Exhibit compels ‘Thinking in Maps’

Edmonds Community College Art Gallery’s current exhibit, “Thinking in Maps,” featuring works by Kathryn Bischak, continues now through Feb. 29.

Bischak is a Seattle artist who works with oil on canvas, mixed media on paper and acrylic wash on paper. She completed the Artist Trust EDGE Professional Development Program in 2006. Her art education also includes attending the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Arts Drawing Studio in Paris, France.

“I create art for the pure sake of creating art,” Bischak said of her work. “I strive to make pieces that people will want to live with, something that will bring them pleasure.”

Bischak believes that the abstract forces people to focus on what is the essence of any environment: color, texture, and juxtaposition or composition. “Abstract art removes the familiarity inherent in a recognized object, so the viewer must consider these three elements I feel are most important,” she said.

“I make choices consciously and subconsciously, playfully and seriously, skillfully and awkwardly, leaving evident the process of painting,” Bischak added. “A painting is complete when nothing is superfluous and nothing needs to be added; a feeling of satisfaction.”

Bischak’s paintings reflect inward adventures that express her love of color –- and its infinite possibilities. “From a distance, it presents a graphic map of color and form,” she said. “standing inches away, textures and layers are revealed and the history of my process can be explored.”

Her creative process centers on building up many layers over time in her paintings. “I create unique colors by mixing on my palette and layering directly on the canvas,” she said. “I let a painting evolve without a specific plan, allowing each move to respond to what has gone before. The lack of pre-planning or choreographed direction in my work leaves evident the process of painting itself and the delight I derive from it.

To be fully appreciated, Bischak’s paintings must be examined close up as well as from a distance. Standing inches away from the work, textures and layers are revealed, and the creative process becomes evident. “The story of how the painting was made is as much a part of the work as the finished piece,” she said.