Kate Durkin

Kate Durkin grew up in Washington, DC. She attended the New School University in Manhattan, after which she moved to Florence, Italy for two years to complete a post-baccalaureate program, and has finally settled (for now) in San Francisco, where she lives and works.

Kate draws inspiration from a mixed bag of graffiti, illustration, graphic design, nature and craft. Years of experimentation led her to discover that she could successfully manipulate a piece's composition while integrating a wide range of subjects by cutting up the canvas, creating many little pieces, and stitching them back together. This discovery liberated her from traditional notions of the painting process. It allowed her to be more deliberate with her composition choices, while forcing her to relinquish control. Because the stitching is her last step, she never really knows what a piece is going to look like until it is almost finished.

The result is a composite of illustrated trees, animals and figures, text, cut-out shapes, and embroidery. All of these elements fit together as each part to create the whole. There is a level of sweetness to draw the viewer in, but upon closer inspection the images can be unsettling, almost eerie. A sense of balance and conflict, along with the stitching, holds them together.