Kate Walters by Tanya Ernst (translated from the German by Karen Lorenz).
Flesh and Stars – zwischen Himmel und Erde
Amongst other things happening in the past few months, I came across the work by Kate Walters when I researched the Internet.
I was browsing through images when suddenly I saw this animal on dark background, mysterious, ambiguous, and of unusual stillness.
Her work touched and moved me so strongly that I would like to take up the opportunity and introduce her, and thank Kate for kindly agreeing to do so.
I guess it must be, as often mentioned, that her work cannot be explained or fathomed in an academic way of thinking. She does seem to conform to any established position within a succession of art historical achievements. (Though something possibly yet to come)
The work will speak to us if we find the way, if not though, it might remain silent.
From the very beginning I could sense a certain quality in Kate’s work, like quietly singing, or a gentle humming. The dark surface of the paintings and drawings are like the earth, like the flesh of the body, she says. It vibrates subtle colours from which her figures, her beings, her extraordinary dreams of flesh and bodies, growing from and deeply rooted into the earth, are striving towards heaven.
Kate finds inspiration from early Renaissance Italian art, mainly 14th century, and from the natural environment we live in. She is also interested in the tradition of Indigenous people, their way of seeing and honouring life; their way of being, and being rooted in the natural world.
It is through this vision that Kate’s work strives for a balance between man and nature, the very foundation from which human beings emerge.
For her the quest goes beyond questioning complex ecological systems.
The balance is about life itself, our conscious attitude towards life and the way we regard and respect life.
Everything in this world, Kate says, has its place, its history, is unique and sacred. So her vision reaches out to the world at large in an endeavour to guide us back to the place once held for us, between earth and sky.
There is a particular moment her work seeks to convey;
a moment of stillness and the joy of connectedness; a moment of tranquility, mindfulness and devotion. May the viewer be captivated, touched, and long to submerge once more in the higher order.
Within the context of the contemporary art scene Kate Walters considers her position and work as something of an outsider, although she considers it vital that her work is shown within this field. When I recall previous discussions about pickled cows and crystal skulls her view makes sense to me. Yet for our own sake I do anticipate better days: when outsiders like Kate become the norm.
You find more on this in an interview on Kate’s website
http://katewalters.co.uk/main.html