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Kathryn in front of
Shrine
213 x 213 cm
plaster, gesso, gold & Oils on pane
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When talking about herself and her work Kathryn Dodd is reluctant to call herself a painter although she refers to the finished works as 'paintings' - she says: 'I think of a 'painter' as being involved in the process of expression through the medium of paint, the material is the carner of the process and the very physicality of the interaction with the paint is primary. The use of materials for me is really about expediency; I am looking for the most efficient way to talk about ideas. I think of myself as a hybrid between designer, painter, letterer, writer and even sculptor (in as much as some of my paintings involve the building of surface relief). My work is not really about 'expression', conversely I think of these paintings as acts of containment, they are more about defining edges and boundaries and the holding of ideas and feelings than the expression of them, at the end of the day it's an attempt to bring order to chaos and create a window of space in which to focus on, identify and describe elusive ideas. I think of art as an extension to our ordinary mode of interaction with the world, a bit of end-space, an extra dimension'.
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These paintings are first and foremost about concept and content but they are made with a keen design sensibility and the subtle graphic organisation of compositional elements reveals the artists long-term experience with design and lettering. This is an important factor in the reading of these works, she is offering a familiar language of designed space alongside the use of words and lettering with which to extrapolate and define some of the complex and evasive issues she is addressing.
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Matrix 1
91 x 91cm
Oil on pane
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Two
100 x100cm
Oil and carved plaster on board
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Surface and finishing are paramount, these are beautiful objects skilfully wrought. Lovely surfaces, oil glazes, scratched lettering, sometimes plaster, gesso and gold. They have a seductive glamour, which deceives a little to draw the viewer closer to consider some of the challenging issues embedded within. They are intelligent paintings layered with ideas and' stories about self, science, psychology and spirit. There is a dark undercurrent, which sometimes emerges to envelop the surface, that considers issues of loss, identity and violation but overall these are celebratory paintings about resilience and beauty.
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Night Shift
Diptych @ 60 x 60cm
Oil on board
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Dodd has made her home in rural West Wales coming originally from the London Suburbs although her family roots lie in the North East of Scotland and this cultural composite resonates strongly within her work. The visual impact is controlled and contained but the use of the artist's words, poetry, symbols and iconic forms, which are often incorporated into the whole, give the work an edgy romance. There is a suburban constraint disturbed and infiltrated by the deep stories, songs and languages of old, more enduring cultures and the restless discomfiture of a migrant perennially questing for identity and belonging.
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Skinwalker
Triptych @ 60 x 60cm
Oil on panel
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Recent Exhibitions
Solo Exhibitions:
2004 MOMA Wales, Y Tabemacl, Machynlleth
2005 Queen's Hall Gallery, Narberth, Wales
Group Exhibitions:
2002 'The Written Word' - Portsmouth City Art Gallery & Museum
2003 'Modern Welsh Art' - MOMA Wales, Y Tabemacl, Machynlleth
2003 Newton Barry House Gallery, Co. Wexford, Ireland
2003 Apple Gallery, Godalming, Surrey
2003/4 Crane Gallery, Swansea
2004 'Focal' Ruthin Festival of Contemporary Art, Denbighshire
2004/5 Fountain Fine Art, Llandeilo
2005 Washington Gallery - Cardiff
2005 KooyWood Gallery - Cardiff
Projects:
2004 Illustration and lettering for Royal Mail presentation pack for Welsh stamp series
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Kathryn can be contacted at
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