As an artist, I am a storyteller. That means that when I tell a story it is with the audience in mind. It also means that I closely observe to find that people, places, and things are what they are, but they can also be something else. I have a tendency to think in words, so my life is rich in patterns and descriptors but poor on a defining point. Although I will share a wealth of information, there is always a bit I keep just inside myself.
Translated to my visual art work, I use representational imagery because it is most discernible to others. I use children as subject matter because, like me, they will take any material, object, or situation and use it to fulfill the necessity of the moment. Conveniently, too, childhood is an experience we share, and children are our projection into the future. I collect throwaways to paint on or transform because they have a history, a tale of their own to tell. I glory in cliché because it can be such shorthand for conveying something. I know that everything in this universe-- in this multi-verse-- has a secret. And I can catch a glimpse of it if I just watch and do and do and watch.
My hope for folks experiencing my art work is that they take the time to peel away the layers of information, find those parts that they have in common, and recall a feeling, a story, a secret that they might have forgotten or didn't know that they had.
Artist Biography
Carol Taylor-Kearney is an artist, arts educator, and curator. She is a life-long resident of southern New Jersey where she collects materials for her reverse glass paintings on found windows, doors, and frames; for her work on canvas and flags; and for her installations. A graduate of Rowan University (BA in Art Education) and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (MFA), she has worked as the Coordinator of Graduate Studies at PAFA, taught Studio Art at Burlington County College and Rowan University, and was the curator at StrataSphere, an exhibition space in Philadelphia. She has served as a Cultural and Heritage Commissioner for Gloucester County, NJ.
Taylor-Kearney's work has been exhibited nationally and is part of both public and private collections including Wells Fargo Bank, Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP, and Queensborough College, CUNY. Art Fairs she has participated in are the Parallax Art Fair and the Clio Art Fair. Support includes grants from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and Artist Fellowship, Inc.; and artist residencies at the Vermont Studio Center, Peters Valley Craft Center, and the Pouch Cove Foundation in Newfoundland. She is represented by Atlantic Gallery, an artist co-op in Chelsea, NYC and Cerulean Arts Collective in Philadelphia. Recently, she has started an art blog, www.whatsartblog.com, and “The One Minute Crit.” on Instagram.
Education
1998 Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA MFA
1994 Art/Art Education, Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ BA
Continuing Education
2004 Art Seminar at Villanova University/Violette de Mazia Foundation Wayne, PA
2003 Art Seminar at Barnes Foundation/Violette de Mazia Foundation Wayne, PA
Exhibitions
2019 Plein Air, Plain Air, Plane Air Artists: Ellen Abraham, Melissa Rubin, Roni Sherman Ramos, Susan Stefanski, Joan Walton Cerulean Arts Gallery and Studio, Philadelphia, PA Curator’s Talk
2018 More Fun Than Fun Artists: Andrea Beizer, Alysa Bennett, Ruby Silvious, Carol Taylor-Kearney, Peter Treiber, Ruth Wolf Brother Kenneth Chapman Gallery, Iona College. New Rochelle, NY
2010 Women With a View: Nine Women, Nine Artists, Nine Views of the World Artists: Peggy Beardsley, Diane Cover, Kathy Elias, Linda Dubin Garfield , Linda Gissen, Susan Long, Jill Salome Milstead, Roberta Welburn Milstead, Elsa Wachs Stratasphere Exhibition Space, Philadelphia, PA
2009 The Floating World Artists: Darla Beckemeyer Cassidy, Paul Hamanaka StrataSphere Exhibition Space, Philadelphia, PA
Shadows Artists: Ruth Wolf, April Faye Stratashere Exhibition Space, Philadelphia, PA
2008 Eternal Temporality Artists: Rosemary Castiglioni, Brook Hine, Keith Sharpe StrataSphere Exhibition Space, Philadelphia, PA
2007 The Personal Picture Plane Artists: Ellen Abraham, Jim Brossy, Aurora Deshauteurs, Richard Elzo Dunn, Jessica Makin, Carol Taylor-Kearney Traveling exhibition: College Hall Gallery, Gloucester County College, Sewell, NJ StrataSphere Exhibition Space. Philadelphia, PA
2006 The Progress of Process: A "behind the scenes" examination revealing how artists create their work Artists: Michelle Marcuse, Kathryn Pannepacker, David Foss, with Aurora Deshauteurs StrataSphere Exhibition Space, Philadelphia, PA
2003 4 From Rowan—A Mixed Media Exhibit Artists: Luke Weichman, Jessica Makin, Susan Lucci, Carol Taylor-Kearney West Deptford Public Library Gallery, Thorofare, NJ