Denise Richard

Coordinating Instructor: Foundation Visual Arts

Denise Richard
Bachelor of Education (Minor in Theatre) – University of New Brunswick
Diploma in Fine Craft & Design: Textile – Kootenay School of Arts

“I like the moving and shaking that goes on here. I like teaching the core courses like colour study and design, and really making sure students understand and remember the elements and principals of design. The best compliment I have received from a student is ‘I remember everything that Denise tells me.’ My goal is to teach in way that is meaningful and memorable to students.”

Denise Richard is the Coordinating Instructor for Foundation Visual Arts, as well as teaching subjects in the Textile Design program. She developed the curriculum for felting, natural dyes and acid dye methods. Denise started her teaching career as a studio technician at Kootenay School of Arts, where she also taught workshops in an Advanced Felting.

Denise has created imaginative felt furniture and sculptures, but she is probably best known for her masks and costumes for theatre. In 2006, Denise had a first solo exhibition Into Indigo in The George Fry Gallery at NBCCD. This where artistic director Alain Tanguay first saw her work and commissioned 8 masks for a play at the Pays de la Saguine. This is when her career in theatre took off; she started creating body props for stage and went on to study part time at UNB earning a B.Ed with a minor in Drama.

Richard’s studio practice is now mainly focused on set and costume design for theatre, ballet and opera. Her first full stage production was for The Atlantic Ballet Theatre of Canada’s Figaro(2011).  Through her studies in theatre at UNB she has gained a more broad-based understanding of the industry, and in 2015 had her directorial debut with Kyle Kessler’s Orphansat UNB’s Memorial Hall. Her practice has grown since her start in 2006 and now works on several productions a year with local companies such as: Bard and the Barracks (Fredericton), Satellite Théâtre (Moncton) and Théâtre Populaire d’Acadie (Caraquet).

A fun fact about Denise: She likes making large scale puppets, and she has one of the most welcoming and stylish offices in the whole College.