Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathryn Rodrigues

Hi Kathryn, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.

I am a Chicago based artist, photographer and educator. My story begins as a young person who was lucky enough to travel the world with my family since my father was in the military. By the time I was in high school I had moved 10 times in 5 countries (United States, Brazil, Mozambique, Portugal and Germany). This experience had a huge impact on my worldview and led to a deep curiosity in identity, culture, memory, domestic spaces and the natural world.

After taking my first photography class in high school, I was hooked. I loved the combination of technical skill and creative expression. I have always felt most comfortable as an observer of my environment and photography was a natural extension of that. I went on to receive a BFA in Photography from the University of Illinois and a MS in Art Education from the Massachusetts College of Art. Since then I have worked as a teaching artist, sharing my love of art, creative thinking and the studio environment with young people and adults.

Due to both my Portuguese family heritage and the experience of living in three Lusophone countries, I feel a deep connection to Saudade, a Portuguese word considered untranslatable, that denotes a nostalgic remembrance of certain people, places or things, absent or forever lost, accompanied by the yearning to see or possess them once more. I am fascinated by the ambiguity of simultaneous belonging and longing, separation and closeness, the known and unknown. The focus, time and resources I pour into my work all serve as tools for remembering, honoring and understanding my past and present.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?

My career has not been a smooth, straight line! Part of what has drawn me to a creative field is the variety of opportunities that are possible. After moving back to Chicago after grad school, I struggled with deciding if I wanted to teach full-time in a high school or work part-time at an arts non-profit and as a teaching artist. Being a full-time teacher made much more economic sense but I worried I wouldn’t have time to continue my studio practice. So I took a leap of faith and began my career working as a teaching artist and on the education staff at a visual arts non-profit. It was a challenge to juggle multiple jobs at the same time but I learned so much and became a part of a wonderful creative community. Teaching in a studio environment with other artists felt like an extension of grad school. However, the tension between work, life, and studio time is ever present and when I became a parent it added to that tension. After my second child was born I decided to step back from being a program manager and focus on teaching and my studio practice whenever possible. There were years when being a teaching artist was my main creative outlet. I have had to learn to be patient (not my strong suit) and understand that there is always going to be an ebb and flow between art and life. Now that my children are school age I have been able to pour more of my focus and time into my studio practice.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?

I find inspiration in the contrast between my transient, international childhood, and current role as a parent. I study the interconnectedness of identity, memory, domestic life, and the natural world through a feminist lens. My work explores the emotional relationships we form with the spaces we inhabit and how they can be conduits for both a sense of grounding and transcendence. In my practice I often explore the intersection of interior and exterior and public and private spaces, using my body as a cartographic tool for delineating and transgressing edges and boundaries.

My recent work explores ideas of transcendence within a domestic setting, familial lineage and mortality. As a middle-aged primary caregiver to two children, I am continuously challenged to find time and space to center my creative life while also nurturing and being anchored to my family and home. I return again and again to the consideration of linked generations, and the conscious and unconscious transmissions between them. What of who we are will pass on to our children? Which ephemeral moments and memories will be shared and preserved? How do I maintain my mental and emotional health while trying to parent during a time of such unrest? How do I embody the care and protectiveness I feel for my children while also preparing them for life beyond the walls of our home?

I enjoy transitioning between traditional, analog black and white film photography, digital color photography, mixed media analog collage and more depending on the concepts I am exploring and the message I am trying to convey. My work is personal and has been an essential tool for me in understanding myself and the world I inhabit. The foundation of my artistic practice is rooted in a lifelong desire to explore, learn, collaborate and connect with others.

What were you like growing up?

Growing up I was a shy, curious kid. I loved reading and becoming totally immersed in the characters and worlds I read about. I felt most comfortable hanging back and observing the action around me but would also be a total goofball when I felt comfortable around my family and close friends. I enjoyed being creative but was very private and didn’t like a lot of attention. I became a big fan of music as a young person and that has continued to be an important source of inspiration for me.

Pricing:

• Selected prints are available on my website at a variety of price points.
• Contact Kathryn at kathryn.rodrigues@gmail.com for more pricing information.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kathrynrodrigues.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kathryn.rodrigues

Image Credits

All photos taken by Kathryn Rodrigues