arissa completed her BFA with a major in glass at the Alberta College of Art and Design in 2008. The next year, she moved to the coast and began pursuing visual arts opportunities throughout Western Canada. She has been Assistant Teacher at Red Deer College and Terminal City Glass Co-op, and has exhibited extensively in Alberta and BC. In 2016, she completed her first public art piece, “Love Your Neighbour, Love Your Ocean,” located in Vancouver. In 2017, she joined the board of Curiosity Collider as Exhibitions Director, and is now the Arts, Culture, and Collections Director. Larissa is interested in a diverse range of topics, including nature, politics, psychology, and history, and connections/patterns.
Supporting Vancouver’s performance community is an exciting challenge, and Larissa looks forward to discovering and participating in Pi’s community. She loves learning about the many ways in which artists of all kinds create new and exciting work.
Larissa on working in the arts:
"Upon graduating from art school, I found studio space and got to work, but struggled to find my adult voice as an artist. After 4 years and university tuition, I was not going to let my skills go to waste. I focused intently on glassblowing. Unfortunately, by restricting myself to one medium, I was limiting myself, and my concepts and development stagnated.
For my 25th birthday, my wonderful parents sent me to a 3-week program at a glass-focused art school/camp called Pilchuck. Ironically, this experience being surrounded by glass artists made me realise that I am not a glassblower, I am an artist who blows glass. This subtle difference set me on a very productive path of exploring and using other materials. Diversifying my fabrication options allowed me to clarify and define my own style.
Parallel to my positive experience with opening my art practice to other materials, I find it very beneficial to mix with artists working in other disciplines. Learning how artists work in varying situations and formats helps me become a better artist. Supporting Vancouver’s performance community is an exciting challenge. In the last several years I have become very good friends with some local performers, and I have joined the board of a non-profit called Curiosity Collider, which produces events featuring multidisciplinary artists including many performers. I look forward to discovering and participating in Pi’s community."
