On view in the South Gallery, August 12 to October 25, is an exhibit by artist Niki Ketchman: RESINATIONS.
Ketchman will also take part in an artist conversation on August 29 from 6-8 pm with fellow exhibitor Marc Zaref (Marc's work is on view in Jesup Gallery) and Miggs Burroughs.
About RESINATIONS:
"I start each piece with a 12" x 12" stretched canvas. Then I either paint on the surface of the canvas or adhere a digital print of one of my photos that has often been manipulated in Photoshop. I photograph anything that happens to catch my eye, such as a reflection in a window, tar spread on the road, or light on the water at the beach. As you can see, they are things one might see while going through a normal day.
"Once I have the initial image, I spread out many of my materials on a worktable in my studio: fabrics, beads, string, wire, metal ornaments, lace, etc. This is my palette. I work intuitively trying out different additions to my original image. Sometimes I cut the canvas leaving an opening through which one can see. Then whatever I add is attached behind the opening. This process is, in part, an investigation of actual depth verses perceived depth.
"Once I am satisfied, I pour resin over the whole piece. The resin takes 24 hours to cure. The resin coating makes the whole piece feel more like an object than a painting or collage. With its shiny and indestructible surface, it is now a Resination."
About the Artist:
Ketchman has been a working artist for more than 40 years, creating paintings, digital photographs, drawings, collages, resin-coated pieces, and sculptures. In recent years her primary work has been sculpture although she has continued to make 2D work, which often serves as a thinking process for her.
Over the years Ketchman has exhibited extensively, including one-person museum exhibitions at the Katonah Museum, the New Britain Museum of American Art, and the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park. Her work has been included in group shows at the Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, The Bruce Museum, Grounds for Sculpture, The Hammond Museum, The Fairfield University Art Museum, and the Neuberger Museum of Art.
In addition, Ketchman has exhibited at the Kouros Gallery in New York City, the Cortland Jessup Gallery in Provincetown, the Mona Berman Gallery in New Haven and the Gallery New World in Dusseldorf, Germany. Reviews of her work have appeared in The New York Times, Art in America, Sculpture Magazine, and The Boston Globe, among others.
Ketchman's work can be found in the permanent collections of the New Britain Museum of American Art, Picker Art Gallery (Colgate University), Grounds for Sculpture, DeCordova Museum, The National Museum of Women in the Arts, Housatonic Museum of Art, CUNY at Staten Island, Westport School System, and the Westport Historical Society, plus several corporate and private collections.
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