Talleen Hacikyan is a visual artist, printmaker, illustrator and art educator. She has participated in over 80 group exhibitions in Canada and internationally and is currently preparing her 25th solo exhibition. Talleen has won many prestigious awards, including the Loto-Quebec Printmaking Prize and the Pierre Henry Prize, awarded by Pratt and Whitney Canada.
Talleen is a very disciplined and organized artist. She is constantly experimenting with printing inks, papers and new techniques. In recent years she has been exploring innovative ways to integrate her prints with other mediums such as paper sculpture and installation. The conceptual aspect of her practice is also evolving. Inspired by patterns found in nature, she is exploring abstraction in techniques such as paper weaving. An open and generous artist, she shares her know-how with others through workshops.
Children’s book illustration is another facet of Talleen’s art. She is currently illustrating her third picture book. In parallel to visual art, she also writes short fiction and is working on a travel memoir. Talleen does all this while being very dedicated to her mother, our son and me!
-Written by Diego Herrera
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Which ’hood are you in?
I live in Côte Saint-Luc. This quiet neighbourhood has several inviting green spaces and parks. I love growing vegetables in my backyard and at the Kirwan Community Garden. I also enjoy the Eleanor London Public Library, where I got my first job. At the time, I never imagined that one day I’d live in Côte Saint-Luc and raise my family and veggies here.
What do you do?
I make prints. In 1985 I became a member of Atelier Circulaire, a community printmaking studio in Mile End, Montreal. I still work and teach there, and this year I was thrilled to become an honorary member of the studio. The art of creating an image on a matrix, in my case cardboard or plastic, and printing it onto paper with a printing press, fascinates me. My contact with master printers at Atelier Circulaire gave me a solid technical base that lets me experiment and give contemporary expression to my prints.
Besides art and writing, I love walking. My husband and I discovered the joy of long-distance walking in 2016 when we walked 800 kilometres on the Camino de Compostela. Since then we walked on two more Compostela routes and have done several hikes in Quebec, including a walk around the Island of Montreal. These walks bring me closer to nature and nourish my art.
What are you currently working on?
I am working on a large print-based collage for my next solo exhibition, which will be at Arts Sutton from May 2 to June 2, 2024. I am also illustrating my third book, written by the famed British author, Michael Rosen, to be published by Tradewind Books in Vancouver.
Where can we find your work?
On my website, Instagram, Atelier Circulaire Gallery in Montréal and Atelier Circulaire Virtual Gallery, and Artists in Montreal, where I am a member.
