Kim McCarty | Can't Start a Fire Without a flame; A Painting Without a Murmur
"Kim McCarty knows about loss, but she speaks about it with such positive acquiescence that you feel like you’re talking to a Yogi about yin and yang, not an artist about a studio fire in ’93. I ask about the story of the studio fire wondering if she is tired of telling it, but she indulges me: “The fire occurred during the huge Santa Ana winds in 1993. Two hundred houses were destroyed. We then moved into a small house where I began to paint on the side porch. With a lack of space and ventilation—and with small children—I began to rediscover watercolor on paper.” She adds that at the time, “works on paper became an accepted art practice in the art world,” and I begin to get the sense that for McCarty, life is a continuous process of overcoming—you acknowledge the obstacles ahead of you, and then you keep pushing forward.
McCarty has tapped into something both universal and mysterious. Her work captures the longing for something permanent in a world that’s constantly in flux. With over 20 solo shows, multiple group exhibitions, and works in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art, UCLA’s Hammer Museum, and the Honolulu Academy of Art, it’s clear that she’s saying something that society, and the art world, needs to hear right now."
Kim McCarty at Cornell Art Museum
Who is Joan Quinn? A Life in Portraits
September 23, 2016 - January 15, 2017
The exhibition, titled Who is Joan Quinn? A Life in Portraits is curated by Melanie Johanson with curatorial advisors Cheryl Bookout and Amanda Quinn Olivar, brings together world-renowned contemporary artists who for over five decades have created portraits of celebrated art patron and advocate, Joan Agajanian Quinn. The artwork on display includes over 70 portraits, from a collection of approximately 300, realized in all mediums by artists that Quinn has championed over the years. The exhibition explores the relationship between artist and subject, presenting a rare and fascinating look into the creative process of some of the world’s greatest creative talents.
Included are works by such renowned artists as Peter Alexander, Charles Arnoldi, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Mike Chearney, Patrick Demarchelier, Laddie John Dill, Shepard Fairey, Claire Falkenstein, Sophia Gasparian, Frank Gehry, Chris Hartunian, David Hockney, George Hurrell, Robert Mapplethorpe, Kim McCarty, Ed Moses, Mel Ramos, Ed Ruscha, and Beatrice Wood, among others.
Kim McCarty in the New York Times
A Resilient Blythe Danner Happily Takes Things in Stride
New York Times reporter Ruth La Ferla interviews Blythe Danner about her recent film, life, and her long time appreciation of the work of Kim McCarty.
Kim McCarty Paints at the Santa Monica Museum of Art
6 April, 2013
Opening reception: Saturday, April 6
Kim McCarty Paints is a vibrant installation and art sale presented by GRACIE, The Santa Monica Museum of Art’s innovative gift store. Kim McCarty Paints features an array of intimate watercolors created by the artist exclusively for SMMoA. During the installation and sale, a watercolor studio in the project room will provide visitors with close-up access to McCarty at work. . .