About the Studio

Studio Vazquez-Mackay is owned and operated by artist/educator Mark Vazquez-Mackay. The studio is a working art space that provides a place for creativity to prosper through education, facility, and community building. Mark uses the studio to create his art alongside his mentees and students. In the evenings and weekends, the space is used to run art classes and workshops.

Outside of the space, Mark and his team run cultural/art travel programs within Canada and other parts of North America.

Biography

Mark Vazquez-Mackay BFA, MFA

Mark Vazquez-Mackay’s work has been exhibited and collected across the continent. As one of this province’s most prominent observational painters/drawers, his work is in many important collections such as that of the Canadian Armed Forces headquarters in Ottawa. His work is characterized by relentless experimentation, from his explorations of renaissance optics, to modern digital technologies, and massively ambitious public art projects.

Testimonials

Mark has been an invaluable mentor. He leads with his experience and quietly builds up everyone around him. His passion for creating an arts community in Calgary cannot go unnoticed. Mark has a vast knowledge of art history, and will often pull a book from his collection and offer me a perspective I didn’t know I needed. He is excellent at creating space for exploration, but is always there with concrete next steps and has pushed me to do more than I thought possible. He is skilled in many arenas, including drawing, animation, and mixed media, and he has inspired me to take up oils, which has altered my creative trajectory significantly. I have taken several of his courses and expanded my own repertoire of skills. Anyone who meets Mark will marvel at whatever he is currently creating and immediately pick up on his passion and generosity as an artist. He is kind and introspective. I highly recommend that you spend time in Mark’s studio, and if you’re lucky, in his guidance.

Shelina K