Kathleen Bartl

Moving from pen and ink realism drawing to building clay sculptures of animals vastly widened my creative world. I am no longer bound by nature’s rules. Not having to copy what has already been created in nature is a gift I have been given, and I cherish it. My work is an exploration of animals and their experiences in life. Each piece asks how they feel, how they look and what is their narrative? My soft, fun approach to live animals is always reflected in my work. My work always exudes whimsy. It is exciting and freeing to see their ear get pulled out too long or their nose pushed in uncharacteristically. Watching as the piece begins to show a personality, joy or concern in a whimsical style is quite freeing. When hearing others say they feel something when seeing one of my pieces, I know I have met my sculpture’s goal. There is no greater joy than building whimsy.