Meet Kait Matthews

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kait Matthews.

Kait is a First Nations Canadian, of Ojibway and Potawatomi heritage originally from Toronto, Canada. She has lived stateside for the past 20 years and currently lives in North San Diego county. After hanging up her acting shoes a few years ago, she decided to return to school to study fine art.

Kait’s formal art training include The Art Center in Pasadena and The Laguna College of Art and Design, in Laguna Beach, California, where she graduated summa cum laude in 2009 with a degree in Fine Art.

Please tell us about your art.
I enjoy exploring the universal emotions and feelings that are innate in all of us. We connect when we can look into the eyes of others and see a little bit of ourselves reflecting back. I am inspired by the philosophy of Pablo Picasso who once said, “The artist is a receptacle for emotions that come from all over the place; from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from a spider’s web.” When someone asks, how long did it take you to create that painting? “The sum of a life’s worth of experiences” is really the true answer. Malcolm T. Liepke, a contemporary artist, believes “painting is useless without humanity.” It is only through the familiar, through shared empathy, with all life, that we can connect and realize our commonalities in this vast and diverse world. As I learn more about my own indigenous culture and as an artist of aboriginal native decent growing up in a white world, I wish to further explore emotion on canvas from this unique point of view.

We often hear from artists that being an artist can be lonely. Any advice for those looking to connect with other artists?
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have an artist’s hub in every community, where we could meet and support each other? AA for creatives – Artists, Anonymous anyone? But seriously, and in the meantime, create a group of like-minded artists. Meet regularly. Paint together. Take classes. Follow other artists on social media. Read about other artists, past and present. Keep learning. Keep growing. Stay curious.

How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
I’m currently exploring a variety of mediums, from oil painting, to mixed media to digital art. My goal is to create a body of work that will embrace and touch the gentler side of the human spirit. Please follow me on Instagram @kaitmatthewsart for works in progress, future publications and shows. 

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kaitmatthews.com/
• Email: kait@kaitmatthews.com
• Instagram: @kaitmatthewsart
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kaitmatthewsart/?ref=bookmarks

Image Credit:
All art work created by Kait Matthews

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