Karis Gruben

Load Photo Artist

Biography

Karis Gruben is a painter, carver and beader from Inuvik, NT currently residing in Yellowknife, NT. Gruben, a multidisciplinary artist without limits, enjoys the creative process and loves all art styles. Currently placing an emphasis on realism, she portrays a brilliant sense of strength in femininity. [1]

Gruben was been inspired from a young age by her father, the late William Gruben, a renowned Tuktoyaktuk carver. Guiding her work, Gruben recalls her father’s perfectionist nature and focus on detail, “Anytime I’m creating something and I try to picture what he would’ve commented or said.” With this respect for her father and his legacy, she tapped into her own carving skill, finishing her first ivory Dancing Bear with echoes of his artistic voice interpreted through her hand. [1]

Translating her world through paintings, a series of cool and comforting portraits has recently emerges in a blue, white and black palette. Exploring themes of femininity through shapes and colours, or a focused gaze on a shoulder, a collar bone, Gruben implores her audience to imagine a bigger picture, sparking a conversation and reflection around what it means to be a woman. Whether it be through painting, jewelry, mural, or carving, Gruben will continuously create what her heart desires. [1]



This Profile was made possible through support from the RBC Foundation’s Emerging Artists Project.

Artist Work

About Karis Gruben

Medium:

Graphic Arts, Jewellery, Painting, Sculpture

Artistic Community:

Yellowknife, NT

Date of Birth:

Artists may have multiple birth years listed as a result of when and where they were born. For example, an artist born in the early twentieth century in a camp outside of a community centre may not know/have known their exact date of birth and identified different years.

1991
Exhibition

The Cock Show, 2018