Artist of the Month: February 2026
Photo by Vladimir Averin
Producer, Designer and Cultural Explorer
Based in Calgary, Alberta
Artist Bio
Svetlana is a producer, designer and cultural explorer based in Calgary, bridging the gap between art and the people who crave it. Her main art project is a monthly newsletter that curates Calgary’s cultural and lifestyle scene — from concerts and theatre to exhibitions, film screenings, lectures, unexpected workshops, and gastronomic gems. She loves researching Calgary’s creative scene and sharing those discoveries with people who are just as curious about this city as she is.
Can you walk us through your journey into the arts and what inspired you to focus your work on connecting people with cultural and lifestyle experiences in Calgary?
It all started when I was very young — my mom, who had no connection to the arts herself, would take me to exhibitions and theatre performances. She simply loved sharing what inspired her. Through those early gallery visits and beautiful art books she'd bring home, I discovered theatre impresario Diaghilev and French painter Degas while I was still a child. The pulsing energy of theatre began seeping into my life.
Watching my mom become a bridge between art and me influenced my own path. When it came time to choose my direction, I knew I wanted to be that connector too — someone who helps people find experiences that move them. I graduated from GITIS, one of Europe's most historically significant theatre institutions, with a degree in performing arts management. From there, I worked in museums promoting exhibitions and then with a film distribution company that brought arthouse cinema from festivals like Cannes and Berlin to theatres.
When I moved to Calgary almost three years ago, I felt a bit lost in the creative scene. But as I started exploring — really exploring — I realized this city has so much happening. I wanted to share those discoveries with people who, like me, were curious but didn't know where to start. That's how my newsletter was born: a monthly love letter to Calgary's cultural life.
What is your main creative project today, and what gap or need did you see that led you to create your monthly newsletter? What does this format allow you to explore?
My monthly newsletter curates Calgary's cultural and lifestyle scene — everything from concerts and theatre to exhibitions, film screenings, unexpected workshops, and gastronomic gems.
When I first arrived in Calgary, I'd ask people, "What's happening this weekend?" and the answers were often vague or repetitive. I realized there wasn't a single place where someone could find curated, quality cultural events that went beyond the obvious. There are event listings, sure, but I wanted something with a point of view — something that felt like a friend saying, "Hey, you have to check this out."
The monthly format gives me time to really research and discover. I'm finding those hidden gems — a lecture series at a small gallery, an experimental music night, a pop-up dining experience. It's my way of exploring Calgary through a creative lens and inviting others to see the city the way I do: full of possibility and beauty.
As a newcomer to Canada, what were some of the biggest challenges you faced when trying to establish yourself in Calgary's creative community, and how did discovering ICAI help you better understand the local arts ecosystem and find your place within it?
The silence was tough. When I first reached out to people, emails went unanswered, meeting requests were ignored. I didn't know if I was doing something wrong or if people here were just more closed off. It was really frustrating and isolating. I couldn't tell if I was invisible or if I just didn't understand the unwritten rules.
Then Rita Rebetskaya, an ICAI alumna and co-founder of MurMur Theatre Company, told me about the NAPP program. That changed everything. ICAI gave me access to people and knowledge that had felt completely closed off before.
ICAI matched me with the perfect mentor — Morgan Cairns, an Arts, Marketing and Event Management Professional who's worked with Calgary's biggest arts events like the Calgary International Film Festival and Sled Island. I'd actually dreamed of learning from her but had no idea how to reach her. Morgan didn't just help me understand the city's cultural landscape — she brought me to events to help, showed me Calgary's gastronomic gems, and gave me real experience. Through the program and Morgan's guidance, I learned how Canada's and Calgary's cultural context actually works — the funding structures, the networks, how information flows, what matters to people here.
That knowledge gave me the confidence to launch my newsletter. And as I researched events for it month after month, I started understanding the deeper mechanics — who talks to whom, how venues promote themselves, what channels actually reach people. It was like learning a new language. That understanding came full circle when I helped Rita and her co-founder Polina Kaulio launch MurMur Theatre Company. I could apply my producer skills and my newfound grasp of Calgary's cultural landscape to properly tell the story of their premiere and organize everything thoughtfully.
What sources of inspiration and values guide your creative research and curatorial process, and how do they influence the experiences you choose to share with your audience?
Quality coffee, electronic music, and Michel Gondry films, for starters. But what especially drives me is when artists create not just for themselves, but with genuine thought about how people will experience their work. When creators care about that connection, you can always feel it — and that's the magic I'm looking for when I research events for my newsletter.
I love finding experiences where disciplines intersect — where boundaries blur and something unexpected emerges. Those moments excite me because they reflect how I see the world: not in neat categories, but as one big, interconnected creative experience. I'm drawn to things that are thoughtful, creative, touching — experiences that aren't flat or empty, but make life more pleasant and interesting.
Your work places a strong emphasis on audience experience. Why is building a bridge between art and people so important to you?
Because I remember what it felt like to be on the other side of that bridge as a child, holding my mom's hand at exhibitions. She wasn't an art expert, but she knew those experiences mattered. She'd say things like, "Look how beautifully the colors blend here, how much light and warmth this painting has — it makes me feel good inside. What do you see and feel?" She gave me the gift of curiosity.
I also know, from my experience in the arts, how easy it is for amazing work to go unseen — not because it's not good, but because the right people didn't know about it or didn't feel like it was "for them." There's incredible work happening in Calgary, and there are people who would love it if only they knew where to look.
Building that bridge means helping people find "their art" and helping art find "its people." It's about making culture feel accessible, not intimidating. When I write my newsletter, I'm thinking about someone who's curious but maybe doesn't have an arts background, or doesn't have time to search.
