The work of Tina Marais considers the entangled matters of materiality, ecological, natural, and political systems and the memories of places and things. Her fascination with organic elements in the natural environment influences the sculptural forms of her work.
Using textiles as the basis for the construction of her work, her practice is based in an active research creation process. She contrasts natural and synthetic fibres to create forms that echo organic organisms and systems, cellular mutations, and elements of tactile memories. This aspects of constant flux, ever-changing realities, of imperceptible movement into decay on one hand and exuberant growth on the other, is embodied within her work and process.
The origins of materials reflect on the impact of displacement, colonialism, capitalism, and the impact of the textile industry on the environment, especially on fragile water systems. The textural aspect of her work has the intention to evoke a tactile desire to connect and interact.
Tina Marais is a textile artist based in Montreal, she creates abstractions that consider the entangled matters of materiality, and ecological systems. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally in solo and group exhibitions. In 2021, she was invited artist for the BIEN biennale in Slovenia and in 2022 selected for MATERIAL THINKING, China's first International Contemporary Material Art Biennale. She received grants from Canada Council for the Arts and Conseil des Arts et Lettres du Québec, among others. In 2019, she was awarded the Dora and Avi Morrow Fellowship for Excellent Achievement in Visual Arts. She graduated from the Open Window Art Institute in Pretoria, South-Africa where she studied Visual communication with Fine art specialization, after which the focus of her work shifted to using textile as her principal medium, completing a MFA in Fiber and Material practices at Concordia university in Montreal in 2022.
