ARTIST STATEMENT
Kitty’s work is rooted in her belief that fundamentally all things are connected. Seeking this out both above and below the surface of what she experiences with all senses in the landscape, forms are distilled, overlapped and reconstructed through various means. The results are playful images and sculptures that reference these observations.
All this enquiry is positioned against the backdrop of her ongoing research into the divided human brain, communication, consciousness and plant intelligence. The process of abstraction coupled with her continuing exploration of materials produces patterns, spaces and structures that serve as a springboard for our imaginations.
BIOGRAPHY
Born in London (1984), Kitty grew up in rural Somerset. After completing her Foundation year at Falmouth Art School she gained a 1st class honours degree in Fine Art Painting at Bath School of Art in 2007. She won the Reveal Emerging Artist Award in 2009 and was awarded the SAW Abundance Commission in 2013, which included a two week residency at Stroud Valley Arts and site-specific installation at Cannington Gardens. In 2019 she was selected by Hospital Rooms to make two works for the MBU Exeter visitor flats, and in 2020 she became a co-director of CAMP, a member-led network for the creative and visual arts community in Cornwall and Devon. During lockdown, Kitty launched @artinthewindow, using the old shop window of her home to show other artists work, and she ran a drawing group (online and IRL) @pubsketching, encouraging everyone to discover the benefits of exploring experimental mark-making and drawing to relax, with the simplest of materials.
With her person-centred approach to teaching, Kitty regularly creates workshops for the Youth Programme and adults at St Ives School of Painting; these sessions often lean towards building confidence, slow looking and loosening up, as Kitty shares parts of her own process of abstraction and experiences of the value of play.
Selected as one of three artists to work on researcher and filmmaker Rachael Jones’ project: Moving Landscapes, and the Doorstep Residency in 2021, Kitty has recently exhibited work at Newlyn Art Gallery & The Exchange, Exeter Phoenix 333 Gallery and with ALMA ARTSPACE in Newquay. Her most recent project, ‘Re:Rooted’, a collaboration with Small Acts, featured a 7 metre soft sculpture that joyfully rerouted audiences as it journeyed across Bodmin connecting Flamm Festival sites and favourite trees using maps made by young people who live in the town.
Kitty lives and works in Penryn. Her work is held in private and corporate collections internationally.
CV
To see more, including selected exhibitions, teaching experience and other relevant employment, please download the PDF below…