Kim Kettler

artist statement

I find oysters and their habitat an endless source of inspiration. Shellfish, with their hard, impenetrable shell and soft, vulnerable flesh are abstracts as well as real life objects which bring to mind the fragrant pleasures of a beautiful place. Metaphors and mythology infuse this local Wellfleet symbol with a richness like no other. Like finding precious pearls encased in lowly bottom-dwellers, it is possible to imagine extracting pearls of wisdom from otherwise messy situations. Not to forget, the promise of love inflamed by the aphrodisiacal powers of legendary oysters cannot be lightly dismissed. And so I pay homage to creatures of beauty, of inspiration, and of sustenance.

Having earned her BFA, Summa Cum Laude, from University of Dayton, Kim has supported herself and her family as a lifelong artist in many media. She has taught at Castle Hill Center for the Arts in Truro, MA, in Miami-Dade County Public Schools, the International School in Istanbul, Turkey, the American Museum of Papermaking in Atlanta, Truro Central School and Provincetown Public Schools.

She has shown for 30 years in galleries from California to Cape Cod, the Provincetown Art Association and Museum, the Fine Arts Work Center, the American Museum of Papermaking, Atlanta, GA and at numerous juried shows as well as in the Hotel Kempinski in Berlin, Germany. She is currently represented by Addison Art Gallery in Orleans, MA.

Kim’s work is represented in many prestigious collections including:
* Bank of Boston, Boston, MA
* Children’s Hospital, Philadelphia, PA
* First Atlanta Bank, Atlanta, GA
* Marui Corporation, LTD., Tokyo, Japan
* Saks Fifth Avenue, New York, NY
* Sinai Hospital, Baltimore, MD
* National Foundation for Children, Miami, FL
* University of Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor, MI