The primary reason that I look forward with great anticipation to this Friday’s LexArts Hop is because Kathleen O’Brien has a new solo exhibition. The opening reception for Realms of Wonder at the M.S.Rezny Studio & Gallery is from 5 to 8 pm, and it is certain to be one of the highlights of the evening. It was no surprise when a local Marketing Maven recently exposed herself as a Kathleen O’Brien “groupie,” and I suspect that there are far more than two of us. It’s not at all baffling to find oneself totally captivated by her visionary art.
Kathleen’s artwork clearly grows out of how she thoughtfully observes and attunes with the world of nature. It also literally contains and preserves natural ingredients. But in contrast to collage that maintains its focus on formal or intellectual juxtapositions, Kathleen’s art always nudges one toward a deeper sense of wholeness and the inner complexity of our balanced existence as both organic and spiritual beings. Without question, she has made a personal commitment to creating art as a mystical practice, and, on a communal level, to providing nature-inspired beauty as a source of healing in a fractured world. With the strong presence of these intangible dimensions, Kathleen’s art is always esoteric, and yet she manages to make the work accessible to all with her choice of subject matter and allegiance to traditional drawing. At the same time, she can delight the eye of a fellow artist with her methodology, aesthetic choices, and pictorial skill. I’m not ashamed to admit that much of Kathleen’s symbolic virtuosity is beyond my ken, but I appreciate that it’s all in play at the intuitive level. Being near the prolific output of her creative life is simply uplifting, and that’s because all the facets of her art —whether conscious or subliminal— unify as a total perception to nourish the mind, heart, and soul.
Here is a video of Kathleen in the studio discussing her art.
Find out more about the artist at her website or blog.
3 Worlds (detail, This World)
mixed-media collage, © Kathleen O’Brien
22 x 15 inches
the sense of being recognized for my deep truth brings tears of joy to my eyes. I wish I could express with words like you have here, what I always express in my art and heart.