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Aesthetic Forms Above and Below the Water: An Exhibit by Bobbi Kilty

Aesthetic Forms Above and Below the Water: An Exhibit by Bobbi Kilty
On Display at Arts Council Greater Lansing Through June

Artist Bio
Bobbi Kilty is a painter in encaustic and combined media who retired after 36 years as an interior design educator at two universities. She was born in Tampa, Florida and has been drawing since the age of five, living as a child in Pennsylvania, Texas, Wisconsin and Illinois.

As an undergraduate in the Art Department at Northwestern University, she majored first in visual arts and then shifted emphasis to interior design to maximize potential in the work place. After completing an MFA at UCLA, she began her teaching career at Washington State University.

In 1973, she studied Sumie (contemporary Japanese brush painting) at Osaka University, Japan. Courses she has taught include architectural illustration, perspective and mixed media rendering, color theory, barrier free design and ergonomics.

While at Michigan State University, she drew and painted her way from Ireland to Italy as she led students in the “Interior Design Study Abroad Program.” After serving four years as the MSU interior design program director, she is now living the dream.

Artist Statement
Painting gives me a sense of peace and wholeness, the same sense I experience when under water with the light shining through from above. My new paintings in water color on Yupo include imaginary under water scenes, above the water views, plein air and abstracts.

I find joy and fulfillment in working with new materials and techniques, experimenting and exploring possibilities, carefully selecting which visual elements to include and which to leave out. A strong connection with nature is evident, and I strive to communicate its beauty through depth and richness of color. When you see my work, I hope you will connect with it in some personal way.