Susan Kristoferson (photo courtesy of Bluerock Gallery)
Artist Susan Kristoferson has died, age 72.
A world-renowned expert on the history of paste papers, Kristoferson specialized in hand-painted paste papers and hand dyed itajime papers; she was working on a book about the subject when she died. Her work is found in public and private collections around the world, and in 2020, 61 of her hand-decorated papers were acquired by New York City's Metropolitan Art Museum as part of the institution's Watson Library Legacy Paper Collection. Her work is represented in Alberta by Bluerock Gallery in Diamond Valley, The Collectors' Gallery of Art in Calgary, and at Alberta Craft Council Galleries in Calgary and Edmonton.
She held a bachelor of fine arts from the University of Texas and a master of fine arts in textiles from Indiana University. For a time, she taught at Miami University in Ohio and served as department head in fibre arts at the Oregon School of Arts and Crafts. A past chair of the Canadian Bookbinders and Book Artists Guild (CBBAG) Calgary Chapter, she also served on the Alberta Foundation for the Arts board of directors.
Kristoferson was born April 17, 1952. She died on July 6, 2024. A dual Canadian-US citizen, she most recently called Diamond Valley, Alberta, home. “Susan was an integral member of the Diamond Valley community, who was always ready to help with a venture and looking for ways to look back,” according to the Leighton Art Centre team. “Most importantly, she was our friend.”
Source: Bluerock Gallery, Collectors' Gallery of Art, Leighton Art Centre
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