KathySULLIVANArt

ABOUT:

I was born in Chicago, Illinois..."way back when." Art was never on my radar. In fact, I was horrible at anything creative and artistic until after college. Prerequisites for an Art Therapy graduate program required me to take a variety of art classes that I had avoided up until that point. Two factors were pivotal in creating my artistic backbone. First, an intensive year of life drawing classes gave me a strong foundation which became the grounding to all my pieces.  Second, working with the mentally ill as an art therapist opened my soul up to the courage it takes to unabashedly expose yourself through artwork.. Success to me was when a patient had a "breakthrough" artistically, which had absolutely nothing to do with skill as much as being open and honest through expression. The courage and trust that my clients expressed visually allowed me to produce free of public criticism. I believe that my uninhibited sense of self is what draws people to my work. While I was getting ready to begin a PhD program, I decided to take an oil painting class. Still grieving from the loss of my beloved horse, I began to paint jockey silks. Public and private recognition followed, establishing my new career as an artist...and I have been painting ever since.

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