GINA KERN
ABOUT THE ARTIST
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Born and raised in Dallas, from Oak Cliff, to North Dallas, to Irving, to East Dallas, I have seen and experienced a wide range of communities across this big little Texas town. I stem from a lineage of artists – from early Art Deco sign makers and designers, to mid century woodworkers and dark room photographers. Growing up around creatives in the advertising and photography world, I was immersed in a creative environment where being unusual and unique was celebrated. Illustration and painting has been an outlet for me since I was a child. My art has always been centered around people, emotions and storytelling. I studied Communication Design at the University of North Texas with a minor in History and a special interest in Cultural Anthropology. I have appreciation and interest in the diversity between local cultures and the global, where a universal human nature connects us in a web of connections between people in distinct places/circumstances. The evolution of my interest in the human condition and visual storytelling led me to a career in branding and marketing where I spend time designing, art directing, hand lettering and illustrating conceptual human centered stories with simplified visualizations. Growing up, inspiration came from the framed prints on my mother’s walls from the influences of Georgia O’keef, Picasso, Matisse, Diego Rivera and a set of coasters with the art of Henri Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. With my fine art background, and my developed design skillset, a style has developed that is simple yet compelling, linear and thoughtful, bold and playful, soft and strong.
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ARTIST STATEMENT
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Through my drawings and paintings, I seek to explore the vulnerability of human emotion by portraying figures that communicate through their posture and form. The simplified representations of the form is my attempt to focus on the strange and delicate ways our bodies can speak and share the introspective narratives that reside within us. In exploring the human figure, I delve into the subtle nuances of body language, capturing the grace, tension, vulnerability, and strength that emanate from each gesture. By isolating these moments, I hope viewers can connect and relate to these familiar emotional human experiences. My artistic process begins with my own emotions, and the relationship I have with my own empathy. I draw as a way to release these feelings while finding figures who emerge and evoke the emotion I am experiencing. It is therapy for me. Ultimately, my art is an exploration of the human condition from my perspective, a connection to our parallel feelings, and a testament to the power of visual storytelling where vulnerability is empowering.
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