Exhibitionists·Video

Why Calgary artist Jeff de Boer makes armour for mice and cats

What's it like to be an internationally known visual artist celebrated for creating armour... for mice and cats? Calgary-based artist Jeff de Boer knows... he's been doing it for decades. And it turns out there's some pretty special meaning in it for him, plus a challenge from the mainstream art world.

We're not kitten around, and neither is he

Jeff de Boer, creator of armour... for mice and cats

9 years ago
Duration 4:07
Alberta-based visual artist Jeff de Boer makes armour for cats and mice. And for decades, collectors around the world have been buying it. Jeff let CBC Arts into a studio to see his work and have a chat about why he does what he does, and some of the challenges of being an artist who fortifies small creatures.

What's it like to be an internationally known visual artist celebrated for creating armour... for mice and cats? Calgary-based artist Jeff de Boer knows... he's been doing it for decades. And it turns out there's some pretty special meaning in it for him, plus a challenge from the mainstream art world.

You'll see de Boer's work all over Calgary this summer — he'll be installing some large-scale pieces at major city landmarks including the MacDonald Bridge entrance of ENMAX Park in Calgary and at Calgary International Airport — but in this segment from Exhibitionists, he's telling us what it's like to work on a very small scale.

Watch Exhibitionists Sundays at 4:30pm (5 NT) on CBC.