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Plug In ICA executive director Nadja Pelkey couldn\u2019t be happier to make her way to Winnipeg.<\/p>\n
Not only was Pelkey in mingle-mode within hours of starting on the Plug In payroll, but the organization\u2019s 11th executive director\u2019s first week also coincided with a \u201cblockbuster\u201d exhibition, Sarah Anne Johnson\u2019s House on Fire, opening tonight at 460 Portage Ave.<\/p>\n
Pelkey \u2014 the Saskatoon-raised daughter of photographer Brenda Frances Pelkey and the late writer Chester Pelkey \u2014 couldn\u2019t be happier to have found her way to Winnipeg, a city whose artistic community she holds up as an axiomatic icon of national excellence.<\/p>\n
\u201cI visited Winnipeg as a child; we used to take the train. And then later as an arts student (at the University of Windsor) I remember coming and actually sitting in the audience of a Plug In program, thinking what an amazing institution it was, how great it would be to work somewhere like this some day.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn Day 2, it seems a bit surreal to actually be here,\u201d she adds. \u201cEspecially coming from another Prairie arts community, Winnipeg is held in such high regard. It\u2019s kind of a magical city. The quality of artists here is unmatched by any Canadian city. I would challenge anyone to say that the quality of artists in their city is better than the quality of artists in Winnipeg. I don\u2019t think that there\u2019s any comparison.\u201d<\/p>\n
Artists like Sarah Anne Johnson, Lori Blondeau and Shawna Dempsey, \u201cwho could work from anywhere in the world, make Winnipeg their home, and I think that says so much not only for the arts community in Winnipeg but the broader community in Winnipeg.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pelkey, who received her MFA at the University of Guelph, has a background in studio teaching, photography and digital media. She takes over as executive director from Gilles H\u00e9bert, who returned to the directorship in July 2024, taking over for outgoing director Allison Yearwood on an interim basis.<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
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\u201cI\u2019m happy not so much because I\u2019m losing a job \u2014 I didn\u2019t really want a job to begin with, so I don\u2019t feel the loss \u2014 but I am thrilled that this one has taken this job,\u201d says H\u00e9bert, who was previously the executive director from 1989 to 1991.<\/p>\n
\u201cDuring the hiring process, the hiring committee, which I was on as well, (made) the determination that all committee members should reach out and look for people they thought would be appropriate for the job,\u201d he says, returning to the gallery after supping on chicken at the mayor\u2019s luncheon. \u201cI only came up with one, and it was her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI just went to the lunch with her, and she\u2019s working the room, making connections with people, and she knows their histories,\u201d H\u00e9bert adds. \u201cIt\u2019s amazing \u2014 she\u2019s amazing, and we\u2019re really lucky to have her. I like this job, but I\u2019m a little long in the tooth for it, and it\u2019s time for me to move on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Founded in 1972, Plug In will release 50\/10, featuring 10 chapters authored by the organization\u2019s executive directors over its first 50 years, in August through its publishing arm, Plug In Editions. Each chapter has its own distinct graphic designer and editor.<\/p>\n
winnipegfreepress.com\/benwaldman<\/p>\n
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Your contribution of $10, $25 or more will allow the Free Press to deepen our reporting on theatre, dance, music and galleries while also ensuring the broadest possible audience can access our arts journalism.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t Ben Waldman Ben Waldman is a National Newspaper Award-nominated reporter on the Arts & Life desk at the Free Press. Born and raised in Winnipeg, Ben completed three internships with the Free Press while earning his degree at Ryerson University\u2019s (now Toronto Metropolitan University\u2019s) School of Journalism before joining the newsroom full-time in 2019. Read more about Ben<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Ben produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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