MARGARET ATKINSON

ARTIST, MUSICIAN, PUPPETEER.

Margaret Atkinson was born into a creative family in Kingston, Ontario. Her family moved to Windsor in 1964, and has ever since been very involved in the local music and art scene. She was educated at Assumption High School, and received her B.A. in Visual Arts from the University of Windsor. Art and music were always a part of her life as she was growing up. Her family valued music, visual and performing arts and she was encouraged to explore all three art forms.
Margaret works with fabric, wood, canvas and acrylics, oils, and mixed media. She also is a musical artist, often creating flute compositions for her performance pieces. In her work with children, she stresses accessibility, and the idea that everyone can benefit from exploring their creative side. Ms. Atkinson’s work has almost always been public. The puppetry company, the Join Hands Puppeteers, that she and her husband, Matthew Romain have operated since 1980 is well-known in schools, libraries, and theatres across Ontario and the Atlantic Provinces. Thousands of people have seen her fabric set designs, her large puppets, and her socially conscious protest paintings. In her work with Join Hands she has conducted many puppet-making and illustration workshops, including extended hands-on workshops at the Art Gallery of Windsor. She also teaches art classes for the City of Windsor’s Department of Parks and Recreation and continues to be involved in Windsor’s art community. In the spring of 2001, she held her own solo multi-media exhibition, which was installed at the Common Ground Gallery in downtown Windsor. Margaret is also well-known in the environmentalist/social justice community. She has volunteered for the Citizens Environment Alliance for many years and created for them the Windsor Smog T-shirt and the 1998 CEA calendar. Her social justice-inspired paintings have been paraded at many human rights marches across Southwest Ontario. She firmly believes that art should be seen, heard and enjoyed by everyone and that Art can change the world.
E-mail to teragram35@hotmail.com

Link to view samples of Margaret's Artwork:

Link to more of Margaret's Work at Join Hands Puppeteers: