Kate Ryan, b. London, England, lives in Orange County, California. She draws inspiration from the natural world, music, writing, and meditation to create color-driven abstract paintings rich with a personal lexicon of marks and shapes. Her paintings play with the tension between abstraction and figuration; exploring themes of place, transcendence, ambiguity, vulnerability, and growth, reflecting her personal experience of life.
Free-form drawing with loose and gestural brushstrokes, imbues the paintings with a dynamic energy that captures a sense of movement and vitality. Surfaces are sometimes sanded or scraped to excavate and reveal glimpses of former layers underneath, spray paint denotes spontaneity and fleetingness.
Kate has exhibited her works nationally and her pieces are in private collections worldwide. She studied at The University of the Arts in London and gained a Bachelors Degree at Middlesex University. Kate is an arts advocate in her local community and Board Member of She/They Gallery in Santa Ana, and a resident of Costa Mesa, Orange County, CA.
Artist’s Statement
I embrace improvisation and the absence of a defined image or map, to begin with. I allow the artwork to evolve through spontaneous decisions and reactions between colors and marks, and shapes. As I add and subtract layers, the painting evolves in response to the moment, much like an irresistible puzzle that takes shape as I work.
Through this cycle of building and collapse, an image eventually emerges and takes command of the painting. The painting that emerges is a pictorial account of a voyage, which, in my opinion, acts as a gateway to a realm of introspection, meditation, and insight for those who observe it. I believe that art provides an opportunity to pause and reflect on something beyond the mundane, delving deeper to establish meaningful relationships.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2023
Transforming Loss - Co-Curation with Gabrielle b. Mclean. - She/ They Gallery, Santa Ana, Nov
The Other Art Fair, Los Angeles, CA Sept
Acts of Liberation - Curated Exhibition during Fall edition of The Other Art Fair, Los Angeles, CA, Sept
Solo: Moments Of Being - She/ They Gallery, Santa Ana - April
Solo: New Work - Holiday, Costa Mesa - March-May
Pilgrimage - She/ They Gallery, Santa Ana, CA - Feb/ Mar
Hear Their Story - She/ They Gallery, Santa Ana, CA - Jan
Group Show- Laguna Art Gallery, Mission Viejo, CA - Jan
2022
Newport Beach Art In The Park - Newport Beach, CA
Makers Markets - The LAB Anti Mal, CA
Art Venture - Samueli Theatre, Segerstrom Center for the Arts, Costa Mesa, CA
2021
The Artist’s Studio - Balboa Inn Resort, Newport Beach, CA
Surfing the Pacific Rim - Huntington Beach Art Center, CA
2019
Landscape Art - Huntington Beach Art Center, CA
2018
Centered on the Center - Huntington Beach Art Center, CA
2017
Centered on the Center - Huntington Beach Art Center, CA
Love Today - Curation, Location 1980 Gallery, Costa Mesa, CA
Open Studios - Location 1980 Gallery and Artist Studios, Costa Mesa, CA
2016
Art Start - Orange County Center for Contemporary Art, Santa Ana, CA
Tree of Life - Location 1980 Gallery, Costa Mesa, CA
Open Studios - Location 1980 Gallery and Artist Studios, Costa Mesa, CA