"Painting is so many things to me. It's a way to express myself and a form of meditation. It's a tool for tapping into my love of color. Painting allows me to travel to new places and inspires me to dream. It enables me to connect to my most authentic self, in a busy and distracting world. My art is something I can share with my family and community. I love the process of layering paint and intuitively mixing colors. I choose images and ideas that resonate with who I am. I compose an abstract and colorful under-painting and layer upon that to bring life and form to the canvas. My goal is never realism but rather a playful and abstract interpretation. My preferred medium is acrylic and I like the freedom of a palette knife. In some pieces a mat finish house paint is introduced to get a certain contemporary feel and texture. I know that my paintings are complete when I sense a balance of subject, energy and color. I like to take an idea or image I find beautiful and then create a dynamic and vibrant interpretation. I want to give the viewer of my paintings a sense of exploration and possibilities when they look at my work. I see each piece of lelamooi jewelry as a piece of wearable fine art. I approach designing these treasures in the same way as I would a painting.
- Kristen Hawkes
- Kristen Hawkes