Kathryn Abernathy
While searching for a way to regain my health after four years of near-constant migraine pain, I discovered that the more time I spent with art, the fewer headaches I had. Art became the palliative that years of neurological appointments and multiple medications had been unable to produce. Realizing the positive changes that art was having on my life and the personal fulfillment it brought, I decided to become a full time working artist. That decision was the starting point to many synchronicities that occurred. Doors opened that I didn't know existed. Opportunities appeared seemingly out of nowhere. All this led me to take Joseph Campbell's advice and "follow my bliss" into the art world. It's the hardest, most demanding and most amazing career I know of. It seems impossible, but I am truly thankful to have gone through those years of pain and disability; without them I would not have found this overwhelming affinity for living a creative life.
I love color and the wonderful array of emotions that just a few pigments can bring to a painting. The colors, textures, and techniques that I use in my paintings most often come about as my curiosity runs loose while I experiment in my studio. Seldom is a painting completed without several “what ifs” and “why nots”. Many of my favorite results include the “happy accidents” that unexpectedly occur. I would like the viewer to have the same sense of wonderment as they contemplate my finished piece.
Art has taught me to trust the process; to be willing to sacrifice a "pretty good" piece in order to push through to a "best" piece of work; to stay positive and know that I will continue on a piece until the work is as good as I can make it. The best pieces are almost always the ones that required the most work and created the most frustration.
With a degree in Mathematics and a previous career in computer programming, becoming an artist was not something that could have been predicted early in my life. As time goes by, I see that working abstractly, systematic thought, and continually searching for the simplest form are all fundamental elements in both Mathematics and Art. But Art can truly steal your heart.... and renew your soul.
I was so excited about the workshop – and the donut – that I misspelled my own name!
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