About
b. 1986, HK.
A mixed media artist and experimental ceramicist, Kathleen Shellrude is based on Treaty 1 Territory (Winnipeg). Her artistic career began after a lengthy hospitalization in 2015, which prompted her to use art as a means of processing issues related to a personal history marked by disability, mental illness, homelessness, and addiction. After a residency at Art Beat in 2017 she has had 9 solo shows and countless group exhibitions.
Her work draws from personal narrative, lived experience, and a deep engagement with community. Working with both traditional and unconventional materials, she explores themes of resilience, disability, memory, and the overlooked.
Shellrude is one of the founders of Higgins Studios and has taught community-based art workshops at organizations including Red Road Lodge, the Spence Neighbourhood Association, and the Indigenous Family Centre, where she uses art as a tool for empowerment, healing, and storytelling.
Her practice reflects a commitment to accessibility, care, and the everyday aesthetics of survival and joy.
Her artwork can be found online and in person, at Tara Davis Boutique and UpBeat.
Curriculum Vitae
Studio IMages
“I use art to celebrate my gratitude for the ordinary things that make life so very extraordinary – and to create environments that are more comforting than those we might find in “real life”. And to keep sane and sober, of course!”