Cathy Busby facts for kids

Cathy Busby is a Canadian artist who lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. She was born in Toronto, Ontario, on April 20, 1958. Cathy is very interested in posters and printed materials. She likes how they can be used to share messages with many people, especially at a local level. She has shown her art around the world for over 20 years.

Cathy Busby's Journey as an Artist

Learning and Growing

Cathy Busby studied art at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1984. Later, she continued her studies at Concordia University in Montreal. There, she received a Master's degree in Media Studies in 1992. She also completed her PhD in Communication from Concordia University in 1999. She was even a Fulbright Scholar at New York University for a year.

Sharing Knowledge and Ideas

Cathy Busby is also a professor of visual art. She teaches at the UBC in the Department of Art History, Visual Art and Theory. She has also written for many books and magazines. Her writings and artworks have appeared in publications like Image, Index and Inscription and General Idea Editions. She has also written for magazines such as C Magazine and Fuse.

Exploring Cathy Busby's Artworks

Cathy Busby's art often explores important social topics. She has shown her work in many places. For example, she had an exhibition in Berlin called The North End. This show featured posters she collected in Halifax. Her art is also part of the National Gallery of Canada's collection.

Where to Find Her Art

You can find Cathy Busby's art in several public collections. These include the Winnipeg Art Gallery and the National Gallery of Canada. Her work is also held by the Carleton University Art Gallery and the Nova Scotia Art Bank. The Canada Council (Art Bank) and the City of Ottawa also have her pieces.

Important Art Projects

WE CALL: Speaking Up for Rights

One of Cathy Busby's projects is called WE CALL. This artwork uses the 94 "Calls to Action" from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC). The TRC was set up to learn about the history and impacts of residential schools on Indigenous peoples in Canada.

WE CALL helps people think about how the government should support Indigenous rights. It was shown as an art installation at the Teck Gallery at Simon Fraser University. It was also part of a community project in Hazelton, BC.

We Are Sorry: Remembering Apologies

We Are Sorry is another well-known artwork by Cathy Busby. This project remembers important public apologies. These apologies were made by leaders in Canada and Australia. They apologized to Indigenous peoples who suffered in residential schools in Canada. They also apologized to the "Stolen Generations" in Australia. The "Stolen Generations" refers to Indigenous children who were taken from their families.

These apologies were big moments, but they happened quickly in the news. We Are Sorry helped keep these apologies in the public eye for longer. The artwork was shown outdoors in Melbourne, Australia, in 2009. In 2010, it was displayed at the Winnipeg Art Gallery. This showing happened when the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was launched.