featured artist
Katherine Kwan
Katherine Kwan is a Toronto-based photographer, videographer, editor and music industry
multi-hyphenate. Her work primarily focuses on creating beautiful sets and visual narratives, which she captures with a keen documentary-style vision.
She has collaborated with musical artists Scott Helman, Ria Mae, Field Guide, Busty and the
Bass, Monowhales making photo and video content, locally and on tour. For the last 10 years
she has been working in the industry, being contracted at Warner Music Canada, CBC Music,
Live Nation Entertainment, Exclaim! Magazine, Bell Media, Virgin Mobile Canada, TIFF in
varying roles involving shooting or editing, marketing and advertising. She excels in finding new
ways to tell stories using video editing and imagery and whatever footage is captured. She also
loves being a fly-on-the-wall and capturing raw behind-the-scenes moments and marrying that
in the edit, with the energy and movement of a live performance.
Katherine graduated from York University with a B.A. in Film Studies and has worked in the
Film/TV industry as an editor. She was the assistant editor to Omar Majeed on the
CBC-commissioned docu-series, “The Artists” (dir. Peter Mishara) released in 2018 and later on
edited her first BravoFACTUAL short documentary in 2017 titled, “Double” (dir. Simon Paluck).
Outside of work Katherine can be found playing guitar, cooking or baking literally anything, and
making eco-friendly arts and crafts for her friends.
What terrifies you the most?
I think what terrifies me the most is that a lot of people, myself included,
grow into a career or in a direction where the lines between work and
worth are blurred especially in a digital cultural society where we spend
most of our time online rather than outside. I have caught myself in these
ruminating cycles of thought where I am consistently looking online and
comparing myself to artists I admire and it has caused me a lot of grief
and anxiety in the past; lowered my self-esteem at times and can even
turn into full on depression. I think we as artists can get trapped in this
capitalist framework that tries to tell us that more equals more... but I am
working on deconstructing those thoughts within myself and learning to
enjoy the process more.
What in life, is beautiful to you? Where do you find inspiration?
I try and look for inspiration in my everyday life and I feel that I am truly
inspired by my friends and family and the people closest to me. The most
beautiful part of life is that there are so many different ways to be human
and I try and remind myself that there are so many unique perspectives
and people in this world and everyone deserves to feel safe and heard
and seen. For me, inspiration can strike at any time and when it does, I’m
buzzing with excitement that it’s hard to contain! Lately, I’ve been more
inspired by physical art and this past year I started collaborating with a
stylist pal of mine named Kaitlyn Goodfellow, who I trust deeply to help
bring these visions to life. Together, we have been building elaborate
installations and sets to film in, inspired by thrifted finds and upcycled
materials and sustainability. Our collaborative inspiration is often
described as a snowball because we love to build upon each other’s
ideas until they’re (sometimes literally) larger than life. I am enjoying this
current shift in focus from my daily grind as a video editor.
What unexpected situations made you who you are today?
I often think about how inspiring the people in my life are, especially the
close women friends I have currently, who have taught me so much just
by being kind and compassionate human beings who project love and
positivity wherever they are. I think about the trip I took with four of my
close friends in February 2020, which taught me how to show up for my
friends, and how to listen, and that it is okay to love in a big way and to
project love in the world because it is what holds the Universe together.
What’s the most interesting thing about you that we wouldn’t learn from your work
alone
I think something that is interesting that maybe you wouldn’t notice from
my work alone is that a lot of the art that I make is driven with a focus on
sustainability, upcycling, thrifting, and making everything DIY. I try to
obtain as many unique props and materials as I can through a trading
post app I use and try to build the sets myself.
What’s your personal heaven?
My personal heaven is me, in the centre of a shiba inu puppy pile-up.
There is a bubble tea fountain in the corner.