artist statement

My paintings speak to me, but only if I listen deeply.

It’s all about the process, the unconscious experience of letting go, being flexible and knowing there are no mistakes.

My creative approach relies mainly on my intuitive sense and remaining unattached to the outcome. The unpredictable happenings in the materials allow the painting to emerge as it begins to reveal itself.

Color is the language I use to connect to others. Color can influence us in both subtle and obvious ways, transferring pure emotion directly onto the canvas.

Texture adds depth to my work, an interior depth, like finding a pearl at the bottom of a steep canyon. I continue to look beyond the surface – that’s where the real pearls are hidden.

Painting, for me, is an exploration and discovery process. It is a journey without a map, relying on my intuition and allowing the process to guide my decisions with no attachment to the outcome.

I begin each painting by building the foundation with texture. While the texture is in the drying process, I often embed shapes, such as circles, and other marks, into the surface. As a universal symbol, the circle represents nature’s cycles, no beginning-no end, unity, the limitless and the boundless.

The square is prominent in my work and represents perfect balance, stability, the four seasons, the four directions, the four noble truths and the four corners and points to universal truths passed down through the ages.

At this point I am in the “non -judgmental observation” phase. It’s like taking myself out and letting the mysteries in.

Then, once I apply the first layer of paint, “something” takes over and the process can’t be stopped. The color layering continues with repeated building up and rubbing off, as one color overlaps another, creating a completely new color and another direction.

On a deeper level, I want my paintings to introduce others to the energy or spirit beyond the surface world we live in, and to know that if we can trust the process and be guided by our intuition, we can live a life full of joyful discovery.

about the artist

Katherine Greene has been a dedicated painter for over 20 years and has been a professional artist since 2000. She has participated in many successful group and solo exhibits. Her work is included in the corporate collection at The Lodge at Sonoma and HDR Engineering in Walnut Creek and in numerous private collections in the United States and Europe.

With studies in graphic design, drawing and art history, Katherine received a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University at Humboldt. Born in San Francisco and having lived in the Bay Area most of her life, she now lives and works in the town of Glen Ellen, just north of Sonoma, in Northern California.

Her work is regularly exhibited at The Arts Guild of Sonoma, 140 East Napa Street, Sonoma, California.