Katrina Tompkins

You may not know her name, but there’s a good chance you have sat in one of Katrina Tompkin‘s chairs at a fine County establishment. In addition to keeping busy as Creative Director at Finefolk Furniture, and a Sessional Instructor at OCAD University, Katrina will facilitate our Youth Craft Academy Woodworking 101 course for youth aged 13-16. Over the course of six Thursday afternoons in February and March, Katrina will guide participants through the process of creating their very own, one-of-a-kind skateboard!

As our Featured Artist for February, we couldn’t be more delighted to learn about her artistic inspiration, what projects she has going on, and even her favourite comfort food!

Describe your artistic practice in a sentence or two:

I am a designer and maker of wooden objects, primarily furniture. I am also a craft and design educator, a material culture history nerd, and an advocate for all things craft. I’m also an amateur rug hooker… I’m learning new mediums!

Tell us about any artistic projects you have going on this upcoming month that you’d like people to know about:

Youth Craft Academy!! Do you know someone between 13 and 16 years old that would like to learn some woodcraft skills? Leanne Rhem (Gold & Ginger Studio) and I are teaching a Skateboard Making Workshop this month at County Arts, made possible by Rue Pigalle! Participants will vacuum-form veneer to make a fully functioning skateboard, then we’ll design and apply graphics on the deck before attaching the trucks and grip tape. Just so you know, no woodworking experience is required… and you don’t have to be a skateboarder, either!

What have you worked on recently that has you excited, either personally or professionally?

I am really excited about work that I am currently working on, it is a collection of new toys and collectibles inspired by heritage toys of Newfoundland and Labrador for an exhibition in St. John’s, NL that opens mid-August. I find endless inspiration in the resourcefulness of Outport Newfoundland and Labrador and the stories of play, how children made their own toys, the sea, music, the found materials that were used… I hope the work inspires adults and children to make more toys!

Where in the County do you find the most creative inspiration? 

Macaulay House has been an inspiration for me. I love touring the house to look at the furniture. The settle in the kitchen that drops down into a bed box really hits me; traditional hybrid furniture is fascinating and I’m grateful for the perspective on the comforts we live with now. I love discovering history, the more you know about it the shorter it gets. Finding an avenue into history through something I’m deeply interested in, furniture, changed my creative process entirely.

What is your favourite comfort food?

My favourite comfort food is a club sandwich at the Lighthouse Restaurant. I love it there, I always feel taken care of.