Kathryn Wiley

As of late 2011, one of my chief interests in abstract painting is exploring color relationships, and the subtleties of gradations of color, often in the absence of strong lights or darks, that evoke the delicate balance and interwoven nature of human connections. In my 2011 collection of abstract paintings, many feature squares and rectangles of color that cover the picture plane, forming a contained, contemplative space. In some works, the squares and rectangles evoke an impression of landscape in flashes of luminous light and intense color, or establish space, seeming to float on a distant background.

In collage, which I took up around 2008, I found a new challenge in the arrangement of different papers and colors; they range from almost representational to frankly surreal works. The sculptures made from found objects mostly seem to create themselves; the trick is in finding good objects that will cooperate. Making a sculpture of this kind resembles making a collage. In each case the potential materials are laid out for the process of trial and error, to see which ones affiliate well with others.

Carl Jung believed that creative efforts are a search for meaning. For me, they are a search for happiness, for connection with people, for involvement, for inclusion--perhaps that's the meaning of Jung's 'meaning'. For me, the point of the work is to enjoy and react to the shapes and colors, some of which are really luscious! In all these works, I operate instinctively, intuitively and emotionally; the works are communications in themselves, without the necessity for words.

In general, I create instinctively, sometimes working on a piece for months before it settles into its finished form.

I am a painter of abstract works and landscapes, a collage artist, and a sculptor of works from found objects. I learned painting and drawing while living in Paris many years ago, and continued to study painting, collage and sculpture in New York City, the Washington, DC area, and in numerous workshops in the US and Italy. While landscape was my first love, in about 2007 I sought a new challenge in abstract painting, and found that unusual compositions seemed to rise remixed from the stored images of a lifetime. I've had three solo shows at the Foundry Gallery, in 2007, 2009, and 2011. I plan to continue working in both abstract and representational forms, and to pursue collage and sculpture. My paintings and collages are in private collections in the US and France. As of late 2011, I have two large outdoor sculpture commissions underway.