Kathy Stark, a native Floridian, graduated from Furman University with a BA in Studio Arts, and then attended the University of Florida for post baccalaureate studies.
Painting in both oils and watercolors, she enjoys focusing on larger than life subject matter from which she can create a window to the natural world through which the viewer has a heightened awareness of its beauty. North Florida landscapes are a recurrent theme to her subject matter taken from her outdoor adventures.
“My work is classically driven with a contemporary sense of composition and color. I work from nature, compositional sketches, studies, and my own color photographs taken while hiking and kayaking. Although realistic in approach, as I paint, transformations take place and the subject takes on a life of its own. The background veers toward abstraction, while the focus takes on a life of its own.”
“Adding to my long preferred medium of oils, I have been painting with watercolors for about seven years. As with oils, I gravitate towards larger than life, even monumental paintings, which I can get into literally and figuratively. I enjoy the transparency, immediacy and risk of watercolors. The singing color and the luminous use of the white paper, transforms a momentary, ordinary scene into an event. Watercolors have infused me with a new found energy and enthusiasm. The act of painting, the visual experience of directing the brush and watching the fluidity of the pigment allows me to enjoy the pleasure of creating. Painting gives me a sense of joy, fun and even suspense.”
Stark’s work is collected both privately and corporately and has been shown in museums and galleries in the Southeast.
Website
http://www.kathystark.com
