Kanika Gupta: Artist. Writer. Community Builder.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Kanika Gupta is a multidisciplinary artist who uses visual art and storytelling to create dialogue and foster deeper human connections. Through multi-modal and sensory based work, Kanika is passionate about engaging public audiences with art in ways that are meaningful and inclusive to them. Kanika is the author and illustrator of BRAVE and her artwork has been presented in public spaces, outdoor festivals, museums and galleries. She also collaborates with cultural institutions and organizations to make their practices and physical environments more inclusive through breaking both physical and invisible barriers to access.
Named among Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women, Kanika's artwork and community building endeavours have been profiled internationally.
Her work can be seen at www.byKanika.com.
Kanika Gupta is a multidisciplinary artist who uses visual art and storytelling to create dialogue and foster deeper human connections. Through multi-modal and sensory based work, Kanika is passionate about engaging public audiences with art in ways that are meaningful and inclusive to them. Kanika is the author and illustrator of BRAVE and her artwork has been presented in public spaces, outdoor festivals, museums and galleries. She also collaborates with cultural institutions and organizations to make their practices and physical environments more inclusive through breaking both physical and invisible barriers to access.
Named among Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women, Kanika's artwork and community building endeavours have been profiled internationally.
Her work can be seen at www.byKanika.com.
Downloadable Bio and Headshots: drive.google.com/drive/folders/1cJiiAJQDixLhAw6gr1ERLNdSr-beY08h?usp=sharing
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ARTIST STATEMENT
Fundamental to my practice is ability to present layered and complex stories in a distilled, simplified and accessible manner that are relatable and universally understood. My work is grounded in my lived experiences yet each project has a user experience centered in the audience. The honest and candid account of my work elicit emotions in audiences that they relate back to their own lives, in ways personal and meaningful to them.
My intention is to disrupt the artistic aesthetic and challenge the idea of perfectionism within the arts. By sharing my work in a raw, less-than-polished form, I want to create a new normal that redefines how we see and understand imperfection.
I believe that the energy put into my work is felt by my viewers, and thus create Art with optimism and positivity. Hope, an omnipresent theme is embodied in all of my pieces.
Fundamental to my practice is ability to present layered and complex stories in a distilled, simplified and accessible manner that are relatable and universally understood. My work is grounded in my lived experiences yet each project has a user experience centered in the audience. The honest and candid account of my work elicit emotions in audiences that they relate back to their own lives, in ways personal and meaningful to them.
My intention is to disrupt the artistic aesthetic and challenge the idea of perfectionism within the arts. By sharing my work in a raw, less-than-polished form, I want to create a new normal that redefines how we see and understand imperfection.
I believe that the energy put into my work is felt by my viewers, and thus create Art with optimism and positivity. Hope, an omnipresent theme is embodied in all of my pieces.
EXHIBITION HISTORY
Commissioned / Exhibiting Art Installations:
Solo Visual Art Exhibitions:
Curatorial Experience:
Commissioned / Exhibiting Art Installations:
- From Home to Anywhere: Commissioned by Ontario Place for Winter Light Exhibition, Toronto, ON. February 1, 2020 – March 31, 2020
- Outdoor interactive sculpture that encourages user engagement. Multi-sensory design and use.
- A Warm Hug: Commissioned by Ontario Place for Winter Light Exhibition. Nov. 23, 2018 – March 17, 2019.
- Interactive light-based sculptural installation that illuminates with participant interaction. Accessible in design and usability. Created in collaboration with Amit Kehar and fabricators.
- Marion Dewar Plaza – City Hall. City of Ottawa. Ottawa, ON. February 20, 2020 - March 2020
- Winterlude 2020 – Sparks Street. Heritage Canada. Ottawa, ON. January 27 – February 17, 2020.
- Celebration Square. City of Mississauga. Mississauga, ON. December 20, 2019 – January 24, 2020.
- AUSUM: Venture for Humanity. Baruch College, City University of New York. New York City. December 9-11, 2019.
- SPECTRUM. THE MUSEUM, Kitchener, Ontario. April 27, 2019 – September 2, 2019.
- Summer Lights Festival. City of Kitchener, Kitchener, ON. June 8, 2019.
- LUMEN Festival: CULTURE DAYS. City of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON. September 28, 2019
- Interactive light-based sculptural installation that illuminates with participant interaction. Accessible in design and usability. Created in collaboration with Amit Kehar and fabricators.
- The Light in the Shadows: Commissioned by Gardiner Museum for 12 Trees Let There be Light, Toronto, ON. November 17, 2017 – January 7, 2018.
- Trompe l’oeil participatory Installation that asks participants to look beyond the obvious.
- Crip Interiors: MIXER. Project Creative Users - Tangled Art Gallery, Toronto, ON. August 10 – 12, 2017
- Immersive, multisensorial Installation created in culmination of 6 week incubator exploring collaboration, intersectionality of race and ability. Created In collaboration with a team of BIPOC artists.
- Change is Beautiful. Commissioned by Baycrest for The Brain Project.
- Union Station, Toronto, ON. July 11 – August 31, 2017.
- Yorkdale, September 15 – December 31, 2017.
Solo Visual Art Exhibitions:
- Surrender
Multi-modal and mixed-media (including 18 ceramics) exhibition reclaiming surrender as an act of strength.
Fully accessible and interactive exhibit for audience members of all abilities.- The Clay and Glass Gallery, Waterloo, ON. December 21, 2018 – March 16, 2019.
- ReThink Recovery
Multidisciplinary solo art exhibition challenging social and medical assumptions of “recovery”.
Fully accessible and interactive exhibit with multiple modalities of engagement for all abilities.- Innovations Gallery: Toronto Rehabilitation Institute – University Health Network, Toronto, ON.
May 29 – October 1, 2018. (Hosted hospital’s first-ever contemporary art exhibition). - Lakeshore Art Gallery, Toronto, ON. November 6 – December 4, 2017.
- Oakwood Village Library and Arts Centre, Toronto, ON. October 1 – 31, 2016.
- Gallery 1313, Toronto, ON. (Displayed in group exhibition) September 14 – 25, 2016.
- Innovations Gallery: Toronto Rehabilitation Institute – University Health Network, Toronto, ON.
Curatorial Experience:
- ARTxBissell 2018, University of Toronto. April 13, 2018 – March 30, 2019. Curated showcase part of the larger exhibit of works completed by students in auxiliary programming workshops.
MEDIA COVERAGE
12 Trees, le sapin de Noël revisité. Radio-Canada. Y a pas deux matins pareils. December 6, 2017.
http://ici.radio-canada.ca/premiere/emissions/y-a-pas-deux-matins-pareils/segments/chronique/50191/12-trees-musee-gardiner-kanika-gupta-amit-kehar
This is what happens when you ask an artist to design a holiday tree. CBC Arts. December 19, 2017. http://www.cbc.ca/arts/exhibitionists/this-is-what-happens-when-you-ask-an-artist-to-design-a-holiday-tree-1.4456609
Rethink Recovery art exhibit. CBC Metro Morning. November 9, 2017. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/programs/metromorning/rethink-recovery-art-exhibit-1.4394653
After a concussion smashed her life to pieces, art helped her find her own recovery. CBC News. November 10, 2017. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/programs/metromorning/after-a-concussion-smashed-her-life-to-pieces-art-helped-her-find-her-own-recovery-1.4394982
Art exhibit explores what it means to be recovered. Mississauga News. November 16, 2017. (Print).
https://www.mississauga.com/whatson-story/7879832-mississauga-woman-turns-to-art-to-understand-recovery-after-brain-injury/
Redefining Recovery with Post-Concussion Syndrome. University Health Network News. November 27, 2017.
L’exposition Rethink Recovery: l’art raconte la convalescence. Radio-Canada. Y a pas deux matins pareils. November 29, 2017. http://ici.radio-canada.ca/premiere/emissions/y-a-pas-deux-matins-pareils/episodes/395371/audio-fil-du-mercredi-29-novembre-2017/13
Advancing understanding of concussion recovery. Toronto Rehab Foundation News. November 29, 2017.
http://www.torontorehabfoundation.com/News-Media/Latest-News/Featured/Advancing-understanding-of-concussion-recovery.aspx
A little help at the start. Times of India. October 20, 2012
http://www.timescrest.com/society/a-little-help-at-the-start-9053
From a Master’s Thesis to a Social Startup and a UNESCO Endorsement. Forbes. October 3, 2012. http://www.forbes.com/sites/bhrigupankajprashar/2012/10/03/from-a-masters-thesis-to-a-social-startup-and-a-unesco-endorsement-audacious-startups-part-iii/
Entrepreneur aims to turn good intentions into tangible projects. The Globe and Mail. December 15, 2011.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/giving/entrepreneur-aims-to-turn-good-intentions-into-tangible-projects/article4201756/
12 Trees, le sapin de Noël revisité. Radio-Canada. Y a pas deux matins pareils. December 6, 2017.
http://ici.radio-canada.ca/premiere/emissions/y-a-pas-deux-matins-pareils/segments/chronique/50191/12-trees-musee-gardiner-kanika-gupta-amit-kehar
This is what happens when you ask an artist to design a holiday tree. CBC Arts. December 19, 2017. http://www.cbc.ca/arts/exhibitionists/this-is-what-happens-when-you-ask-an-artist-to-design-a-holiday-tree-1.4456609
Rethink Recovery art exhibit. CBC Metro Morning. November 9, 2017. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/programs/metromorning/rethink-recovery-art-exhibit-1.4394653
After a concussion smashed her life to pieces, art helped her find her own recovery. CBC News. November 10, 2017. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/programs/metromorning/after-a-concussion-smashed-her-life-to-pieces-art-helped-her-find-her-own-recovery-1.4394982
Art exhibit explores what it means to be recovered. Mississauga News. November 16, 2017. (Print).
https://www.mississauga.com/whatson-story/7879832-mississauga-woman-turns-to-art-to-understand-recovery-after-brain-injury/
Redefining Recovery with Post-Concussion Syndrome. University Health Network News. November 27, 2017.
L’exposition Rethink Recovery: l’art raconte la convalescence. Radio-Canada. Y a pas deux matins pareils. November 29, 2017. http://ici.radio-canada.ca/premiere/emissions/y-a-pas-deux-matins-pareils/episodes/395371/audio-fil-du-mercredi-29-novembre-2017/13
Advancing understanding of concussion recovery. Toronto Rehab Foundation News. November 29, 2017.
http://www.torontorehabfoundation.com/News-Media/Latest-News/Featured/Advancing-understanding-of-concussion-recovery.aspx
A little help at the start. Times of India. October 20, 2012
http://www.timescrest.com/society/a-little-help-at-the-start-9053
From a Master’s Thesis to a Social Startup and a UNESCO Endorsement. Forbes. October 3, 2012. http://www.forbes.com/sites/bhrigupankajprashar/2012/10/03/from-a-masters-thesis-to-a-social-startup-and-a-unesco-endorsement-audacious-startups-part-iii/
Entrepreneur aims to turn good intentions into tangible projects. The Globe and Mail. December 15, 2011.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/giving/entrepreneur-aims-to-turn-good-intentions-into-tangible-projects/article4201756/
