Trees, Wings and Petals – A March Exhibition

Butterfly Playground, ©Kellie Day, mixed media on canvas, 24" x 24",

Butterfly Playground, ©Kellie Day, mixed media on canvas, 24″ x 24″, Available

Here’s the skinny on my upcoming March 1 show in Telluride, Colorado. This exhibition is a collection of my latest works created over the last eight months.

I enjoy taking the full journey into exploring a subject, and using it as a mode to push my knowledge of colors, process and also to go outside of my comfort zone. Several of these paintings are an exploration of butterflies. From the delicate and feminine, “Butterfly Panel”, to the explosion of spray paint and drips in “Butterfly Playground” and “Dazzle.”

Butterfly Panel, mixed media on canvas, 36″ x 12″, ©Kellie Day, Available

Dazzle, 24″ x 36″, mixed media on canvas, ©Kellie Day, Available

This series started with drawing butterflies at Powderhorn ski area, while waiting for my son. I took these illustrations home and collaged them on a canvas, adding paint and mixed materials. Then one morning, in a winter storm, I started spray painting blank canvases by the shed in the whipping wind. These I developed into bolder butterfly paintings, with stencils and big black lines created with Fluid paint in a syringe.

Winter Trees, ©Kellie Day, 36″ x 36″ each, mixed media on canvas, Available

Winter Trees

The center of this show is a pair of “Winter Trees”. These stark paintings are a solitary look at the shapes of these elegant creatures, stripped of all color in a mid-winter storm.

In these pieces, I’ve explored the movement of branches when fully exposed, sensually twisting and turning, to create shapes in between. There is also the falling of snow.

In each of these two pieces, I have created a place where you can feel alone. You can feel the strength that is present when stripped of all décor and relationship. These trees stand strong, firmly rooted, with great texture. In the background you’ll find Pearl Iridescent paint and quiet foilage, representing all the life that is here, but not seen in the depths of winter.

CLICK HERE to see photos, prices and read more about the Winter Tree paintings.

Eternal Tulips

Painting on this large of a canvas is a physical act. Painting, scraping, spraying, and large shouldery brush strokes. You have to physically stretch your body across the canvas, and thus, it’s an act of love, but also at times, when things are not working out, feels like a war. Making art that comes from your soul is simply an all-in process… I’ve made a short film showing the making of this painting that I will release soon.

CLICK HERE to see photos, prices and read more about Tulips.

If you’re in the Telluride, Colorado area in March, stop by La Cocina de Luz on the main street of town to see this show!