Artist Statement

My work is a reflection of my idiosyncratic beliefs about memory, and how I view the world.  Memory, for me, is like a series of snapshots, captured at inauspicious moments. I remember my life through the things that I notice through windows, waiting for transportation or a seat at a restaurant, while walking through flea markets, shopping malls and back alleys, or while sitting in my favourite chair, drinking my morning coffee. 

As I have gotten older, I realize that what I choose to capture are things on the periphery as I go about living my life. I find that my memories, and perceptions about them are connected to moments that most people ignore. I find beauty in the moments while I am waiting to get on a water taxi, or sitting inside a fogged-up boat. I love capturing the things I see from the back seat of the truck, on a road trip, when my two men, who both suffer from car-sickness, talk in the front. I paint and draw people buying vegetables at a market, or the views out the window of a commuter train.  I see the light and shapes of the scene. I want to hold onto the moments that are about the beauty of the ordinary. The textures and lines of architecture and old cars have recently been catching my attention. I love having a painting tell one story from afar, and have it reveal more as a viewer approaches.

I am also a lifelong “people watcher”. I find beauty in faces that have character, and a story to tell. Sometimes, the story is communicated to me through direct eye contact. Sometimes, it’s personal, and I am capturing a moment that no one is intended to really see. I paint the momentary expressions that are ignored, or missed. They tell a different, more personal story.

I am a watercolourist, because I love the translucency, and richness of colour, texture and value that are inherent in the medium. Recently, I have been playing with the fluidity of paint.  I love to work with liquid paint, dripping it onto a wet paper, and allowing the colours to blend and mix organically. I love the sense of happenstance and the surprises that I get from letting go of complete control of the final image. Through this I capture the beauty of the momentary and the unexpected.

Background

Kathy is a retired art teacher and watercolourist. Her work can be found at South Shore Gallery in her new home town of Sooke, BC. Her painting, “ Memories of Relics and Summer” was published in Artist Magazine’s ” Best of Watercolor: Splash 25”in July of 2024. She has been a member of the Federation of Canadian Artists, and has shown in numerous juried exhibits both through the Federation, and with the International Watercolor Society. She was selected to show in the IWS First Canadian Biennale, and the Canada 150 Exhibit. She has been selected to show in NWWS Open Water Exhibit, and was honoured with an artists appreciation award with the Abu Rawash Prize, as well. She has had three group shows and two solo exhibits and has had the honor of showing twice at the Sooke Fine Arts Show, the largest juried show on Vancouver Island. She teaches workshops and does artist’s demonstrations.