Robin Kerr
Portland, Oregon
I'm a New Zealand-American self-taught, full-time artist living in Portland Oregon. My work is colorful, textured, layered and a bit quirky.
MessageI am a female New Zealander-American self-taught artist living in Portland Oregon. Until 2021, my professional art work was predominantly commissioned illustration work for children's books and healthcare public awareness campaigns, with an occasional private commission for a fine arts piece. At the beginning of 2021 I shifted my focus to my mixed-media fine art. Since 2021 my work has been shown in 19 group (predominantly juried) shows in Oregon and Washington, and 6 solo/feature shows in Oregon.
I am represented by Salem On The Edge Fine Art Gallery, in Salem Oregon.
My preferred materials are acrylic paint, wax pastel, ink and often textile collage, on panel. Abstract, or abstracted objects are my favorite style. Color, shapes, texture and movement drive my process. Paint and ink is usually poured straight from the bottle or applied with rags. Many layers ensue and then I spend lots of time scraping and wiping things off again with sharp objects to get to what’s underneath. Top layer marks and elements are often created using very fine ink pens or wax pastels. Tape and vinyl is used for clean edged elements.
There is often a quirky whimsical element to my work. It's easy to imagine a story or conversation happening among the work's characters – but always just on the edge of your vision.
Statement
The inspiration for my art is everyday experience including the fact that I am an accidental immigrant, originally from New Zealand, now a long term Portland, Oregon resident.
Being an immigrant (voluntary or otherwise) puts you in a permanent observational limbo because you always feel slightly unsure of things. I think my art reflects that. There is always some sort of mash up; large bold shapes and tiny scribbly lines, blocks of dominant color and specks of contrast, clean edges and smudged overlays. It’s as though I am positive some of the time but at other times I am just guessing.
Certainly making art helps me process this state. I am drawn to working with objects like abstracted vessels and flowers and rugs. Perhaps this is to create a common language; no matter where or when you grew up, you will recognize these elements. They are timeless and universal.
It has been pointed out that my work frequently suggests another world or on-going narrative. It's easy to imagine the elements in the work interacting with each other – having conversations, joking around, even wandering off, when you aren't watching. That might be because when you are an immigrant – you are always wondering if there is a sub-text to what you are seeing. In any event, I hope my work makes people smile, think, look again, and begin their own stories about what they see.
All work © Robin Kerr
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