendrick Endowment Fund for Visual Artists, The New Brunswick Arts Board, Canada Council for the Arts, and Arts Council England, among others.
Links to Articles about Kathy Hooper’s 2023-24 Retrospective
‘The painting becomes you,’ Kathy Hooper’s commitment to the creative life – billie
Kathy Hooper’s Mountains of Wonder and Tangles of Truth – Visual Arts News