My work focuses on the construction of identity through remembering and the mis-remembering of the past. Our conceptions of the past, whether vivid or distorted, form our current mythologies and perception of ourselves. My work questions how identity is constructed when memory is disconnected, repressed or absent. Some events of the past are stored as sensory fragments without a coherent narrative or semantic guide within the mind and held as body memory under the skin. I focus on how the body holds events from the past that cannot be expressed through language. Using the visual imagery of the figure, I am questioning whether tacit communication of the body is possible in my paintings.
In my work I am attempting to communicate this state of being beyond language and this state of being dissociated from language, the body and sense of self. The layering of imagery is a reoccurring element in my work, as the figures remain unresolved despite the attempts of reconstruction. This relates to the healing process that produces not only physical scarring but also involves the reconception of self. The figures remain fragmented to communicate this state of experiencing multiple layers of memory that do not resolve into a coherent narrative required by society.
EDUCATION
2009-2012 BFA, Emily Carr University of Art and Design, Vancouver, Canada
2008-2009 Alberta College of Art and Design, Calgary, Canada
2002-2004 University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
EXHIBITIONS
2013 Hooked, Moniker Gallery, Toronto
2012 Grad Show, Emily Carr University of Art and Design, Vancouver
2011 The Autists Gala, curated by Charlie Pachter, Koerner Hall, Toronto
2010 Katharine Ferns and Sarah Holmes, Corridor Collective, Canmore
2010 Fabrication, Emily Carr University of Art and Design, Vancouver
COMMISSIONS
2011 The Property Brothers, Episode “Katherine & Jordan”
PUBLICATIONS
2014 We Knit Graffiti, Magda Sayeg (knittaplease), Lark Books
AWARDS
2011 John David Carr Memorial Scholarship
2011 Gwyn and Aileen Gunn Bursary
2010 Jack and Doris Shadbolt Scholarship
2010 Henry Boyer de la Giroday Memorial Scholarship
2010 Gwyn and Aileen Gunn Bursary
Katharine Ferns’ work is part of collections across Canada and the United States.