Zoe Cilliers: A Natural History of Vacant Lots, Found Stories, Plants and Prints

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Zoe Cilliers, "At work," 2019

A Natural History of Vacant Lots, Found Stories, Plants and Prints

An artshow of multicolour woodblock prints of plants and the landscapes of Vernon by Victoria-based artist Zoe Cilliers.

Come meet Zoe and experience her artshow during the opening reception, on Tuesday, October 29^th, 7pm - 9pm, as well as during gallery hours on Wednesday October 30^th from 11am-4pm in the Caetani Cultural Centre Studio Gallery.

"I do storytelling through found objects – weeds in sidewalk cracks, pressed flowers left in library books and the human altered ecologies we find in alleyways and vacant lots,” explains Cilliers.

“There are stories that we tell about places, and then there are the stories that places can tell us about ourselves - if we start looking,” she shares.

Her curiosity has guided her art-making. Between starting seed libraries, teaching environmental science and leading mushroom walks she creates artwork which encourages pause. 

“I like getting people to re-examine the world around them and invite wonderment and curiosity into their everyday,” she elaborates. “Sometimes I do public interventions like wheatpastes or beach clean ups, and at other times with smaller printed works and zines.”

Her art tells stories about people and place.

Cilliers studied printmaking at Emily Carr University and is currently completing a Diploma in Environmental Studies at the University of Victoria. 

Her work, which spans art and science disciplines from letterpress printing to the study of cryptograms (mushrooms and lichen), is driven by a passion for storytelling. 

Cilliers is the Caetani Cultural Centre’s Fresh!AiR Artist-in-Residence. The Caetani Centre’s Artist-in-Residence programs are available to artists working on creative projects anywhere from 2 weeks to 3 months in length. 

The artist stays and creates at the Caetani Cultural Centre and is invited to share workshops, readings and exhibitions with the North Okanagan community.  Zoe's residency is a partnership with the Vernon Community Art Centre's printmaking studio.