KARI FISHER gave an informal presentation during Kaffistofa coffee hour on September 6, 2024 during her residency stay at the BUTTERMAKER’S HOUSE.
After accepting a challenge of incorporating art into her daily life by her son Isaac, Kari has been on a journey exploring her roots by redrawing the floor plans of 42 houses that she has lived in since her birth.
Beginning from playful wax crayon sketches, she then tapped into her architectural background to redraw the floor plans to scale using time-honoured drafting tools. Her goal is to create 11 x 14 blueprints using traditional cyanotype processing.
As she worked, Kari tapped into memories by playing music from the time period that she lived in those spaces, and was amazed by the details of the houses that she would remember, which also included plants, flowers and gardens associated with each place. She has started collecting botanical samples from the various areas she’s lived and then pressing the botany to use as a layer during the cyanotype floor plan development.
Her work is well under way, with 11 more floor plans to draft for that portion of the project. Collecting botanical samples is ongoing and she has several samples already in her press awaiting the next phase.
Kari has loved her stay at the cozy Buttermaker’s House where she has been able to escape the daily routine and focus on this journey. She joked that it hasn’t been all quiet contemplation since several family and friends have happened by throughout the week for quick visits!
Visit a follow-up post of Kari’s completed work
(at the VENUE, Red Deer, April 10, 2025)