Master's Thesis Exhibition by Kathy Calhoun
Columbia II
Acrylic paint, colored pencil, and pigmented gesso on board; 30x24.5 inches, 2010
by Kathy Calhoun
February 24 - March 18, 2012
Helena Davis and Frable Galleries
Deserted and disintegrating barns, houses, and silos have always perplexed me while driving through the country. I am fascinated by how this leisurely decay reveals their structural integrity in a slow, reverse process of construction. It is as if humanity and nature consciously collaborated to create these gigantic memento mori (a reminder of life's end) for a steady stream of highway viewers. These monumental tributes to inevitable decline, along with my own adventures in gardening, childrearing, eldercare, and travels, have inspired me to explore the universal cycles of life.
Some the buildings in this series of work I chose to render in a tight, sharp, close-up angle so that the viewer is forced to engage them. I will often layer images of seeds, leaves, and rocks on top of images of houses to symbolize the different stages of the life cycle. I see seeds and buildings as containers and incubators of potential. Any foliage represents a fulfillment of that potential, while rocks stand for the fossilized remains, or the achievements of one's life accomplishments.
I use a variety of media and methods in my artwork. I apply these intuitively to highlight the transitions between stages of life. Collage, spraying, washes, resists, and contour line drawing are just a few. I particularly enjoy glazing techniques because images from beneath can still be seen that shows a sense of layering that is also part of the universal life cycle, the new on top of the old.
Kathy Calhoun
2012
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Opening Reception Fourth Friday
February 24, 2012
7-10 pm
Free and Open to the Public
Closing Artist Talk
Sunday, March 18, 2012
4 pm
Free and Open to the Public
Columbia I
acrylic paint and pigmented gesso on board, 24x30 inches, 2009.
by Kathy Calhoun
Cool 2409
(triptych) acrylic paint and pencil on paper, 30x66 inches, 2011
by Kathy Calhoun
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