Exhibition and collection curators Corey Woodall (left) and Kelly Kirkpatrick (right) talk about Capturing The Light. (Photo courtesy of Jasz Garrett/KINY)
JUNO, Alaska (KINY) – Kelly Kirkpatrick’s “Capturing The Light” art exhibition opened on the first Friday of November.
Kirkpatrick is a featured solo artist from November 4th to November 26th.
The exhibit can be viewed any time the Juneau Douglas City Museum is open. Tuesday to Saturday, 10-4.
On Saturday afternoon, exhibition and collection curators Corey Woodall and Kirkpatrick hosted an artist Q&A at the museum.
Kirkpatrick talked about her art.
“For me, living in Southeast Alaska, we have pretty dynamic weather and lighting. It presents a different light.And it is temporary in itself.A momentary sunset, a momentary little patch of blue sky.So to capture the light is to capture the moment that captures our attention, We would love to see more of it.”
Kirkpatrick was asked if he would paint abstract paintings based on emotion or paint realism.
“When I think about what stands out for me in that scene, it’s another part of the voice. What do I want to convey to people? I think you can further define it by how you lay down the paint and the colors you use.”
Kirkpatrick said he wanted to continue his direction towards more abstract painting.
“Go further into that abstraction. And you know, I was talking about how my work went from literal to abstract. I want to go all the way to the end.” I don’t think I’m the person who thinks it’s an abstraction but there are a lot of places in between.And for me, where is my voice? is to find out where
Above: A photo of Path (bottom) and an abstracted painting of Path titled “Path 2” (top) after the lengthy process of deconstructing the photo. Bottom: The process of abstracting a photograph.
Kirkpatrick talked about her other painting methods.
“I liked the lightness and transparency of watercolors, but there were things I wanted to do with watercolors, but they were transparent, so I couldn’t do them with watercolors. Now, in some of the paintings, there’s a bright red underpainting, but in the final painting, you only get a glimpse of it. It’s filling, but it doesn’t overwhelm the picture. ”
Kirkpatrick uses watercolors, acrylics and oils.
Kirkpatrick said that priming and layering colors is a self-taught technique.
Above: Kirkpatrick’s oil painting ‘Ripple’ started as a bright red canvas to capture the soft red highlights in her final work. Below: Kirkpatrick’s oil painting entitled ‘Admiralty’.
Kirkpatrick talked about infusing her paintings with energy, such as “Admiralty.”
“I call it Admiralty because I see the coast of Admiralty. But that particular picture, which I see everywhere, is that low light. A path across the landscape It’s so lively Probably more lively than summer because I’m fighting the darkness I had a lot of energy Put it down with a palette knife and I can do it a few times Swipe to capture what you think is the energy of that light or the reflection on the surface of the water.”
Kirkpatrick has painted elsewhere, but she said her paintings in Southeast Alaska are the most influential.
“I grew up in Southern California, where the light is pretty consistent. The weather doesn’t change much. Blue skies. There’s a little smog and haze in the air. And we don’t have that here Two weeks of blue skies, but I don’t think there’s anything like that here For me it’s a sharp light Bright, clear, crisp light It’s a very special day “Obviously, it’s likely to be cloudy, the sun breaking through the clouds, the gloomy days. Yes, I think we’re unique in Southeast Alaska.”
Find Kirkpatrick’s art online at kerrykirkpatrickart.com or Instagram @kerrykirkpatrickart.com.
Bottom: Kirkpatrick’s Point Louisa, acrylic on canvas.
