Art, Education, & Writings on Infant Loss

CONTACT
Instagram: @katyscanvas
Facebook: Katy Martin
Facebook Page (for my book): The Year After
Email: katyeileenmartin@gmail.com
www.theyearafter-katyemartin.com
ART
Born and raised in Northern ON, I developed a love for art as far back as I can remember. I attended the University of Guelph and earned a Bachelor's degree in Fine Art, while soon after receiving a degree in Education. I now live and work as an art teacher and painter in Neepawa, MB. Inspired by light, movement, surprising colour combinations, and water, my goal is to infuse these elements and form abstracted, compositions. No matter the subject, I strive to portray a touch of realism combined with loose abstraction, causing one to compliment the other.
My latest body of work is something that I am particularly proud of. I have titled it "Kintsukuroi" which is a Japanese word that translates to "golden repair." Last year I experienced first hand what living with a shattered heart feels like after finding out that my near full term baby boy had died in utero. Following the delivery of my stillborn son, I struggled with how to see myself as whole again. I read a quote that explained "in Japan, broken objects are often repaired with gold. The flaw is seen as a unique piece of the... object's history, which adds to its beauty. Consider this when you feel broken." This quote was the seed from which this show grew. Each painting is filled with beautiful washes. The colours mix, and meld, and in the moments between the life of the colours, there lies cracks. The cracks are lined or filled with gold. My hope is that anyone who feels broken can look at these works and see the beauty and the strength in the repair.
EDUCATION
I am a High School Art teacher and absolutely in love with my job! I will continue to post pictures of my students incredible work, along with an inside scoop of our classrooms creations!
WRITINGS ON INFANT LOSS
After finding out that our near full term baby boy had unexpectedly died in utero, I found myself at the footsteps of a path so painful it was beyond my imagining. I began writing as a way to process emotion while navigating my way through the new mountain of grief before me. I share intimate details of our son, Beau’s, life and death along with how my husband Brodie and I made it through the year after Beau’s departure. My hope is to gently demonstrate how one can move towards their grief, experiencing it fully, igniting their own healing journey. This book is my attempt to show others how to turn great loss into beauty and how to put broken pieces back together. My story sheds light on the taboo topic of stillbirth and offers comforting insights of resiliency and hope to all those experiencing a similar loss. This book is a collection of raw emotion, profound thoughts, and original watercolour paintings. It is available for purchase on Amazon. There are two versions of the book for sale...one is black and white (cheaper version) the other is in colour.
https://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_15?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=the+year+after+katy+martin&sprefix=The+Year+After+%2Caps%2C191&crid=QA0LIBVE892R
Instagram: @katyscanvas
Facebook: Katy Martin
Facebook Page (for my book): The Year After
Email: katyeileenmartin@gmail.com
www.theyearafter-katyemartin.com
ART
Born and raised in Northern ON, I developed a love for art as far back as I can remember. I attended the University of Guelph and earned a Bachelor's degree in Fine Art, while soon after receiving a degree in Education. I now live and work as an art teacher and painter in Neepawa, MB. Inspired by light, movement, surprising colour combinations, and water, my goal is to infuse these elements and form abstracted, compositions. No matter the subject, I strive to portray a touch of realism combined with loose abstraction, causing one to compliment the other.
My latest body of work is something that I am particularly proud of. I have titled it "Kintsukuroi" which is a Japanese word that translates to "golden repair." Last year I experienced first hand what living with a shattered heart feels like after finding out that my near full term baby boy had died in utero. Following the delivery of my stillborn son, I struggled with how to see myself as whole again. I read a quote that explained "in Japan, broken objects are often repaired with gold. The flaw is seen as a unique piece of the... object's history, which adds to its beauty. Consider this when you feel broken." This quote was the seed from which this show grew. Each painting is filled with beautiful washes. The colours mix, and meld, and in the moments between the life of the colours, there lies cracks. The cracks are lined or filled with gold. My hope is that anyone who feels broken can look at these works and see the beauty and the strength in the repair.
EDUCATION
I am a High School Art teacher and absolutely in love with my job! I will continue to post pictures of my students incredible work, along with an inside scoop of our classrooms creations!
WRITINGS ON INFANT LOSS
After finding out that our near full term baby boy had unexpectedly died in utero, I found myself at the footsteps of a path so painful it was beyond my imagining. I began writing as a way to process emotion while navigating my way through the new mountain of grief before me. I share intimate details of our son, Beau’s, life and death along with how my husband Brodie and I made it through the year after Beau’s departure. My hope is to gently demonstrate how one can move towards their grief, experiencing it fully, igniting their own healing journey. This book is my attempt to show others how to turn great loss into beauty and how to put broken pieces back together. My story sheds light on the taboo topic of stillbirth and offers comforting insights of resiliency and hope to all those experiencing a similar loss. This book is a collection of raw emotion, profound thoughts, and original watercolour paintings. It is available for purchase on Amazon. There are two versions of the book for sale...one is black and white (cheaper version) the other is in colour.
https://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_15?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=the+year+after+katy+martin&sprefix=The+Year+After+%2Caps%2C191&crid=QA0LIBVE892R