“I was very shy as a young person,” Max Quilliam begins. “I found that art was one of those ways that I could express myself a lot more easily.”

Now in adulthood, Quilliam still uses their art to speak—not just for themselves, but for their communities as well. Quilliam is this year’s recipient of the St. Albert Mayor’s Celebration of the Arts award for Emerging Artist. Their art explores queer and trans health, advocacy, and access, tying into their work as an educator and community worker.

Quilliam’s art spans across mediums, but currently textiles is the basis of their artistic practice. Sewing, a practical skill they learned in their youth, has proven to be an effective tool for art-making too.

“My mom taught both my brother and I how to sew, and really encouraged us to know that as a life skill, even if just for the sake of clothing repair,” they recall. “I really have enjoyed it on that technical level—I like being able to hem my own pants, it makes my life a lot easier. But as I entered into art school, I started thinking more of the potential of exploring textile art, beyond just having a pair of pants.”

Recent works of theirs include a series of installations at drag performances in Edmonton—“Those have been really fun in terms of being able to engage with other artists, then see the attendees of these shows engage with my work,” Quilliam notes. Another was a set of costumes, based on classic universal monsters—vampire, werewolf, frankenstein—which they used to explore queer identity in Alberta.

“It gave me this avenue to talk about this process of dehumanizing, or naming other people as being ‘monstrous,’ so to speak, just because they live in these different ways than what is considered ‘normal,’” Quilliam explains.

Having just graduated from Grant MacEwan’s Studio Arts program, Quilliam is looking forward to furthering their practice. And receiving the emerging artist award—getting recognition from the community where they took their first artistic steps—something particularly meaningful as they move forward with their career.

“It feels like an honor,” Quilliam says. “Growing up in St. Albert and making art was a big way of how I was able to start engaging with my community, whether that was through Amplify or now as an instructor at the Children's Festival. It's just become such a part of how I feel connected to St. Albert … it feels really special to be recognized for this intrinsic part of how I'm tied to my community.”

Article written by: Paul Blinov

To learn more about Quilliam's practice, please watch the St. Albert Mayor's Celebration of the Arts video on their work.

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