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1995 French artist statement
Title1995 French artist statement
Artwork Description1 p. Kay French's 1995 artist statement.
NotesOregon Health & Science University (OHSU) was formed in 1974 as the University of Oregon Health Sciences Center. It was renamed Oregon Health Sciences University in 1981 and took its current name in 2001, as part of a merger with the Oregon Graduate Institute of Science and Technology in Beaverton.
LC SubjectArt -- Documentation
Art -- Exhibitions
Biography
CreatorFrench, Kay
About the ArtistKay French grew up in the Midwest which perhaps explains her fascination with storms and flat land. She moved to Portland in 1977. Kay has a degree in art history from Kent State University and a degree in painting from the Pacific Northwest College of Art. Her work has been exhibited in various shows in regional galleries and museums. She was awarded a WESTAF/NEA Regional Fellowship for Visual Artists in Painting in 1994. She has also been represented by the Pulliam Deffenbaugh Gallery in Portland, OR. (Oregon Arts Commission)
Regional Arts CouncilThe Oregon Arts Commission has ten Regional Arts Councils that provide delivery of art services and information. The Council for this location is: Regional Arts & Culture
Award Date(s)1995
Source Formatdocument
bw
Artwork SitePortland Oregon. Oregon Health and Science University. Main Campus
Site Address3181 S.W. Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland Oregon
CountyMultnomah County, Oregon
Relates to ArtworkSea Change
LanguageEnglish;
Full TextArtist Statement My current paintings continue to focus on landscape and weather, clouds, dust, smoke, wind and clearings in enormous expanses of sky over flat land and water. I am fascinated with weather that is driven by nature and, at times, provoked by human actions and this imagery is full of conflicting emotions and meaning. As I paint, I search for an image that is basic as well as far-flung and romantic to describe a world of impending dangers and harsh beauty as well as safe havens. I am not interested in describing a specific place or time, but rather in creating a world where fiction can portray truth. I search for the heart of my paintings through forming and reforming images, accepting the accidents of painting that can happen along the way much as weather can change and disrupt the land and sky. I use imagery drawn from art history, the newspaper, weather books, my current surroundings and my memories. Although my subject is enormous, my paintings are quite small because my intention is to concentrate and distill an image to make it more powerful and intense, more intimate and immediate. Walking or driving through a landscape is not the same as containing it within a painted image. When I look up at vast expanses of sky I can see no reason to attempt to compete with its scale, especially since I am not interested in realism. So I paint them small and try to pack the paintings with a feeling of the enormity above me and with something else difficult to put into words. My desire is to create an image that strikes a chord of recognition rooted solidly in the present without forsaking the past. Kay French September 1994
RightsCopyright is retained by the artist or author. All rights reserved.
ContributorsUniversity of Oregon Libraries; Oregon Arts Commission
PublisherUniversity of Oregon Libraries
Digital Collection TitleUniversity of Oregon. Libraries. Oregon Public Percent for Art Digital Collection.
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