Statement

Chelsea Kinch is an abstract painter based in Maui, Hawaii. Raised in Rhode Island, she was introduced to oil painting at the age of 10 and has since continued her self taught practice. Her paintings explore what it means to be disposable and temporary, both emotionally and bodily as a woman. With the work, Kinch tries to make peace and sense of feeling in between worlds. Painting allows her to unbind herself from the day-to-day experiences all humans are tied to. Through color and movement, she is able to make peace with deep and fluctuating emotions, being in a body, and thus embrace the beauty of experiencing life. She is committed to the exploration of painting and the process that unfolds on the canvas.

www.chelseakinch.com

How has your relationship with art changed over time?

Art has become an intrinsic part of my rhythm of life. It’s become a lifeline, a community, an adventure, a playmate, a lover, a therapist. My entire life revolves around art and that used to not be the case. I started oil painting when I was 10 and I have been in the closet about it up until maybe five years ago. Diving in headfirst to my work, and art as a whole, has been the most rewarding (and challenging) and life changing thing I have ever done for myself.  

Where do you find inspiration? What drives your work?

This might sound very simple. For me to stay inspired, I have to live a life that I find inspiring. The ocean, play, and spontaneity have a big role in that. As well as the people and friends I surround myself with, and travel. All of these things light up my spirit and keep me inspired. While I’m working, a lot of what is unfolding on the canvas has to do with me processing an emotion or experience. Fully immersing myself in whatever I have just encountered or whatever feeling is surfacing allows me some kind of therapeutic flow state.  

What is your favorite part of your process?

My favorite part of the process is beginning. There is something exciting and adventurous at the start of a new piece. The surrendering that follows is something I also have come to love. It teaches me so much every time—mainly to let go. After the fun part is done (the start) there’s a conversation that starts to happen between the painting and myself, where I then get to ask the piece where it would like to go. This requires some type of stillness and sometimes walking away, and sometimes I overwork it and the painting turns to sh*t. And I enjoy that entire process because it becomes absolutely necessary to surrender to it, which is a lesson I have learned to take outside of the studio.  

What is one thing about your art and/or practice that our audience may not know?

I take frequent dance breaks. I make a lot of time for fun. Fun is imperative for my expression (:

What does your dream piece/project look like?

Designing a ballet set would be so fun for me. Ballet is so beautiful to me and to see that kind of movement in front of my work would be so dreamy.