We recently connected with Dora Kearney and have shared our conversation below.
Dora, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you tell us about a time that your work has been misunderstood? Why do you think it happened and did any interesting insights emerge from the experience?
Being a professional multi-faceted, self taught artist with a corporate career can cause some confusion. I am often mischaracterized as a stiff white-collar type A personality based on my career path. When in reality, I am truly middle-brained and need both aspects of analytics and creativity to fuel my passions. I tend to focus on the positive and think having this internal fuel helps me not only create my art, it helps me describe it and organize it into series or carefully curated exhibitions.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
My work and pathway to professional art and design has been incredible! I have always been interested in art since I was little. Drawn to color and expression early on, I learned to draw my favorite things and add my personal twist. Of course, as a kid, I didn’t know I was doing that. It took me some time to realize my eye for color and ability to distinguish tonal values and slight color variations. This has helped me quite a bit in my art and design. I can find the perfect compliment in any space to give the feel or look my client wants to achieve.
One of my challenges is blending my corporate career life with my professional art life. I am successful in both and love to have the ability to switch between two disciplines on a daily basis. I gain insights from each to assist in the other. For example, an emotion felt in corporate life can aid me in creating a beautifully relatable art piece. Or talking to other professional artists can help me realize some coaching I add to my corporate life. Both can create quite a unique point of view. I use this to my advantage in everything I do, everyday and I think this sets me apart from others.
I am constantly learning new tools and techniques that I can use in my creations but also incorporate into my teaching. I teach classes in my studio, at conventions and private events. The most popular classes I am teaching right now are Zentangle patterns. Zentangle is an 8 step method to drawing and combining patterns. I have been drawing in this style for a long time and decided to achieve my CZT designation so I could teach it to others. Not only do I instruct on the 8 step method, I also show you how to Incorporate it into your art pieces and even scale it for wall murals. Getting patterns in large scale requires specialized tools and techniques that I include in my advanced classes. I also teach color theory, advanced color theory, color mixology and painting techniques.
I also do speaking engagements. I love to share my creative steps in a presentation I call Creative Coaching. It is a look into my creative process and how it can work for you too. I have given the presentation to creators in different industries to include painters, muralists, screen writers, Agile coaches, project managers, and CEOs.
My most recent painting to be on exhibition at the Ft. Smith Regional Art Museum, is a prime example of how corporate life, stress, personal losses and creativity combine. The piece is titled, Relief, and resonates with bold emotion even though the painting is done in grayscale. If you have the chance to see it in person, the exhibition is up through September 7, 2025. I am really proud of this one as it’s a slight departure from other pieces in my studio. I mainly paint in bold color! It just goes to show my work is ever evolving and new ideas are always coming to life.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
I have been drawing since I could hold a crayon. My parents were always amazed at my ability to draw pretty much anything I laid my eyes on. I had it in my mind, as a kid, I wanted to be an animator at Disney when I grew up. The old school way the artists would draw the cartoon cells fascinated me. But, my parents always told me there was no money in art and I couldn’t build my career on drawing. I had to be something more professional. When I was in high school, I had several of my art pieces published in the school magazine and on display around the halls. My parents and siblings didn’t really seem to think much of it so I lost my confidence in art. Aside from a few projects I completed for my mom and her friends, I didn’t feel like I could create from within. I picked it back up years later after I was married and bought my first house. I had my own art room and the freedom to create. I admit, it was a rocky start but I found my footing and before I knew it I was selling my art and taking commissions for custom pieces. Funny enough, I still hang one of those early pieces on my home gallery wall, and it’s a favorite. I kept pushing forward, making art as often as life changes would allow. Fast forward 20 something years, full of moves from different states, relationship changes, new jobs and setting down some roots on my own and I am proud of my studio, the pieces I have shown in Art Museums and Galleries all over the Midwest and southern US.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I absolutely love when a person walks into my studio with a look of curiosity. I always ask what piece drew them into my space and what their interpretation is. I love the interaction between my art and the viewer. My color choices, the music I was listening to and my emotions during the creation of each piece is only known to me but the viewer can pick up on subtleties. I find that incredibly wonderful. The descriptions of their interpretations is fantastic. Hearing how my art pulls feelings from some one is so powerful. There’s magic in that.
I invite everyone to come for a studio visit! I am located in studio #310 at Zhou B Art Center KC, 1801 E 18th St, KCMO. I would love to talk with you and hear your interpretations!
Contact Info:
- Website: HTTPS://www.dorakearneystudio.com
- Instagram: @dora_creates
- Facebook: Dora Creates
