Chilliwack artist recognized for clay work that ‘helps drive B.C.’s cultural economy’

A Chilliwack artist has been recognized on a provincial level for her clay work.

Ceramicist Cathy Terepocki is one of four recipients of the 2022 Carter Wosk Awards in Applied Art + Design.

Those honoured produce work that has a “practical or functional application, such as furniture, textiles, jewellery, ceramics, weaving, glass, fashion, and industrial design,” the BC Achievement Foundation announced in an Oct. 24 press release.

The program recognizes excellence among emerging and established artists whose creativity helps drive B.C.’s cultural economy.

Terepocki has immersed herself in the community making connections and creating work that is strongly rooted and reflective of her natural surroundings. Her Chilliwack River Clay series was harvested with shovels and buckets from the local river and her current project includes making tiles from wild clay.

According to her biography, her practice is “driven by innovation, process and material. She is interested in unconventional processes and crossing boundaries between different industries and artistic practices and so she is consistently researching, developing glazes and new techniques.”

Terepocki has had a diverse practice exhibiting, teaching, designing, and producing multiple collections of work, and she has exhibited internationally. The local clay research has opened up opportunities for community engagement and has allowed her to create meaningful work and, in turn, contribute to the culture of the place she calls home.

Last year, Terepocki worked with Vedder Middle School where students made hundreds of tiny clay pots from locally harvested clay.

RELATED: Chilliwack students make hundreds of tiny clay pots in honour of 215 Indigenous children

The 2022 recipients of the Carter Wosk Award in Applied Art + Design are:

● Caine Heintzman – Vancouver – Judson Beaumont Emerging Artist

● Louise Perrone – Vancouver

● Cathy Terepocki – Chilliwack

● Robert Anderson – Victoria – Award of Distinction for Lifetime Achievement

“These artistic works and designs demonstrate a new strength within B.C.’s creative economy,” said Anne Giardini chair of the BC Achievement Foundation. “The Carter Wosk Award in Applied Art + Design celebrates and honours B.C.’s creators for ensuring beauty and function are part of our everyday lives. It is always a delight to us at BC Achievement to recognize new ways of marrying art and function with ingenuity and imagination.”

Awardees were selected by an independent jury.

BC Achievement will present a combined exhibition which is free and open to the public showcasing the 2022 award recipients for both the Carter Wosk Award in Applied Art + Design and Fulmer Award in First Nations Art, at The Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre in Vancouver from Monday, Nov. 14 to Friday, Nov. 18.