Kendra Malcolm is a Canadian artist based in Winnipeg. She is recognized internationally for her 20 years of work in the art and advertising industry.
Kendra earned her design degree from the Alberta College of Art and Design, which led to a scholarship at the School of Visual Arts in New York. There, Kendra worked for the advertising firms DeVito/Verdi and Gotham Inc., where she created campaigns for clients like Sunglass Hut, Best Western, Legal Sea Foods, and Denny’s. Her work earned more than a dozen awards, including a prestigious Clio Award.
In 2014, Kendra shifted toward human-centred design and joined a global impact organization called 17 Triggers. This work brought her to Cambodia, where she lived for a year, and to Zambia, where she helped create behaviour change campaigns focused on improving lives in developing countries.
Kendra later moved to Winnipeg and found success selling her original paintings. Her business, Creations By Kendra, has become known across Canada for her bold, expressive animal portraits. In collaboration with her daughter, Kendra Malcolmalso runs Alex + Mom, a project that raises funds for the Children’s Hospital by selling printed versions of Alex’s pet portraits. Kendra’s work continues to inspire, grow, and evolve.
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Which hood are you in?
I currently live and work out of my home in East Kildonan in Winnipeg, Manitoba, but I’ve lived in many places, including Manhattan, Brooklyn, Phnom Penh in Cambodia, and Calgary.
What do you do?
That’s a loaded question. I’m a mom, which is already a fulfilling and full-time gig, but I also teach art online, and I create create create! When I’m not momming or teaching art, I’m usually painting my big, bold, expressive animals. I also do all of my own printing in-house, so a good portion of my downtime is dedicated to printing my artwork on different objects to make it practical and accessible for everyone.
Before moving back to Canada, I spent about a decade working as an Art Director in New York, producing campaigns for clients like Denny’s, Sunglass Hut, Chobani, and Duane Reade. After returning to Canada, I shifted toward teaching and community-based art, which has been a really meaningful chapter in my life.
What are you currently working on?
My current focus is bold, brightly coloured, animal-focused artwork. I try to capture their expression, and I love it when they’re looking directly at me. I take as many of my own photographs as possible, and I like to get to know the animals a bit before bringing the images back to my studio and letting the creative energy flow. I enjoy painting large because the scale, paired with the bold colours and strong expressions, makes for a very impactful conversation piece.
My favourite subjects are birds, especially chickens and pigeons, but I’ll paint any animal I can get a good photo of. I find birds fascinating because they’re extremely expressive without the ability to smile. They tilt their heads, fix their gaze, and somehow manage to look both inquisitive and judgy, but in the best possible way. I’ve painted our pet hedgehog, Lady McNyumNyum, a few times, and I’ve also started doing a lot of custom pet portraits. My favourite dogs to paint are pugs, boxers, French bulldogs, and English bulldogs. The kind of dogs that look like they’d run through a wall just to get to you.
I also work on a project with my seven-year-old daughter called Alex + Mom. Alex wanted to raise money to help kids who are feeling sick, and she loves to draw animals, so together we decided to create custom pet portraits. Alex draws the first version, and I redraw her art digitally to create something whimsical and polished. Fifty percent of profits are donated to the Children’s Hospital, and this year we’ve raised about $1500. Last year, we almost hit $1000. You can find us on Instagram at AlexandMomcreations, and there’s a little bit about us on my website as well.
Where can we find your work?
I try to post my new artwork on Instagram. I also have a website, but it’s hard to keep it fully up to date because I paint so often and pieces tend to move quickly. Some of them are gone before they even make it to the site. My website is creationsbykendra.com, and my Instagram handle is creations_by_kendra.
You can also find me in person at my home art studio. I host open houses from time to time, and you can schedule a studio tour if you want to see the space and the full collection. My entire basement is basically a painting and printing studio with a small sitting area. Over the summer and fall, some of my work was also on display at Café Carlo.
I try to do at least one market a month, and more in the summertime. Markets are another great way to see my artwork and the different things I print onto, like magnets, bags, and shirts. If you follow me on Instagram, I post the various markets I’ll be at throughout the year. I try to switch it up, but I’m a semi-regular at the Gimli Farmers Market, and I’ll be at the Winnipeg Christmas Market again next year. My daughter and I also try to do the HFC Winter Market because it helps support the Children’s Hospital, which aligns perfectly with our collaborative project.
