Ilka is a German-Canadian artist based in Victoria, British Columbia. After taking drawing lessons as a teenager, she spent 20 years studying, researching, and teaching biology. This took her from Germany to England, Wales, and ultimately to Canada where she spent years exploring boreal wetlands. Ilka has taught biology and botany, and, more recently, studied environmental policy and law before she turned her focus to artistic practice. 

Today, the themes she explores in her art are informed by her life experience, with questions about the environment, reality, governance, and identity all recurring in her practice. Ilka enjoys the freedom she has as an artist to work across boundaries, and to develop her own visual language to explore complex issues. Her paper sculptures create visual metaphors about concepts of reality and fragility of intent. Her expansive ink panels are bold yet detailed, often blurring the boundary between drawing and painting.

Ilka is a member of the International Association of Hand Papermakers and Paper Artists, and a Signature (Associate) member of the Federation of Canadian Artists. She has shown her work in British Columbia and other parts of Canada, and is starting to extend her reach internationally.

Artist Statement

I find it hard to describe myself as an artist because my work constantly changes. To me, that evolution – the never-ending experimentation, and the magical surprises that happen on the journey from idea to execution – are what drives my practice.

There are constants. An aesthetic I would describe as simple, in spite of the fact that, on close inspection, it tends to have a lot of detail. And a propensity for projects that require patience and involve a lot of repetition. The aesthetic, I suspect, has a lot to do with growing up in northern Germany where the land is flat, the sky is large, and people are friendly but reserved. The detailed, repetitive execution suits me because it is a way to still an over-active brain. Some people meditate. I make thousands and thousands of dots, spin paper, or braid photographs into string. To each their own. I cannot argue with the results.

There are also certain themes that keep emerging. Most of my two-dimensional work starts out as a way to indulge my inner science nerd, and questions about the environment, reality, governance, and identity keep recurring in my practice. All these are subjects I have thought about from different angles for much of my life. As an artist, I have the freedom to work across boundaries, integrate, and develop my own visual language to question them. 

I tend to think in bodies of work. I get interested in a concept or question, explore it for a while, and move on, perhaps to re-visit it from a different perspective later on. Ultimately, I believe a work’s execution should fit its context and meaning. This means I am always open to experiment with new and unfamiliar media to bring an idea to life.

Solo and Duo Shows

Passage. With Martina Edmondson. Gage Gallery, Victoria, BC. [2023]
Dissonance.  Gage Gallery, Victoria, BC. [2022]
Orca Dreams. Gage Gallery, Victoria, BC. [2019]
To the Bone. Greater Victoria Public Library, Central Branch, Victoria, BC. [2018]
Traces. Café Gallery, Arts Centre at Cedar Hill, Victoria, BC. [2016]

Group Shows (selected)

Cat Walk III. World of Threads Festival, Oakville, ON. [2023]
Paper Alive! Pilnitz Palace, Kunstgewerbemuseum Dresden, Dresden, Germany. [2023] 
Extractions: Resources Through an Artistic Lens. Place des Arts, Coquitlam, BC. [2022]
Refuge. Gage Gallery, Victoria, BC [2021]
Surrounded by Water. Cowichan Valley Arts Council Gallery, Duncan, BC [2021]
Forest: Breath of Life. Cowichan Public Art Gallery Society, Duncan, BC. [2021]
VI: Six Artists | Odd Work. Gage Gallery, Victoria, BC. [2019]
Island Illustrators Society 2019 Exhibition. Coast Collective Arts Centre, Colwood. [2019]
Paper • Paint • Pencil • Pen. Gage Gallery, Victoria, BC. [2018]
Success! Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2018]
Botanicals. Victoria International Airport, Victoria, BC. [2017]
Big Canadian Stuff – Eh! Coast Collective Art Centre, Colwood, BC. [2017]

Juried Events

Sooke Fine Arts Show. Sooke, BC. [2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2016]
Bloom. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2021 | 2020 | 2019]
Crisis. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2020]
Annual International Representational Exhibition. FCA Vancouver, BC. [2020 | 2019 | 2018]
Painting on the Edge. FCA Vancouver, BC (online only). [2020]
Member Show. Victoria Arts Council, Victoria, BC. [2020]
Sidney Fine Arts Show. Sidney, BC. [2019 | 2018 | 2017| 2016]
Small, Smaller, Smallest | Small Artworks Exhibition. FCA, Vancouver, BC. [2019 | 2017]
Medal Exhibition. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2018]
Visualize: Art Revealing Science. Guild of Natural Science Illustrators 50th Anniversary 
Special Exhibition, Washington, DC, USA. [2018]
Works on Paper. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2018 | 2017]
Active Member Exhibition. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver. [2018 | 2017]
Summer Gallery. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2017]
O Canada! Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2017]
Muse. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2017]
Artist’s Choice. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2017]
Sketch. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2016]
Nonesuch Art on Paper Awards. Finalist Exhibitions, Montréal, QC & Parrsboro, NS. [2016]

Awards and Recognition

Semifinalist, Indoor/Fashion call, Lucca Biennale Cartasia, Lucca, Italy [2024 | 2022]
First Place Prize. Crisis. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC.  [2020]
Second Place Prize. Small, Smaller, Smallest. Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC. [2017]
Finalist, Nonesuch Art on Paper Awards, Main & Station, Parrsborro, NS [2016]