About the ArtistAllison Tunis (she/they) is a visual artist and community arts facilitator living and working on Treaty 6 territory, in Edmonton, Alberta. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Alberta (2008) and a graduate diploma in Art Therapy from the Vancouver Art Therapy Institute (2013), and was a recipient of the Edmonton Artist Trust Fund award (2018) and the Alberta Craft Council’s Early Achievement Award (2018). They self-published Body Love: A Fat Activism Colouring Book in 2016, a therapeutic colouring book that features fat activists and body positivity icons from around the world, and have exhibited work in several solo shows in Alberta and as a part of group exhibitions throughout Canada and the United States. Tunis’ works seek to explore themes of personal and community healing through the art process and look to challenge norms and expectations around marginalized bodies – with a specific focus on queer, fat, and disabled experiences. Allison also aims to reimagine art materials, techniques, and collaborative processes in ways that reduce barriers and harm, while contributing to critical conversation within and beyond traditional art spaces about accessibility, intersectionality, and strengths-based theory.
|
Curriculum VitaeEducation
D.V.A.T.I. Graduate Diploma in Art Therapy, Vancouver Art Therapy Institute B.F.A. Bachelor of Fine Arts, Department of Art and Design, University of Alberta 2008 Solo Exhibitions The Chronic Illness Art Project, McMullen Gallery, Edmonton, AB. An Anthology of Sticks & Stones, Harcourt House Main Gallery, Edmonton, AB. Acceptable Bodies, Alberta Craft Gallery, cSPACE King Edward, Calgary, AB. Acceptable Bodies, Alberta Craft Gallery, Discovery Gallery, Edmonton, AB. Selected Group Exhibitions Small New Universes Gallery (SNUG), Tangled Art + Disability gallery, Toronto, ON. (upcoming) Fat Print: 2 Fat 2 Furious, pop-up exhibition and panel curated by Jacq Garcia for the Southern Graphics Council International conference, Providence, Rhode Island, USA. (upcoming) Fat Print: Confatty, pop-up exhibition curated by Jacq Garcia. Arts West, Athens, Ohio, USA Fat Print: Confatty, pop-up exhibition curated by Jacq Garcia. Trisolini Gallery Athens, Ohio, USA. Schmoozy Show and Sale 2022, curated by Latitude 53, Edmonton, AB. Art From Here II, digital exhibition, a collaboration between Latitude 53, The Mitchell Art Gallery, Ociciwan Contemporary Art Collective & SNAP Gallery, Edmonton, AB. Making a Career in Craft, curated by the Alberta Craft Council, Alberta Craft Gallery, Edmonton, AB. Making a Career in Craft, Alberta Craft Gallery. cSPACE King Edward, Calgary, AB. Women X Women, curated by X. Isbister, Alberta Foundation for the Arts and Art Gallery of Alberta’s Travelling Exhibition Program (TREX). Various locations, AB Real Women, curated by S. Golby, Alberta Foundation for the Arts and Art Gallery of Alberta’s Travelling Exhibition Program (TREX). Various locations, AB. Fat Tuesday series, curated by J. Murwin, digital exhibition. >7, curated by A. Kleinhans, 621 Gallery, Tallahassee, FL, USA. Residencies In Community: Access, Society of Northern Alberta Print-Artists (SNAP) Gallery, Edmonton, AB. Artist-in-Residence, Harcourt House Artist Run Centre, Edmonton, AB. Artist-in-Residence, Youth Empowerment & Support Services (YESS), Edmonton, AB. Awards Edmonton Artist Trust Fund Award, awarded by the Edmonton Arts Council Alberta Craft Council Early Achievement Award, awarded by the Alberta Craft Council Collections & Commissions Size Matters: The Large Woman’s Comprehensive Guide to Living Well, by Leslie C. Glass, cover art, Brandylane Publishers, Inc., Richmond, VA. (upcoming) Accessible Art series, care card commission for Free Label clothing brand. The Paths We Forge series, commissioned for the YW Hub Facility, Calgary, AB. Little Bear, acquired by the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, public collection. Sam, acquired by the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, public collection. Various private collections nationally and internationally Publications Tunis, Allison. “Embodying Excess”, Excessive Bodies: A Journal of Artistic and Critical Fat Praxis and Worldmaking, 1(1). (upcoming) Tunis, Allison. “Letting Lived Experience Lead”, Community Art Therapy: Theory and Practice, Dr. Emily C. Nolan, Syracuse University. Tunis, Allison. Body Love: A Fat Activism Colouring Book, n.p.: n.p., CreateSpace. Tunis, Allison. "Bosom Buddies". Hoopla: The Art of Unexpected Embroidery, edited by Prain, Leanne. Arsenal Pulp Press, Vancouver, BC. Selected Media and Bibliography Nos Corps Sont Des Oeuvres D’art, Geneviève Tardif, Ici Radio-Canada, https://ici.radio-canada.ca/recit-numerique/6091/art-visuels-photographie-diversite-corporelle Untitled Reflections: A Response to Allison Tunis’ “Untitled Chronic Illness Project”, Zoë Schneider, Art From Here. https://www.artfromhere.ca/writing-archive/untitled-reflections-zo-schneider-on-allison-tunis Allison Tunis, Artist – Edmonton, Akimbo Hit List, Akimblog. https://akimbo.ca/akimblog/allison-tunis-artist-edmonton/ Alberta Artist Profile: Allison Tunis, Alberta Foundation for the Arts. https://www.affta.ab.ca/news/alberta-artist-profile-allison-tunis Body Love: A Fat Activism Colouring Book (feat. Allison Tunis), The F-Word Podcast. https://thefwordpodcast.org/22-body-love-fat-activism-colouring-book-feat-allison-tunis/ Candy Perfume Girl: Colouring in Fat Bodies, FKW// Zeitschrift Fur Geschlecterforschung Und Visuelle Kultur, no.62, https://www.fkw-journal.de/index.php/fkw/article/view/1403 Body Positive Coloring Book Uses Art to Challenge Weight Based Stigma, Mashable.com. http://mashable.com/2016/08/27/fat-activism-coloring-book/ Edmonton Artist Raises Awareness with Body Love: A Fat Activism Colouring Book, Vue Weekly. http://www.vueweekly.com/edmonton-artist-allison-tunis-raises-awareness-with-body-love-a-fat-activism-colouring-book |
.2013 2008 2023 2019 2018 2018 2024 2024 2023 2023 2022 2021 2020 2020 2019-21 2019-21 2019 2019 2023 2018-19 2017 2018 2018 2023 2022 2019 2018 2018 2023 2023 2016 2011 2023 2021 2019 2019 2018 2017 2017 2016 |