About
Kathryn Sillince
is an abstract artist based in Sheffield, England.
She paints kaleidoscopic abstract paintings, with her impulsive intuitive style. Bright colours and weird shapes adorn her work.
Here you can buy limited edition archival prints and be kept in the loop for original pieces to adorn your walls.
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Thanks for supporting my work! Kathryn xox
I studied Contemporary Art at Sheffield Hallam University..
..then spent a wonderful 18 months in Cape Town making and selling artisan jewellery, with hand written delivery notes for each boutique. With the topical flora and fauna tattooed on my consciousness, I returned to the UK in 2004 and went on to study Handbag Design at Cordwainers: University of the Arts in London. After a successful Arts Council and Princes Trust grant, I went on to launch my own leather handbag and accessories label in 2006 called Magpie Accessories, which I ran for 13 years until 2019.
My designs became more colourful over the years, and I eventually specialised in printed leather accessories using cutting edge technology, infusing my own hand painted illustrations and paintings then printing them onto the leather.
It was clear I was missing Art!
I realised that I missed that direct creativity from painting,
so in 2020, I decided to take a break from the business and set up a home art studio. I focussed on two of my main creative passions; painting and comedy, and spent a year painting, organically developing my bright whimsical style.
I also wrote a feature comedy screenplay, falling back in love with not only the joy of visual arts first hand, but also learning more about film and comedy structure.
After many years of running a business this total departure was the breath of fresh air I really needed! I write comedy screenplays in my spare time, and am currently working on a sit-com.
Maybe that's why my work is so colourful, as I often listen to comedy podcasts while I'm painting!
Imbued with an organic, ethereal quality,
my work is characterised by a chaotic rainbow palette; clashing and complimentary colours competing together side by side, layered with a mix of calmer muted washes and splashes of bright neon. My work is light and fresh with a joyful energy, and the compositions are a delicate balance of intricate swirling forms and concentrated layers of colour. Finally, embellishments and finishing touches are made which lets some ideas breathe, others left intentionally raw, adding further energy to each piece.
I never plan my paintings; I love exploring new ideas given to me by the last piece of colour or an interesting shape I’ve just put down, I just start somewhere on the canvas and eventually I just instinctively know when it’s finished. I prefer to start and finish a painting in one session as I feel that the energy on that day is unique.
They generally evolve through a subtractive process, beginning with lots of colour and bold vigorous brushstrokes and then working backwards so to speak. I add both thick and transparent layers allowing for the previous washes or dashes of colour to glow through. Flitting between the negative space and the positive, while clutching many brushes loaded with rainbow hues carefully assembled with a palette knife.
I make my own canvases as that way..
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I can ensure the sheer quality of the materials used in every part of the process; from the paints I use on the main stage, down to the beautiful sturdy stretcher bars and thick canvas that lays the foundation.
Made in the UK & from wood that has been responsibly sourced and is both FSC & PEFC certified; the museum and gallery bars I use for my paintings are an excellent product that give each work strength and extra gravitas, ensuring longevity for years to come.
I painstakingly prime each canvas at least three times which gives me the smoothest whitest launchpad for the beautiful translucent colours I take along with me on my journey to creating each painting.
The Viewer Experience
“I like to imagine my work being enjoyed in different ways on each viewing or glance, that they give the viewer something unique each time.
For instance, opening your eyes from a deep siesta, and as your dreams are still hanging in the air, fleeting memories fuse with the sumptuous colours and swirling forms and it’s reassuringly there, your same world, but subtly different each time, constantly in flux, just like this wonderful life.”
