Kari Couture, 2004
Printmaking major
Community Arts Specialist, Milwaukee Public Schools, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Kari Couture is an artist and arts education advocate who believes strongly in the transformative potential of the arts to empower individuals and unite and build communities. As the Community Arts Specialist in Milwaukee Public Schools, she is the administrator for the 1.5 million dollar Partnership for the Arts and Humanities grant, overseeing grants for roughly 40 different arts education organizations. She has taught art at various community organizations and institutions including the Milwaukee Art Museum, Alverno College, Cardinal Stritch University and at the community print shop she helped create, RedLine Milwaukee. Creating her own work allows her to meditate on ideas and rebuild her energy. Couture’s work has been shown nationally and internationally and is featured in several publications about political printmaking. In addition to her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from MIAD, she earned a Certificate in Youth Development and values her ten months in the Americorps Public Allies program as an invaluable learning experience.
“Going to a visual art and design college gave me the opportunity to spend four years surrounded by like-minded people who really valued the way I think and learn. I credit many of my MIAD studio and humanities faculty with inspiring my sense of curiosity and pushing me beyond what I thought I was capable of accomplishing. I left with the confidence to express my thoughts and ideas visually, verbally, and in writing, and felt empowered to use my creativity to have a positive impact on my community.”
“Just Between You and I,” mixed media, 2011
“Empty Ouvrante,” mixed media, 2012 | “Untitled,” installation, mixed media, 2012
Studio and artwork photos: Troy Freund Photography
