ARTIST STATEMENT & BIOGRAPHY
 

  Born May 3, 1972 in Richmond Virginia, Kristi has been an artist her entire life, creating art in some form from the time she learned to hold a pencil.  But until recently, her art was something that she shared exclusively with friends and family, creating special, one of a kind pieces as gifts.  Throughout her life, from earning a Bachelor's Degree in Anthropology from Mary Washington College in Fredericksburg VA (now University of Mary Washington) to raising her two wonderful children, art served as her "escape".  And despite having no formal artistic training, she stayed true to her passion.  She has worked with most of the various well-known media at one point, from oil, acrylic and watercolor paints to graphite, pastels and even fabric and the photographic arts.  But a common theme always seemed to pop up...black and white.  

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"I am often asked, 'Why black and white?' The answer lies in the world’s structural tapestry. It is an intricate dance of shapes and lines, a tessellation of shadows and textures.  All interwoven to create a masterpiece hidden in plain sight.  But then there is 'color,' a larger-than-life force, vibrant and nuanced, that can easily become the protagonist of any scene. Just as in life, color in art often demands to be the loudest voice in the room overshadowing the subtle bones of the subject.  My choice is to silence that noise to find the truth underneath.

 

Color can be a sanctuary…familiar, comfortable, and calming. It is the soft wool of a favorite sweater that feels like a homecoming, or the quiet serenity of a slow sunset. In these moments, color is more than a shade; it is a visual exhale.

 

But in an instant, color can turn sour. It becomes the frantic strobe of a broken lamp or the air-raid screech of a distant alarm, as grating and narrow as a pair of too-tight shoes. It is a visual friction that claws at your nerves and pulls at your seams until you feel undone.

 

And while color dictates emotion steering the viewer toward a singular, prescribed mood, black and white offers a dialogue. It strips away the noise to expose the raw, elemental nature of the subject, speaking to each observer in a unique tongue. Rather than imposing my interpretation, it invites yours. Elegant yet simple, timeless yet urgent, black and white is both unassuming and all-encompassing."

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"I hope that my art calls to you as it does to me!"   

Kristi Noel

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