Today we’d like to introduce you to Kat Furtado.
Hi Kat, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I love talking about my start as an artist because it’s so unconventional. I’m a health professional (a Speech-Language Pathologist) and I had a fabulous career before I had my kids. I love Speech Therapy and am still licensed and certified so that if I ever want to go back, I can. Still, in the early days of parenting my two kids, I realized I needed an outlet for my creative energy. I needed a space in my life for something meaningful–just for me. As soon as I began painting, I knew I was on the right path. And that’s really how I started creating art.
In about 2018, I began painting regularly and my business opened in 2019. I’ve been a full-time contemporary abstract artist ever since, and I sell my work. I have three major arcs to my business: illustrations on products and merchandise, contemporary fine art which lives in Collectors’ homes all over the world, and work that goes into galleries and exhibits. And I actually have my first solo exhibit in September!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Oh, it has most certainly not been “smooth”. I had such a steep learning curve! I’d never taken formal classes (and I still really haven’t). I’m self-taught, and I’ve taken this as a real learning opportunity. I’ve embraced growth mindset. If I can’t do something, I can’t do it “yet”.
I’ve been known to take weird chances and giant leaps of faith to grow my skills. As an example, at one point, I did 30 portraits in 30 days having never done a portrait previously. And that’s how I learned portraiture. I also taught myself digital art and I learn from everything I can. Any courses I can take online? I take them and then I put the ideas into practice.
The point for me is working through the process and then finding that electric feeling when it all comes together. That’s when it feels bigger to me, and more important because art is human connection. It’s a form of communication, and it links us to one another in a way nothing else can.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Well, I’m a mixed-media artist and I work in contemporary collage and paint. I create artwork for passionate, warm, unique humans who value ethereal, eclectic art and spaces. I create for people who want their homes and offices to feel like extensions of their own person and sense of self–not like anything you’d find anywhere else, but still beautiful and uniquely brilliant.
My artist statement reads, “My life’s work as an artist is discovering where storytelling, visual language, and sense of self intersect … My textured mixed-media reliefs and collages embody organic, oceanic, and botanical shapes reflecting my life in Southern California, as well as the figurative and anatomical structures of human forms. I love the juxtaposition of soft textures and hard lines, transparency versus opacity, and motion in dialogue with stability. Circles are common in my work and represent continuity, change, momentum, and whole-person perspective. Each piece I create is a carefully unfolding narrative carrying the observer, reflecting the resilience and expanse of the human spirit.
The values of wonderment and interconnectedness permeate my life and art. This is why I have adopted the process of composing tactile collage art which lifts from two-dimensional surfaces. I use sculpting media, paper, transparent substrates, handmade monoprints, stitching, and all forms of paint. I live for the possibility of what could be. I approach art with the scientific curiosity of my clinical field: I ask why, and I am empowered by the process of seeking answers. I consider myself a curator of potential, an investigator deep in analysis, and an excavator of what exists, unseen. My process is raw and long and involves rest. Time. Layers are carefully created over years until ready to be composed into intimate collages. I meticulously coax the components together, revealing the stories within.”
I think that best describes my identity as an artist and the way I create.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Ooh, great question. I recently had someone tell me that my work encapsulates so much joy and positive energy that it’s hard to believe I’m a person with depression and anxiety. But I am! That’s as much a part of me as my art. And yes, my work is joyful and vibrant, and expressive. Under all that is me, and my work is as much a reflection of the world I want to see as it is a reflection of what already exists.
I guess I’d really call to attention that depression and anxiety, and mental health in general, doesn’t ever look a specific way. You can never tell just from looking at a person how they’re really feeling. And that’s something I explore in my work. There are things you can’t see on the outside that exist within, and there are always unknowns. These are some of the great wonders of the human spirit, I suppose.
Pricing:
- FREE: For information on upcoming shows, exhibits, and publications, please check my website.
- I have a new release of illustrated products ranging between $15 and $65 premiering this Spring.
- Original art varies widely in price. Most of my work ranges from $65 – $2000 depending on size, scale, shipping, and materials.
- I offer commissions at an hourly rate. Different types of commissions can be found on my website.
Contact Info:
- Email: katfurtadoart@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.katfurtadoart.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katfurtadoart
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katfurtadoart
Image Credits
Kate B. Myers Photography
Kat Furtado
