Kathryn Uster knows art—and the art of persistence. During her last college semester, she was injured in a car accident that would test her ability to complete even the simplest task. With a zealous spirit, positive attitude and hardcore perseverance, Kathryn relearned in a year capabilities most take for granted every day.
An admirable country gal from Connecticut, Kathryn shows her appreciation and respect for life and nature through the creation of collages made from found, recycled and printed papers. Her technique is reliant on memory and photography, and influenced by Fauve painters of the late 1800s.
“With 50 years of suburban sprawl and discards filling landfills, many precious trees and landscapes were, and still are, being destroyed,” said Kathryn. “I try to create the beauty of nature from the refuse in our ‘disposable’ society.”
Canyon Morn, seen here, radiates warmth and light, but its icy cold stream demands equal attention. I find canyons quite beautiful because the two extremes—hot and cold—are able to coexist quite peacefully among their depths.
A rising sun merrily greets the gargantuan walls of the canyon and instantly delivers them from the distress of a cool desert night. Meanwhile, water bounces over frozen rocks that lie in the stream bed, creating ripples which send shimmering light onto nearby boulders and turns them into sparkling diamonds.
At the other end of the day, the imminence of nightfall drapes Pan’s Retreat in darkness and a silent stillness despite a brook that still babbles on with lighthearted cheer. Tree leaves, equally bright and unaware, wave brilliantly above the dark green hues of moss and thickset foliage lining the woodland floor.
The evening isn’t frightening; rather, it is peaceful and serene as the rest of the forest fades away into blackness. The lively brook offers a clear path back to the rest of the world, if one so chooses to accept that particular destiny.
Lastly, in Surreal Goodbye the sun departs, casting its last brilliant rays across an already heavily shadowed body of water, reaching desperately toward the brightly scorched outer banks.
A rainbow of colors pays homage to the sunset atop the vibrant blue waters. To the right, fluffy plumes of clouds rush in to take over the evening. The rocky foothills in the distance, black as night, have already said their goodbyes, and the purple cloaked peaks hasten to follow suit.
Besides these gorgeously colorful collage landscapes, Kathryn also creates abstract, geometric collages that are anything but square! Check out the rest of her work here.
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