Keeley Haftner / Artist in Residence

As part of her residency, Haftner will also present an artist talk exploring her interdisciplinary practice, which critically examines garbage as both material and metaphor. Her past projects include a miniature landfill filled with discarded artworks and 3D-printed ceramic toilets containing her own breath—serving as literal and symbolic acts of carbon offset. The talk will take place on September 11, 2025 at 8pm (doors open at 7:30pm).

For Nuit Blanche Saskatoon, PAVED Arts will unveil Haftner’s billboard project, Sentences on Palestine, alongside a live performance from her Tesselescence (Flag Repair) series. Taking place at PAVED Arts on September 20, 2025, from 6–9pm, Haftner will repair faded and torn Palestinian flags submitted by local residents. This site-specific performance continues her ongoing investigation into tessellation and archival labor. Community members interested in contributing a flag are encouraged to email coordinator]at]pavedarts[dot]ca for details.

On September 25, 2025, from 6–9pm, Haftner will lead Super Scraps: A Critical Material Workshop, inviting participants to create a collaborative film using discarded and found footage. Film scraps will come from both Haftner’s personal archive and participant contributions. The session includes a short presentation on the materiality of film and hands-on editing with 16mm and Super 8 formats. No experience is required, and basic tools and materials will be provided. Register for this free-for-members workshop here.

Photo by Jon Burung

Artist Bio

Keeley Haftner (b. 1985) is a Saskatchewanian-Canadian artist based in the Netherlands whose multidisciplinary practice centers waste as both material and metaphor. Through intimate acts of transformation, her work challenges extractive systems and prompts new ways of thinking about social and ecological relations. She was born and raised on Treaty 6 territory, on the traditional lands of the Cree, Saulteaux, Dene, Dakota, Lakota, Nakota, and Métis nations, to whom she and her ancestors are deeply indebted.

Her work has been exhibited internationally across the USA, Canada, and Europe, including at Schering Stiftung Berlin (DE), the Art Institute of Chicago (USA), and the Keramiekmuseum Princessehof (NL). Haftner received her BFA from Mount Allison University (2011) and her MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (2016).

She has received numerous awards and honours, including a longlisting for Canada’s prestigious Sobey Art Award and a shortlist nomination for the Netherlands’ biennial De Kei Prize. Selected residencies include the European Ceramic Workcentre (NL), Vermont Studio Center (USA), Living in the Play: NIDO II (IT) by the Poor Farm (USA), and SÍM (IS). She has presented and created work for Transmediale (Berlin), Open Engagement (Queen’s Museum, NYC), Chicago’s Architecture and Terrain Biennials, and This Art Fair (Amsterdam). Selected publications include The 3D Additivist Cookbook and BAKSTEEN | BRICK (Kunsthal KAdE). Her work is held in numerous institutional and private collections, including the Ceramic Museum of the Netherlands and The Over Holland Collection. Haftner is a two-time recipient of the Canada Council for the Arts Research and Creation Grant and is currently a Professional Artist with Stroom (NL).