Hiking the West

I have hiked hundreds of miles to paint the Southwest land around me, capturing images of the brilliance and vivaciousness of the natural world that beg to be painted. I am willing to go to any length to reach the magnificent vistas and the precise vantage point of what I want to depict. It may take some serious, long-distance hiking, up, down and over rocky outcroppings, a plunge down an arroyo or a sprawl in sage bushes to capture exactly what I want, but I am never timid about climbing and trudging and scrambling to reach the sought-after sweep or bird’s-eye view of the colorful and uniquely rugged landscapes.

My paintings express how pattern and repetition entices me. Discovering this in nature is primal to me – finding a glint of logic in complex jumbled terrains and instinctively favoring a semblance of orderliness among the randomness of our landscape. I also look for the splendor and gaiety of life around me through color. I catch the light and design in all its strangeness and beauty.

An exhibition of my paintings – tranquil panoramas and robust pageants – would beckon the viewer to see nature’s resplendent unguarded emotion asserting itself.

About the Artist

Santa Fe artist Kathleen Frank paints the Western landscape in vibrant hues, capturing light and pattern in complex terrains. Career highlights include: numerous museum and gallery exhibitions; High Desert Museum Curator’s Choice Award; Art in Embassies/U.S. State Department selection Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; work in permanent collections; and features in numerous fine art publications.