Camille Butterfield

Camille Butterfield (they/them) is an artist, athlete, teacher, and running coach. They grew up in Mamaroneck, NY and discovered their love for art very early in life. As a child, Camille enjoyed creating art out of anything and everything, but was rather… athletically challenged. When they joined their middle school cross country team after being told to “find a sport without a ball,” they had no idea that their running career would span over a decade and become deeply intertwined with their artistic practice. Camille ran cross country and track through high school and then decided to pursue both art and running at Smith College, where they were able to explore a wider variety of artistic media and experience the ups and downs of running three seasons for the first time. Their senior thesis brought running and art together into a large-scale multimedia installation that went all the way around the Smith College track. Camille graduated in 2021 with a BA and highest honors in Studio Art.

The summer after graduating, Camille completed a virtual artist residency program that fortified their interest in public art and their determination to maintain their creative practice beyond college. They returned to Northampton and began coaching cross country and track at Amherst Regional, while working first as a studio assistant for Small Victories in Easthampton and then as a teacher at the Montessori School of Northampton. They make art whenever they can and have shown work in online and in-person galleries, as well as some local public spaces. Their practice is intuitive, grounded in their emotions, experiences, reflections, and the materials they have access to on any given day. Their recent work speaks to the joys and challenges of coaching, their relationship with running, and their relationship with their body. In addition to providing artistic inspiration, coaching has given Camille a way of reflecting on their years as a student-athlete and sharing some of the things they have learned with a new and wonderful community. It has been one of the most fulfilling, difficult, beautiful, and transformative experiences of their life, and although they are about to say goodbye to this place and this role, the memories and connections they have made here will always have a special place in their heart.