“As a small girl, I would hide in the sand dunes of Georgian Bay, making secret displays of shells, berries, grasses and seagull feathers. I believe my current collections embrace not only what affects me now but what fascinated me as a child.” Diana Bennett
At first, Bennett worked with fabric and thread on canvas. Over a forty year period, she has created portraits and landscapes. Fifteen years ago, Bennett’s medium changed. Inspired by summers on a tiny island in Muskoka, she experimented with a new collage technique using varnish on glass. This has evolved into assemblages using a number of transparent and translucent materials. In many of her pieces she uses glass, mirror and photographic transfers as a way of exploring multiple surfaces and reflections. Her embeddings flow from a love of collecting.
Bennett is a visual artist, educator and senior executive. She studied archeology and art history at the University of Toronto. Bennett was a senior executive at both TVOntario and at the Toronto Zoo. She spent 15 years as an art teacher, department head and principal in North York. In a volunteer capacity, she serves on the Toronto Arts Council, the University of Toronto Art Centre, and chairs the Toronto Arts Foundation. As owner of Zephyr Studios, she currently creates and exhibits.
