Jenna Reid | Toronto, Ontario

Jenna Reid (she/her) is the current Artistic Director at Kickstart Disability Arts & Culture, and the board president of the Contemporary Textile Studio Co-operative. Jenna is a fibre artist who works primarily with the practices of quilting, natural dyes, and protest art as a way to engage with activist based aesthetics. Jenna has completed a residency on Toronto Island with the Feminist Art Conference, and has exhibited her work and presented on panels in Canada, the US, the UK, and Australia. Jenna completed a studio-based PhD in Critical Disability Studies at York University.

Jenna's studio at Banff Centre

Jenna Reid's Banff Centre Studio. Photograph by Rita Taylor.

"Through conversations with 5 QTBIPoC mad and disabled community organizers, this project documents and archives the activism that happens, oftentimes, out of sight of the public eye. The conversations and textiles (selected by the community members both from their personal lives as well as from my collection of textiles) are used to create a series of 5 abstract portraits to represent the role of the public and the private spheres in our organizing work. During my time at Banff I completed the first abstract portrait of the series and recorded my second community conversation."

Jenna Reid

Colorful artwork exhibited on the wall of Jenna's studio at Banff Centre

Jenna Reid, "Affinity." Sewn Textiles, 30" by 30". 2022; Jenna Reid, "Group." Sewn Textiles, 30" by 30". 2022. Photograph by Rita Taylor.

Detail of quilted artwork made by Jenna during the residency

Jenna Reid, sketch for quilt in progress. Photograph by Rita Taylor.

See more on Jenna Reid's Instagram.

Jenna Reid's residency was generously supported by the Jarislowsky Foundation and funded by the Canada Council for the Arts.