Kate Rivers

Studio #10

As a teenager I obsessively rode the city bus from my stop to the end and back to observe and draw the people on the bus during my junior high school years A person on the bus referred me to the children’s Saturday School at Columbus College of Art and Design. My sketches gained me free tuition.  During high school I received the Ohio governor’s award for the arts.

I received a full scholarship to Columbus College of Art and Design and later a scholarship and fellowship at The University of South Carolina.    I then taught at the university level.

Making marks on paper was ingrained in me from a very early age.  During my formal studies I searched for a medium that would allow me to incorporate the integrity of my gestures and lines. I began with sculpture.  While pursuing this line of studies, I met Louis Nevelson who encouraged me collect objects from my environment.  I moved onto printmaking and discovered lithography and printmaking.

I chose to retire early, 2011, from my tenured position as an Associate Professor in Oklahoma. Since I have been a full-time artist.  In 2025 I moved to New York from Santa Fe New Mexico.

My current body of work involves the use of found material, cast-papers, books and other printed materials.  My range of expression is wide and involves three series: book, nest, and voyeurism.

The nest series reflects home and safety.  I use the circular shape of the nest and found materials to construct the piece.  This work is on canvas or paper.

The book series involves the use of book covers sewn onto paper and mounted on canvas.  I generally work with pattern and word play.

My last is what I term voyeurism.  I observe people in public places and transform those observations into painting.  I begin with collaged papers glued to canvas with book binder’s glue; I then apply a layer of clear gesso.  After that I paint, incorporating bits of the collage into the final painting.

I show regularly at Blue Print Gallery, Dallas Texas, Arbor3Arts, Michigan, Blue Raven Gallery, Maine, and Kay Contemporary Art in Santa Fe.  I had a solo show last July 2025 in Michigan and have an up-coming solo show in Santa Fe NM, May 15, 2026

If you would like a full resume, I can send one.