KAREN LOVE COOLER

Karen Love Cooler

Karen is a graduate of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.  She returns to her enigmatic paintings of the human condition shown through prehistoric life forms and landscape and with stage sets.  Many are in the form of three-piece wooden altars.  These artworks require contemplation ... They reveal themselves slowly over time, even to the artist herself.  "Often the true subject is just below my conscious thought," says Karen;
"My titles often change over time as the paintings reveal themselves to me."

Karen has lived in Philadelphia and its suburbs most of her life. She trained as a teacher and earned a graduate degree from The University of Pennsylvania. Writing and presenting art tours at The Philadelphia Museum of Art has influenced her art work. She earned a Certificate from The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 1995. This is a rigorous four year studio course. During this time she had a Residency at the Vermont Studio Center . Karen is a founding member of the Montgomery County Guild of Professional Artists, where she has been President, Publicity Vice President and currently the Gallery Director.

Contact me at  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Visit my online art gallery at http://www.karenlovecooler.com

Exhibitions

Karen Love Cooler has exhibited with MCGOPA and in many regional, juried exhibitions. Her awards include: The Roy Lance Lauffer Award, The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts; The Barbara Secker Corson Award, 55th Annual Painting Exposition, Cheltenham Art Center , John Ravenal, Juror; Honorable Mention Award, Tri- State Artists Equity, Connelly Gallery, Villanova University ; Juror’s Award, MCGOPA Mixed Media/ Collage Exhibition, Frank Hyder, Juror; Donna Cohen Memorial Award, MCGOPA 2006 Mixed Media/ Collage Exhibition, Anthony Rosati, juror.

Artist’s Statement

I interpret the world through my own lens- more or less focused. I am always making a fiction- I freely add, omit or edit my alternate realities. This journey is successful when the art work assumes a life of its own. I have always been an artist, making art since I could hold a crayon, exhibiting professionally since 1995. I am a painter, sculptor, printmaker, mixed-media artist. My art is subject driven. As a classically trained artist, I am then free to choose the medium to best express my thoughts.

Symbols of universal female myth have been an underlying theme throughout my work.

I am also influenced by specific landscapes- especially those strongly associated with certain artists of the past. It is always a challenge to make “my own art” in these places.

The ocean has also continually influenced me. Some of the oldest life forms are still found there. I need to be near the ocean. For me, the sound and motion of the surf is primal.

Breathe in, breathe out, make art.

My intention is to create work that will be long-lasting. To that end, I use archival materials and techniques to optimize the life of the work.