As an artist, I am in constant examination of life. I study the ephemeral act of living to create thematic series that are an analysis of circumstance that is not limited by medium, surface or dimensionality. Whether I am painting on canvas or windows, flags or blankets, sketches or sculptural objects, meaning, material and medium are intrinsically linked – symbolism is key. In creating the language of my works, I often use found objects that serve as markers and symbols, which are then layered to tell a story.
Within my art, I am seeking to examine both the manipulation of the picture plane, but also contemplating spheres of existence and the multi-verse. Whether decoupaging a window frame with connected imagery, carving into wood to give dimension to landscape, or placing ghostly screened figures on canvases, I am seeking to place a form on our complex realities. Informed by my own life, I strive to create a semblance of order; but as in life, often it becomes obsessively layered to an almost compulsive extent.
Carol Taylor-Kearney is a New Jersey based artist, instructor, and curator who uses traditional techniques and unusual materials in her representational artwork. A graduate of Rowan University and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, she has exhibited nationally, and her paintings are part of both public and private collections. Support has come in the form of artist residencies at the Vermont Studio Center, Peters Valley Craft Center, and the Pouch Cove Foundation in Newfoundland and grants from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and Artist Fellowship, Inc. Generally, Taylor-Kearney works in series that she compiles in multiple presentations. She is represented by Atlantic Gallery, an artist co-op in Chelsea, NYC, and Cerulean Arts Collective in Philadelphia.
TITLE Cloistered MEDIA Oil on canvas with embroidery and objects SCALE 24 inches x 24 inches x 9 inches DATE COMPLETED 2020 DESCRIPTION A self portrait of me ruminating on the sacrifice of Suor Plautilla Nelli who became a cloistered nun at age 14 so that she could be an artist. She was one of the few women who made large scale paintings and included emotion particularly in and on the faces of the women she portrayed. Although written about by Vasari in his "Life of Artists", she all but disappeared from art history. Pictured in the background is her "Lamentation" made from a transfer print with embroidery. The "cage surrounding the painting is made from painted rabbit fencing and wire. It depicts a section of the court yard from the monastery of San Marco, what is left after the demolition of the cloister where Suor Nelli was abbess. The small bird has markings resembling the habit that she wore. Because this was done during the lockdown for Covid-19, there are additional meanings suggested.
TITLE Cloistered, side view, detail MEDIA oil on canvas with embroidery and objects SCALE 24 inches x 24 inches x 9 inches DATE COMPLETED 2020 DESCRIPTION This side view of "Cloistered" shows how I shaped the rabbit fencing and wire cage around the canvas-- which is 16 inces x 24 inches.