Katie
Hoffmeier
Featured in: "Mapping Scars: Traces of Healing"
Statement
Contact me!
Instagram: @okkatiedotcom
website: okkatie.com
I am a self-taught painter with an atypical approach. A little too analytical to fit in the creative camp and too creative to fit in with the analyst crew. I fit somewhere in between. I think of creating as more than just putting brush to canvas. Discovery and exploration are as much a part of my work as paint and brush. The result is a process that builds on experience, both successes and failures.
We moved all over the place when I was a kid. As a result of my constantly changing environment, I learned some truly invaluable skills: How to scavenge for what I needed, substitute for what I lacked, how to quickly build lasting connections with people and places, and so much more.
The mentality of “MAKE SOMETHING WORK” heavily informs my work. I do not limit myself to traditional methods, tools, or materials as long as the archival quality of the work is not compromised. The freedom to stray from the norm and the expectations of yourself and others is exhilarating and motivating. You never know what discovery is right around the corner.
I seek out stark contrast and delicate blends within the forms and the work as a whole. It is incredible to me how different a color can look depending on what it is placed next to. Finding the right placement for your elements can take you from bland to blam, just like that!
The placement of the elements in my works is a lot of trail and error. I do not balance my work based on a formula or some random computer-generated pattern. Sometimes it is as simple as me closing my eyes and “free-drawing shapes” other times it is pen and paper, I’ve even recently used Microsoft Paint to get the layout right. I’ll use whatever it takes to achieve the balance only my subconscious could describe. I don’t know what “it’ is, but I definitely know what “it” isn’t.