Interdicipinary Artist Marc Courtemanche was born 1971 in Sudbury, Ontario, known for it’s nickel mining. He grew up with his Family in the countryside of Val Caron just on the out skirts of Sudbury. There, Marc learned a practical approach of living. While growing up with his two brothers, Marc was always building some type of structure or fixing something that was broken. His father recognized his ability to work three-dimensionally, at such a young age, so he introduced him to woodworking. In no time he began to pick up the trait, which became very important to his career as a sculptor.

After finishing high school Marc decided to enter into the trades as a mechanic. He enrolled at Cambrian College’s introduction to Heavy Duty Mechanic program. On his time off, Marc began exploring the art of making working decoys. Within five years he would jump from amateur to professional competitions where he won a third position at the Canadian Open in 1994. At that time Marc realised that his career in mechanics was not going the way he predicted, he left it to enter the tire business with the goal of returning to college and study visual arts. Two years later, he finally took the leap into the arts.

In the fall of 1995 Marc took his first three-dimensional course. Because of his pass experience with object making he felt at ease. In 1997, he met France Duval a young lady from Val d’Or, Québec who was also in the arts program. When he graduated with a diploma from Cambrian College in 1998, Marc decided to continue his education. He went to NASCAD in Halifax to complete one year to receive his BFA while France stayed back in Sudbury to complete her program.

Nova Scotia College of Art and Design was a turning point in Marc’s career. There he was taught that his objects had to be juxtaposed with a concept before they would become more then just an everyday object. This caused him to step back and reflect on the importance of found objects. When he graduated in 1999 Marc was excited to have learned the conceptual approach to art theory, but confused in what his role was as a sculptor.

This question continued to linger until after he entered into the masters program at the University of Regina in 2001. There he discovered his answer with the help from the professors of the Visual Arts department. Marc’s idea allowed him to keep exploring traditional craft techniques while pushing conceptual approaches to art making. He lives in Regina with his wife France and two children Nathan and Camille. Marc works at the University of Regina as a technician and on occasion teaches sculpture. He also works part-time as an assistant preparator at the Mackenzie Art Gallery. In his spare time he is found working in his studio creating innovative uses for materials.