S&S Fundraiser for The Art of Recovery

After focusing on photography for several months ( no pun intended), it has been great to go back in the studio and paint. These two images have been on quite a journey. They look absolutely nothing like what I started out with. I just gave myself permission to go wherever my instincts wanted to take me.

Risking painting over areas that weren't working, or that just wanted to go in a different direction. The process started as tenuous and ended up with a really satisfying and joyful quality. I felt confidence in my own painting process really grow with these two paintings.

The first painting is inspired by a poem title by Dylan Thomas entitled The Force That Through The Green Fuse Drives The Flower. I like the title more than the poem. What I do like about it is the connection of our lives to the natural rhythms. In these technological times, it's easy to forget that.

The Force That Through The Green Fuse - inspired by the poem by
Dylan Thomas. Painting © Kathryn Zoe Van Aernum
Mixed Media on Plywood

The second painting is called, “Holy Okra.” I got this beautiful purple okra in my CSA basket one week and had to bring it to the studio to paint. I don't like to eat okra at all - and yes, I've tried fried okra. But, I had never seen okra this color and thought it quite stunning. They way they are hovering over they made me think they were angelic. For me this painting represents that something(or someone) we don't like can be viewed as sacred.

Holy Okra © Kathryn Zoe Van Aernum

Mixed Media on Plywood

These two paintings will be up for auction at S&S Art Supply’s Fundraiser for The Art of Recovery - an art program for those suffering from mental illness.

This Saturday, July 21 • 2-6 p.m. There will be many paintings to bid on, food, adult beverages and live music.