Karen Rose: CV
I spent my teenage years growing up in Greenport, Long Island where I lived with my sister and father who was an amazing artist. Trying to live off the sales of his paintings was not an easy life, but he was a wealth of knowledge when it came to art and taught me so much through the years. Looking back I now realize how much I learned from those countless lectures and so appreciate what I only tolerated then.
I first attended SUNY Farmingdale in NY with my focus being Advertising Art and Design where I took a well-rounded smattering of art courses. I then transferred to RIT in Rochester, NY and majored in Communication Design, which relied heavily on graphics. This never came naturally to me, nor was my heart in it and I switched my major to Fine Arts, working mainly in watercolor. Looking back, I realize that besides not having ample time to explore painting, I never really challenged myself or stepped out of my comfort zone enough. Nevertheless, it was there that I wrapped up my academic career.
After graduation I did what many art majors do and waitressed for several years. Shortly afterward I married my husband, a commercial fisherman and moved to Cape May NJ. For the next decade or so, my artwork-with the exception of making Ukrainian Eggs- was put on hold, as we went on to raise three daughters (all of whom, I'm proud to say, are very artistic!).
In 1996, I was invited to join the St. Barnabas Art Group under the direction of Father William Shelton and although I'd never even attempted oil painting, I felt honored to join them. They have both since passed away, but when I am frustrated and struggling through a painting I can still hear my father's and Father Shelton's words of advice ringing in my ears, pointing me in the right direction.
STATEMENT:
I am so in awe of nature and all of God's creations and I feel that my paintings are my way of giving back by expressing the gratitude and appreciation I feel. I can only paint what moves me- what I feel a connection to in some way and always try to paint something new that I have never attempted before. I do not shy away from new subject matter- I welcome the challenges. I paint softly which is just how I see things. I believe all that is natural has certain softness to it and only what is man-made is hard-edged. I have a newly found love of landscapes- especially those in the fog or snow. I feel through these there is a certain mood you can capture that you cannot in otherwise ordinarily lit landscapes. There is a feeling of solitude and quiet... a peacefulness, which I suppose can be paralleled to what I appreciate and am forever striving to achieve in my own life.
AWARDS:
I have won many awards throughout the years from the NJ American Artist's Professional League, won Best in Show at the Noye's Museum and placed in shows at Ocean County, Avalon and Millville shows. Private collectors, friends and family own my work.