Allegories & Illusions by Kathleen Kinkopf

Opening Reception: August 2, 5-7 pm. On Display August 2- September 28. 

Kathleen Kinkopf has been creating since she can remember. She grew up in rural Ohio, immersed in nature and a love for horses, and where she spent many solitary hours creating imaginary worlds of her own. This childhood experience continues to influence her other-worldly, magical, and dream-like art today.

She earned a BFA at Miami University/Ohio, which led to a successful career as a graphic designer and art director in Dallas. This eventually led to illustration, with reps in Dallas and New York, working with clients across the country. An opportunity took her to Colorado to open a gallery, where she continued her commercial practice. This gave her the chance to represent other artists and exhibit her paintings for the first time. An unexpected move to New Mexico exposed her to not only to breathtaking scenery and native cultures, but also delivered her to the doorstep of a world-class art destination: Santa Fe. Many opportunities materialized that she only imagined previously. At this juncture, Kathleen committed to painting full time, placing her work on the world stage.

Kathleen’s work has been exhibited in dozens of solo and group gallery exhibitions nationally and internationally, from Santa Fe to South Korea, and includes distinguished venues such as The Albuquerque Museum, The Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra, and Morton H. Myerson Symphony Hall, and the Ulsan International Art Fair. Her work is in private as well as public, government, and corporate collections, including New Mexico Community College, The New Mexico Border Authority, Brinker International, Buck Owens Museum, Trail of Painted Ponies, Pamplin Music, JC Penney, and The Campbell Soup Company. Kathleen’s work has been recognized and awarded by numerous organizations such as American Women Artists, The National Museum of Women in the Arts (New Mexico), Alliance for the Arts, BIG Arts, The Cultural Bath House (Dallas) and featured in publications, such as ARTNews, Artist’s Magazine, American Art Collector, Orca Literary, Southwest Art Magazine, The Albuquerque Journal, The Dallas Times Herald, 100 Artist Studios of the Southwest, Art Horse Magazine, Create!, and Art Seen Magazines. She published her first book, Inhabiting Bliss, in 2021.

After living and working in New Mexico for nearly 2 decades, fate brought Kathleen to SW Florida where she has found new inspiration for her work in a world of water, giant birds, thunderstorms, reptiles and the magic and mystery of sea life.

In the Theatre Lobby Gallery: Piercing the Veil by Danielle Branchaud

The goal of a surrealist is to present a glimpse into new and various worlds that are only accessible in dreams, or through the careful and well-practiced art of introspection. The works of Danielle Branchaud are notorious in their depth and intensity when it comes to facing those dimensions. For years she has used her own personal life experience and emotional complexity in order to create these visions, tapping into sources that have the potential to be both enlightening and devastating. After all, a lifetime is composed of many notes, high and low, and each one is worthy of exploration. This collection of work presents just a fraction of that emotional experience, each painting inviting you to search within yourself for those same universal feelings.

Canadian-born artist Danielle Branchaud has lived and worked in Southwest Florida for over fifteen years. She specializes in the efficient and intimate use of acrylics, creating conceptual series work and portraits. She has exhibited work throughout the region, with solo exhibitions at the Sidney and Berne Davis Art Center, Arts for ACT Gallery, DAAS Gallery, and has participated in group exhibitions in Miami and Sarasota. Her working studio can be visited at the Union Artist Studios in Fort Myers. She is also presently working as the curator of exhibitions at Arts Bonita in Bonita Springs.

In the Member Gallery: Contemplating Flowers by Tania Alves 

Born in Brazil and raised in the USA, the Southwest Floridian Artist Tania Alves has been working in polishing her skills on Acrylics and Mixed Media since 2012. She holds no formal art education but was raised around arts and did many workshops on how to paint in gesso sculptures, wood surfaces, fabrics, canvas, needlework, music instruments and dance.