Kathleen O’Brien has been a professional artist since 1968.
Being born in Japan, living in Italy and traveling the world with her family placed her on the path as an artist. At age twelve she learned oil painting and the love of art paper from her grandfather. During high school in Germany, she studied printmaking at Kunstshule Rödel, Mannheim. This was followed by two years in the BFA program at Daemen College. While in Washington, DC she studied oil painting, and served as teaching assistant, at the Corcoran School of Art. During her 30 years living in Boulder, CO, she created and exhibited paintings, drawings and crafts. While employed at Naropa University she taught through the Extended Studies Program. Her love and respect for nature was deepened while studying with Native American Elders, especially Wallace Black Elk.
In 1999 she designed the home her husband built on Sunwise Farm and Sanctuary in Kentucky. Her desire to create more loosely led her to combine drawings, water media and botanicals in a collage format. Her lifestyle now is like a collage, integrating art and gardening. She continues to develop their land as a destination for classes, open studios and art salons.
Statement
My lifelong artistic purpose is to explore the cycles of the seasons, life and nature and to express the subtle relationships between them with the seen and unseen worlds of wonder.
My collages—composed of abstract watercolors, drawings, and botanicals—are echoes of the healing realms I experience in meditation. Remaining in this state, the energy of the present moment guides me. The brush glides, making true marks, scribing an invented language or elements of sacred geometry. Serene and vibrant color fills the space. Each stroke leads to the next, revealing stories of time and place for you to inhabit in peace.
The tranquil beauty of nature is an enduring source of inspiration, and its essence is palpable in all my work. I am interested in what lies beneath the surface appearance of things. Observing a sunflower, I ask: What is the sacred geometry of its design, what does it convey, what mystery gives it life?
What I imagine and then bring into form are creations that reveal the subtle dimensions of reality. I translate nature’s qualities of beauty, transparency, layering, mutability, communication, and life force into art. I express the complexity and fragility of the world. I revere the simplicity and strength of life and nature. I paint about energy, consciousness, light, and shadow. The cycles of nature, cosmos, and humankind and how they interrelate for mutual benefit inform my work. I explore the interplay of perspective and flatness, time/space, order and chaos. In the moment, the creative flow connects me with my right place where I seek to touch the soul at the deepest level.
Watch Artist Kathleen O'Brien | Kentucky Life | KET, Kentucky Educational TV, a short video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-NNkblKMJQ
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