Katharine Kennie is an oil painter living and working in Grey County, ON. Born and raised in the Kitchener-Waterloo area, she moved to the picturesque rural area of West Grey in 2014. Katharine’s paintings express the wonder and mystery she feels when immersed in the wetlands and forests of her home and surrounding locations.
Painterly brushstrokes, textured surfaces, and soothing colour palettes are intrinsic to her current body of work. Katharine uses her first hand experience of place to create meaning, while sketching on site and taking her own photographic references. In the studio, these memories and notations become paintings with complex surfaces that echo the topography of the landscapes being portrayed. Each piece is built slowly in layers and veils of colour that come together in the final image. When seen closely, these textures reveal the history of the painting process and remind us of oxidised metals as well as other weather-worn and rustic materials that Katharine finds inspiration in.
The intention of recent work is to create paintings that are calming, quiet, and soothing, and remind us for a moment of the importance of slowly seeing and experiencing our environment. Katharine’s primary concern before starting a piece is to connect deeply with the natural landscape around her in order to convey the emotional power and atmosphere of each place.
