Marjan Eggermont: You May Find Yourself in Another Part of the World

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Marjan Eggermont, "You May Find Yourself in Another Part of the World", 2016

etched steel & silver leaf, 68" x 40" (diptych)

Marjan Eggermont grew up in The Netherlands and immigrated to Canada in 1986. She has a B.A., a B.F.A. and M.F.A. from the University of Calgary.  Marjan is Associate Dean (Student Affairs) and a faculty member at the University of Calgary in the Mechanical and Manufacturing department of the Schulich School of Engineering.  Marjan’s innovative work has gained her recognition, including being named in 2003, one of the 20 most influential artists in Calgary by the Calgary Artwalk Society and as one of 45 international artists featured in “Printmaking at the Edge” by Richard Noyce (2006). In 2010 she completed a large installation piece for the new EEEL Building (Energy, Environmental, Experiential Learning Building) at the University of Calgary which is jointly financed by the U of C Alumni Association, The Students Union and the graduating class of 2010 as the first ever legacy gift to the campus.  

Trained as a printmaker, Marjan is interested in materials and transformative processes. Early on she found that she was more interested in the metal plates from which her etching were made than the resulting prints. This has led her to investigate other materials including steel, copper, concrete, acrylic and ceramics. Through the course of her career, she has dealt with issues of identity. No longer feeling entirely Dutch nor Canadian, as artist in the engineering world and a scientific mind in the arts, she grapples with her sense of place and through her work, attempts to create a world onto herself.  

Marjan Eggermont’s new work will focus on specific native Albertan fauna. In her research of her new homeland, in another part of the world, Marjan has discovered particular species of trees that have adapted over time to survive and thrive in Alberta’s extreme climates. Marjan etches steel plates with acid used in printmaking to create her signature patina on the plates and then uses silver leaf to delineate the plants and trees. These works echo “pressings”, a technique used to preserve leaf and flower specimens but these are contemporary, large scale, sculptural presentations.