Visit the Studio with Karin Waskiewicz

With bold, textural work painter Karin Waskiewicz plays with both our perception of art and our physical landscape. Via her process of layering paint, Waskiewicz’s work, often in large scale, is simply intoxicating. Let’s take a look inside Karin’s unique layering process and fascinating implementation of wood carving tools inside her studio now!

What materials do you use? And why?

My process starts by applying a single layer of acrylic paint to a panel. After the first layer is dry, I continue this same process of layering acrylic paint, until I have multiple layers of dried paint with a single color left visible on top. I then carve into this built-up surface with various shapes and sizes of wood carving tools. The paintings are built up on either wood or aluminum panels to support the weight of the thick, layered paint. Acrylic paint works best for my process because of the drying time and it’s natural plasticity which holds its shape as I carve, rather than crumbling off. It is durable, yet flexible enough to allow me to manipulate the surface with multiple tools (sander, router, wood carving tools, etc) while holding its color and form.

In the beginning of my career as an artist, I did not want to go to a store and purchase a panel, instead I wanted to be in charge of the entire process. I would purchase raw lumber and build the panels in a wood shop. If I was going to make a painting, I was also going to make what the painting was on. I believe this gave me a stronger connection to the panel before I even put paint on it. Thinking about all of the steps that go into creating art in any form, has allowed me to produce the work that I make today. I still build my own wood panels, but purchase the aluminum panels.

What is your artwork about? What does it speak to?

When starting a painting I first decode the physical and affective elements of a landscape into a complex color system. By ‘decode’ I mean that I create a color scheme by breaking down the colors into swatches to capture the ways in which slight variations in hue and shade vibrate within the eye. Every painting has a different varying amount of colors and, therefore layers, of paint. Sometimes I add layers that were not in the pre-planned scheme, allowing myself to make intuitive changes throughout the creation of each painting.

Once I am satisfied with the applied paint layers, I then use my tools to methodically carve out shapes in the paint through repeated small actions of carving. By carving into the layers, I am bringing forward multiple moments in time. Depending on how deep and/or wide I carve, I am revealing varying color combinations from the layers below. This not only creates a unique color profile for each carve, but it also generates a topographical sculptural effect to the surface of the painting. I relate the many layers of my paintings to moments in my own life; as some events stay with us, while others remain faint and distant memories.

Throughout this process, I often re-apply paint on top of the carved out area. The paint then sits within these shallow crevices taking on a new shape of color in the layer. This process of covering and uncovering transforms the layers of paint into three-dimensional woven textures. The paintings change slightly with the viewer’s gaze; in this way they have the same characteristics as a landscape –– they change around us the longer we inhabit the environment.

Growing up, I spent most of my summers in Oil City, Pennsylvania on the Allegheny River. I am greatly influenced by the time I spent there, immersed in a constantly changing landscape. My work continues to be inspired by various times spent in nature and the colors that surround me. My goal is not only to capture the way specific moments or landscapes look and feel, but the complex way they affect our consciousness and resonate in different ways within our memories.

Where do you get your inspiration?

Most simply put, I create art because I cannot imagine doing anything else. Art has been a part of my entire life and it has made me the person I am today. Early on, I was influenced by my grandmother who was a seamstress. Making things with my hands always interested me and I knew that I would always have the drive to create no matter what the material.

The memory of being in a space or environment can become very abstract over time. When I make a painting, I try to remember what I saw visually while realizing that my mind has now combined the visual and the feeling from the experience into a combined memory. It is this memory of my experience within an environment that inspires my paintings.

Below are a few of the memories I often go back to and use as inspiration:

• When the fog moves through a space to slowly reveal the landscape behind
• A storm at night when the lightning makes it briefly seem like daytime
• The light shining through the trees creating constantly changing positive and negative spaces
• A body of water changing color and shape as the weather changes.

What is your typical routine when you get to the studio? Walk us through a typical studio day.

I begin to plan what I would like to accomplish for the day while on my way to the studio. I always try to make sure the plan is able to be completed within the studio time allotted –– this way I avoid feeling defeated. I am usually at the studio during the day to take advantage of the best lighting from my window.

While at the studio, I tend to jump from one thing to another, but I always listen to music or podcasts as a way of helping stay focused. It takes a lot of time and patience to build up the layers for each painting so I am always working on multiple paintings at once –– layering some while carving into others. This can require a lot of planning, multitasking, and time management so that I am never just stuck watching paint dry.

What are you currently working on? Share with us what is exciting to you about this most recent work.

I started a new series that is based on the Japanese word "Komorebi".

It is defined as "the interplay between light and leaves when sunlight shines through trees". The wind creates movement in the trees, constantly changing the negative space of the leaves. I capture these movements, these passing moments, by thinking of each layer as a separate, frozen snapshot in time. Currently I am working on 4 large, separate paintings on aluminum panels that are based on the changing negative and positive spaces created by light and wind.

I’ve realized that working on paintings at this large scale allows the viewer to see my layered, process-based depictions of landscapes as fully realized physical landscapes –– like Monet’s large water lilies series. Working at this scale has taught me many things about my process and has opened up new possibilities within my unique painting process.

Do you balance another job in addition to being an artist?

I am a paper conservation technician in addition to my own work in the studio. I always knew I would find my way to art conservation; it was just a matter of when. After moving to New York I started to work towards this goal and received a minor in chemistry to better understand the science required for the job. This knowledge, combined with my detailed experience with art materials, allowed me to confidently begin an apprenticeship with a paper conservator.

The responsibilities of my current position include repairing tears/losses, removing stains, 'inpainting' areas of loss and many other intricate processes on anything ranging from pre-Renaissance to Contemporary art. It is truly a rewarding job to give back life to such great works of art.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this special peek into Karin's creative environment! Even in a virtual age, we encourage all budding collectors to take the time to connect with the artists you love directly.

We want to remind you of our awesome artist messaging feature directly on the Art in Res site––reach out now and foster that creative energy! Have more questions for Karin on her art and practice? Follow up with her directly via our messenger. We know she’ll be thrilled to answer any questions you might have. Ask about a specific painting or about her specific process in general––either approach works!