Spread the Word, first collection with The Blank Quilting Co. began as nine original collages in a series combining complex geometry with translucent layers and overlapping lines and patterns.  In these pieces as in much of my work, I use typography liberally as a design element. The collages in this collection came directly from the sketchbooks in my Collage Sketchbook Library, which, at last count, included 46 full sketchbooks and over 1500 collages. This is what happens when you make daily collage exercises part of your art practice.

And people wonder if being an artist is a profession or an obsession.

How would I describe myself as an artist? Curious and easily-inspired. I see things that delight me everywhere.  On a walk I marvel over the rust patterns on a fire hydrant then I get home and open a bill and am transfixed by the squiggle pattern inside the security envelope. I collect images the way a philatelist collects stamps—instead of adding them to an album they go straight into my brain. The block prints I loved as a 10-year-old on a visit to Japan, Paul Klee’s ethereal boxes, Marimekko circles, and Hanna Andersson stripes do not leave me. For days and sometimes years they lie in wait, quietly commingling until at some point they burst from my fingers to become something altogether new. There is an endless archive of beauty and wonder all around us waiting to be seen.  Below are a few of the images that have influenced me and collages they have inspired.

As an artist I wouldn’t say I have one single style.

I make many kinds of art in a variety of media: paintings, collages, drawings, mosaics, minimalist abstracts, symmetrical patterns. I also make—and this may surprise you—many, many versions of cats.

As you can see, my cats are quirky and unrealistic—and not so different from my other work as you might think. Look carefully, and you will see familiar design elements at play: My use of repeated images and wild colors and my affinity for geometry (in the triangle ears, triangle mouths, triangle noses, etc). And then there are the patterns, which are everywhere. Inside the cats, outside the cats, in the sky or grass or garden. Did I say I love patterns? I also love how agreeable they are about becoming coordinates and blenders, two fabric collection essentials. The patterns below come directly out of my paintings.

My advice to a fledgling maker:

First, learn your craft—which means lots of practice!  Work hard, but take time to experiment. Put your work on paper. Your best art will not happen in your head. Enjoy this learning stage. Soon it will be time to take the big leap and show your art to the world. If you are like me you will be sharpening your skills and working your fingers throughout your career—but please remember to stop and take a good look around. Inspiration is everywhere. Your job is to notice it.

As a practicing artist, this is what I do day after day…and, amazingly, it never gets old.

Learn more about Kathryn here.