Artist Statement

I am intrigued by human nature. Body language. Attitude. The nuance of gesture.

I work from life as much as possible, or from photo references which I "stage" using models and friends. . . or from candid photo references which I shoot, as opportunity permits.

The paintings are all oils. Some are created on birch veneer panels, which I prepare myself. Others are "oil drawings" on a support called multimedia board.

I try to paint swiftly, so that my mind doesn't interfere with my intuition. I feel this also preserves the movement and freshness of each stroke, giving each composition a feeling of immediacy. . . and leaving each piece with a sense of both painter and subject.

Artist Biography

Karen Kinser was born in Long Beach, NY, 1951. Raised and educated in South Florida, she received a Bachelor of Design at the University of Florida Gainesville, 1974. Ms. Kinser worked in the field of graphic design before returning to her first love. . . the fine arts of painting and drawing.

Karen Kinser now resides in rural Chesapeake, Virginia with her husband, their two children and two Jack Russell Terriers. She maintains a studio in her home, and one at d'Art Center in nearby Norfolk. The d'Art studio serves as a working studio as well as a gallery space which is open to the public.

Ms. Kinser exhibits her work regionally and nationally, in gallery and museum exhibitions, as well as juried exhibitions. Her expressive figurative work has won prestigious awards in both venues.