Printmaking, Textiles
Residency Dates: August 2026
Studio H Canada is thrilled to welcome Chantel Traub, an emerging, multimedia visual artist from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Chantel’s residency brings together textiles, printmaking, natural materials, and a deep interest in the relationships between plants, pollinators, and place. During her time at Studio H, she will draw inspiration from the coastal environment while developing a new body of work using silk painting, natural dyes, embroidery, and print. Her residency will also extend into the community through a hands-on workshop presented in collaboration with the Sooke Region Museum, inviting participants to explore sustainable textile practices and give new life to well-loved clothing.
For this residency we are excited to collaborate with the Sooke Museum to offer a fun and engaging hands-on community workshop on Friday, August 28th: Nature’s Ink: Give Your Clothes a Botanical “Flash Tattoo“. In this workshop, Chantel will introduce participants to textile transformation using her collection of hand-carved linocut stamps inspired by native Canadian plants and animals. Participants are invited to bring a well-loved or damaged garment to refresh with printed designs—perfect for covering a small stain or simply adding some new creative energy.
No garment? No problem. Chantel will also provide quality cardstock for creating hand-printed cards, so everyone can experiment with the process and leave with something they have made.
Register Here – spots will fill up quickly!
My practice is an exploration of the resilient beauty found in the intersection of the cultivated and the wild. Rooted in my upbringing within the forests of British Columbia and the Alberta foothills, my work serves as a tactile record of the environment, translating the rhythms of the natural world into vibrant, hand-printed textiles and expressive fibre art.
Specializing in silk painting and natural dyeing, I utilize ancient materials—such as indigo, madder, and weld—to create a dialogue between history and contemporary design. My current work examines the delicate symbiotic relationships between pollinators and flora. By incorporating techniques like botanical hammering and lyrical embroidery alongside painterly silk dyes, I aim to capture the “joie de vivre” of our ecosystems while honouring the tenacity of the land. I intend to use this dedicated time to move directly into the production of a new body of work, where the tactile qualities of organic pigments and foraged inspirations inform the direction of each piece. I will integrate loose, expressive silk painting with structured embroidery and printed patterns. This dialogue between organic spontaneity and structured repetition reflects the complex balance found within natural ecosystems.
Whether I am developing a rhythmic surface pattern for apparel or a singular wall hanging on raw silk, my process is guided by hand-drawn details and a reverence for natural fibres. My goal is to create pieces that not only function as art but as talismans of connection to the world around us—bringing the tranquility of the prairie and the energy of the mountain landscape into the intimate spaces of daily life.
About the Artist
Chantel Traub is an artist and designer currently based in Calgary; she completed her Bachelor of Fine Art majoring in fibre with distinction at the Alberta College of Art + Design (now Alberta University of the Arts). She frequently collaborates with Contextural, A Fibre Arts Cooperative. Her current practice focuses on fine craft and textile design, specializing in textile printing, dyeing, and silk painting. Using natural dyes, she creates rich hand-drawn designs with painterly techniques. She draws imagery from our environment, architecture, and history. Chantel Traub is a passionate artist who adores teaching art workshops, spreading the joy of creation and inspiring all participants in her classes to celebrate lifelong learning. She has been teaching art workshops to the older adults for the past nine years in a wide variety of mediums, from fibre and painting, to ceramics and more.
You can learn more about Chantel on her website: https://www.chanteltraub.com/ and follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chanteltraub/ and Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChantelTraub/.
Artists of all media and disciplines are welcome to apply to Studio H Canada International Art Residency – please check out the link here to apply.
Check out previous posts about artists here.
