Katie Swatland, 1981 | Figurative painter

The paintings of Katie Swatland are an intrinsic dance between reality and rêverie.

She approaches the canvas through means of discovery, imparting a sense of playful curiosity throughout a broad range of subject matter.

Gestural brushwork combine with areas of transparency, offset by passages of thick impasto paint, all intermingle in a symphony of lost and found edges.

- "Painting has been a part of my life since I was very young.

There were always brushes and paint in the house growing up; and my mother was always at work painting.

My appreciation and love for art came from her.

After graduating magna cum laude from Syracuse University with a degree in mechanical engineering, I turned down two offers for a full scholarship to graduate school to pursue my passion.. painting.

Since graduating, I have adopted and applied my patience and study techniques to painting.

My determination and dedication to art has opened up great opportunities.

I currently live in Newburyport, Massachusetts and I am a member of the Putney Painters, an ongoing invitational painting group put together by Richard Schmid and Nancy Guzik at the Village Arts of Putney.

I paint mostly from life, both en plein air and in the studio.

I strive to capture the essence of the scene, to break it down and simplify it to the bear essentials that grasp the true heart of the human experience".

Katie’s paintings are in private and public collections around the world, including the permanent museum collection of the Mark Arts Foundation.

Her work has been described as ‘an intrinsic dance between reality and rêverie, approaching the canvas through means of discovery and imparting a sense of playful curiosity throughout a broad range of subject matter... gestural brushwork combine with areas of transparency, offset by passages of thick impasto paint, all intermingle in a symphony of lost and found edges.

Katie Swatland è una pittrice, autrice ed insegnante d'arte statunitense, celebre per il suo stile espressivo che fonde realismo e suggestioni liriche.

La sua produzione si distingue per un approccio unico che unisce una solida formazione scientifica ad una profonda sensibilità artistica, dando vita a composizioni caratterizzate da un uso magistrale della luce e del colore.

Ha alle spalle un percorso di apprendistato durato 15 anni sotto la guida di diversi maestri contemporanei, sviluppando una tecnica pittorica radicata nella tradizione dei grandi nomi del passato come John Singer Sargent, Anders Zorn ed Antonio Mancini.