Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathleen Taylor.
Kathleen, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
My first love was a new box of crayons and a clean sheet of drawing paper. I started drawing as a preschooler and haven’t stopped. Making art, when the process is flowing, can be a magical experience. My art career began in corporate design as an illustrator/designer for children’s wear and toy manufacturers. I also worked in publishing as a writer/editor/photo stylist. In 1992 I created my own design and art studio. As a devoted collector of vintage furniture, I began by painting one-of-a-kind pieces and selling them to retailers and decorators.
The furniture business evolved into Kathleen Taylor Studio, which marketed and sold my images as framed prints and note cards. The art has been licensed over the years into many different gift products. Currently I am a full-time painter and collage/mixed media artist. My images are sold thru American galleries, juried art shows and on the internet.
I’ve been fortunate to have my work gain some national exposure. The collage work was featured at the Art Institute of Atlanta at a show in 2011. Four of my paintings are in “Parental Guidance”, a Billy Crystal/Bette Midler movie. I illustrated a cookbook “Stir My Soul” for Andrews MacMeel Publishing in 2014. My subject matter is inspired by home, family, friends and pets. My large and amazing family keeps me anchored and inspired. I’m grateful to be able to work at something I love.
We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
I consider myself a storyteller who translates my memories and observations into 2D paintings and collages. My images are inspired by my affection for the ordinary moments in everyday life and celebrating my personal heroes. I combine acrylic paints, colored pencils, oil pastels, and vintage papers to tell those stories. Recently I have been exploring the addition of hand carved lino block stamps and using stitching on the papers and canvases. Mark making and incised lines are appearing on the surfaces.
I collect vintage papers and documents and recycle them into portraits or use them as drawing surfaces. In 2016 I created The Envelope Project. I draw new art on vintage envelopes. This preserves the history of the envelope and gives it a new life as a canvas. I have sold hundreds of these here and abroad. It’s satisfying that people appreciate the recycling nature of the project and want to buy the work.
What do you know now that you wished you had learned earlier?
I have been lucky enough to have a circle of female artists that share and support their trials and triumphs. If you can find or create a group of like-minded creatives it will give you great support and a connection to the local art world. Every artist’s journey is different so there’s no “road map” to success.
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
My work is sold through galleries, art shows and social media. I am shown at Wild Oats and Billy Goats in Decatur and Sis & Moon’s in Alpharetta. I sell directly via my Facebook page – Kathleen Taylor Studio and my website which is www.kathleentaylorstudio.com. There’s a gallery for The Envelope Project on my website.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.kathleentaylorstudio.com
- Phone: 4046417374
- Email: paintedpieces@bellsouth.net
- Instagram: paintedpieces
- Facebook: Kathleen Taylor Studio
Image Credit:
Kathleen Taylor
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