I am an artist and arts administrator living in Ottawa.
I make art about language — the common, and not-so-common ways in which we communicate information — with a particular interest in television, the internet, and humour. I use a variety of media in my work, drawing from pop culture, advertising, educational materials, online and printed matter, and just about any other tools used to convey information.
I’ve spent much of my professional life working for not-for-profit art organizations, as a curator, educator, exhibitions coordinator, grant writer, and now, at the Canada Council for the Arts as a Program Officer in the Prizes department.
I have a BFA (Western University, 2003) and an MFA (Concordia University 2013) and have lived in numerous cities including Winnipeg, Toronto, London (ON), Montreal, Syracuse, and now Ottawa. I’ve exhibited in a variety of venues; from artist-run centres, to a train car in Northern Canada, to the NY Art Book Fair.
In 2017 I became a parent. Check out my CV from 2017-2020 (spoiler alert, there is a big blank) In late 2019, I joined the 44.4 Mother/Artist Collective, a then-new collective looking at the intersection of art and motherhood. Cue the pandemic, life, ups and downs, and now we’re hitting the ground running, with a fantastic roster of artists and plenty of activities. Check us out.
You can also follow my latest project @the52in2project, where I’m making one thing a week for the entire year (52 weeks) during my kid Sybil’s TV time (2 hours) on weekends. Some of the work is good, some bad, but it’s all leading somewhere.
You can reach me through:
Email: hello@jennifercherniack.com
Telephone: Let’s start with email, ok?