Haliburton School of The Arts

Denise Atkinson began her career in the 1960's. She participated in the first One-of-a-Kind Show in Toronto with hand-woven clothing of her own design. Inimitably she worked mainly in the field of textiles in many mediums. She applied these skills and acquired many more during her years as breakdown artist and dyer with the National Art Centre's wardrobe department. Throughout her life a passion for diverse cultures and the natural beauty of the earth has lead her to travel study and work in South America, Europe, the US, Mexico and Canada. These explorations have permitted her to observe the material culture of many societies and to develop a fascination with the skills and crafts employed globally by all people, as well as to make connections among disparate cultural traditions. Her work is characterized by a keen interest in mastering her material, techniques and tools to create unorthodox sculptural works that are a synthesis of traditional ideas and new influences. Denise has been teaching for many years and enjoys sharing knowledge with her students.