Shelby Wolfe-Goulet is a recent graduate of the Print Media program at the Alberta College of Art + Design. Reflecting on notions of memory and identity, her work unpacks complex family narratives and histories that are shaped by intergenerational knowledge.

“Within my work I employ clown-based imagery in order to create conversations around ideas of persona and social
masks. My work explores the self-regulating relationship between the unconscious mind and the social mask created by
it, the residue left behind, and the construction of the new mask. I adopt this clown imagery in order to symbolize these
social masks and communicate these theories within my practice…”

“Masculinity is complex and multi-faceted; it is rooted in our tangled histories, it has no correct form, and is experiencing a crisis as we renegotiate it in our current cultural climate. There are people who defend its roots in tradition, some forced to reflect upon their relationship to it, in light of trauma and abuses of power, and others subverting or rejecting it entirely. Rather than attempt to describe its widespread and varied effects on others, this work discloses my connection with it, through art objects, clothing, and material related to my body and identity..”

“My maternal grandfather was a Mountie. This photo of him on horseback, dressed in his formal Canadian Mounted Police uniform, represents such an iconic symbol for Canada. Having passed away in 1995 he would have been 106 years old this year, as Canada turns 150. This artwork is an investigation into my own identity, within Canadian culture, and how my personal view on heritage, lineage, and nostalgia have played a part in the formation of this identity…”

“I’ve always had a terrible memory. I have a lot of trouble concentrating on things and, as a result, end up missing a lot of information that I would love to be paying attention to. This is something I’ve spent a while attempting to patch and work around to varying degrees of success, but something that still frustrates me is my inability to remember my own emotions.

I often find that when I’m really happy or sad or angry or what have you, was difficult to even remember what those feelings were like the next day. The closest vessel I want to be able to remember and reflect on, the closest vessel I can find at the time–cup or a bowl or a bottle doesn’t really matter. They’re just simple forms…”