Staff Spotlight: Kat Ovsak

Each month we highlight one of the wonderful folks who make the magic happen at ACR.

This month we're spotlighting Retail Reuse Specialist, Kat Ovsak. Kat is a great addition to the retail team, having been hired last September. We love her creative energy, her passion for our mission, her joy in helping customers, and adding her to our cache of Spanish speakers on staff.

Read on to learn more about Kat, how fiber arts connects her with her Salvadoran and Ukrainian ancestry, her passion for mental health advocacy, and how she felt called to move to Austin from Brooklyn without ever having visited Texas prior to the move.

How did you find Austin Creative Reuse?

Back in 2019, my friend Kacy shared one of ACR’s instagram posts and I’ve been a happy customer ever since. :)

What’s your favorite part about working at ACR?

The creative energy in the air when the store is full of people. The space becomes alive because of the humans that walk in and out as the day passes.

What’s the most interesting thing you’ve found donated to ACR?

I’m a 90’s baby. When I found an old wrinkly page of original scratch-n-sniff stickers, I was impressed that they still had the same nostalgic scent that I remembered.

Are you an artist, crafter, or maker? What mediums do you work with? What kinds of arts and crafts do you like to do?

My professional foundation is in traditional fine arts (drawing, painting, printmaking, ceramics, etc.). However my passion and speciality is rooted in hand and machine embroidery. Being both Salvadoran and Ukrainian, embroidery and weaving threads the needle between all cultures. It feels ancestral as I’m working, within each stitch after stitch.

While being an artist, I am also a mental health advocate. I often work within themes of grief/loss, childhood, memories, trauma, etc. If art has been anything for me, it has been a therapeutic outlet. My artworks are often meditative practices that allow me to process my emotions in a healthy manner. When faced with challenges and tragedy, my work becomes my personal archive.

Are you from Austin? If so, tell us about your experience here! If not, where are you from and what brought you here?

I was born and raised in the Hudson Valley in New York. Texas was always calling me. People are often surprised to hear that I had never made a trip out here before I moved. I just packed up my things and drove down to Austin from Brooklyn. I don’t miss the winters, but I do miss the autumn time. I have fallen in love with the nature and wildlife here in Texas. It has been nothing but healing for me. <3