Kit’s delightful oil paintings are influenced by Jazz and her love of color. Bright color. Bold color. Color allows her to play with light, while the sweet sound of Jazz inspires her to push the limit adding dimension and animation to her Citrus Jazz and Glass Harmonies paintings.
Most recently Kit has been busy painting desserts, including a tantalizing series of ice cream sundaes with names like Harlequin Romance and Sundae Baroque.
And, her four-part Goodbye Kiss is a wonderfully playful romantic study of our love affair with this decadent little treat.
With a Bachelor of Fine Arts, Kit has won awards from Maryland to California including the National Orange Show, is in collections across the country, and is licensed by Grand Image in Seattle. Kit is a member of the Tahoe Art League and an avid outdoor enthusiast.
Kit counts herself fortunate to have received praise for her work from art critic, essayist and Pulitzer Prize winner John Updike, jazz composer, pianist and creator of NPR’s “Piano Jazz”, Marian McPartland and best-selling author of “Art & Physics”, Leonard Shlain.
So, how did she get her taste for painting the obvious, sprinkling it with Americana culture, right here in Tahoe?
“My work is influenced by Jazz. Miles, Coltrane, Dizzy, Evans, Brubeck and, as Count Basie used to refer to him, “Oscar Pete.” I love listening to the old guys tell their stories and talk about their struggles. Listening to Jazz Profiles on NPR, it’s like hanging out with them late at night. The music is alive, always changing. They push space. They push themselves to take risks. This is what I try to do with my paintings.
What else inspires me as an artist? Color, of course. I get endorphins from it! I love creating radiant light with color. And, space. I like to push the envelope by shoving flattened abstracted space up against “realistic,” deep space. It’s like riding the edge on a sailboard or skiing downhill fast.
The thrill is enjoying the ride and not knowing if you’re going to crash. Some of the artists I admire and continue to learn from are the innovative Japanese Ukiyo-e printmakers like Hokusai, Hiroshige, Utagawa, and painters of Persian miniatures. Also, painters such as Diebenkorn, Hockney, Bonnard, Giacometti, Jacob Lawrence, and Matisse, always Matisse.
I’m interested in the cross-pollination of the arts. There are great parallels between what makes a good story and a good painting, between what makes spatially dynamic dance, music or art: strong characters, tension, advancing the plot, surprise, tempo, dynamic range, the pieces distilled to their essence.
And, of course, one can’t do better than to spend time in nature. My motto: when in doubt, go out.”
All of Kit’s paintings are oil on either wood or canvas. See more of Kit’s paintings at www.KNightFineArt.com.
Kit can be reached at her studio in South Lake Tahoe by calling 530-544-8949 or via email at embracebeauty@knightfineart.com