Paradigm Gallery + Studio is exhibiting a series of new work by Katherine Fraser entitled Far from the Tree.
Fraser draws inspiration for Far from the Tree from fables, and explores what it means to have control over our own destinies. Universally-known stories and endings are suddenly given the ability to change. The artist’s most cohesive series to date, each character is presented with the agency to alter their own outcomes.
In the work, The War of Independence, the natural beauty of the Acadia National Park acts as the backdrop. Having grown up in rural Maine, the landscape is a reference to the artist’s childhood – a symbol of a time when Fraser felt her most strong and independent. Fraser says, “When I use the rural landscape in my paintings it symbolizes the homeland; I use it to create a feeling of peace and protection. I mostly paint solitary figures, and being alone in nature is the best kind of alone. In nature I feel most myself, vibrant, and at one with the world”.
Fraser’s figurative compositions ‘depict moments of quiet reflection and insight, of wonder, vulnerability, yearning, determination, humility, strength, and growth’. She cites realist painters Edward Hopper and Bo Bartlett as influences, but also sees parallels between her work and photographers like: Diane Arbus, Mary Ellen Mark and Sally Mann. All of these artists act as storytellers, capturing individuals in moments and settings with a great deal of intimacy.