Quarto Creates | 20 Jul, 2021
Meet Kateri Ewing
This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is kateri-1024x1024.jpg Kateri Ewing is an artist in residence and teacher at the Roycroft Campus in East Aurora, New York. For her artistic and writing endeavors, she was honored with the 2012 Mary and Gil Stott Award at Roycroft. Her artwork has also won numerous awards in both local and national exhibitions. She uses her Patreon virtual classroom to interact with her students, worldwide, daily. We asked Kateri a few question about her artistic process.

Quarto Creates: When did you first become interested in becoming an artist?

Kateri Ewing: Believe it or not, the first time I really started to draw and paint was in the spring of 2013. I was living alone and both of my kids had flown the nest and were living far away for their jobs. I was recently divorced, and had just gone through many surgeries for breast cancer and was trying to heal in many ways. My daughter had left a pile of things for Goodwill, and as I sorted thorough them I found a set of watercolors and a sketchbook. And so I decided to try. I found a book online, The Elements of Drawing by John Ruskin, and I began… and it changed the course of my life forever.

QC: Who was your most influential teacher, and why?

KE: I am self-taught, have never had art lessons except for in grade school, but I still have teachers. My first and most important lived in the 1800s—John Ruskin. Without a doubt, reading his book has been the single most influential thing for my work as an artist. Even though it was written centuries before, his voice carried across time as my teacher who insisted on quality from me—otherwise it felt like I was wasting his time. While Ruskin taught me about learning to see, I have also learned so much from studying the works and interviews of Andrew Wyeth. The other book that has deeply influenced me is The Unknown Craftsman by Bernard Leach (Adapter) and Soetsu Yanagi (Author). This book has affirmed my own sense of what is beautiful and why I seek to create. The “why” is as important, if not more important, than the “how.”

QC: Where do you find your inspiration for new work?

KE: From the ordinary beauty of everyday life. Just living and breathing in this world is everything I could ever need. Inspiration surrounds us at every moment… we just have to let ourselves see it. For me, art is about taking the time to see and experience the ordinary and realize that it’s truly extraordinary.

QC: What is the most important lesson you’ve learned from creating?

KE: Showing up. No matter how busy I am, no matter how many things are going wrong… showing up to my life daily (including my creative practice) gives me the curiosity, joy and solace and nourishment that I need to see my way through anything. When I do not show up, that’s when I suffer. Human beings need good work and we need beauty. A daily creative practice is one way to ensure that we get it.

QC: Have your finished products ever turned out different than your expectation, and how do you deal with that?

KE: OH my gosh… all the time! It used to really frustrate me and bring a lot of anxiety. But…I have learned over time that this very thing is what makes creating something so rewarding. We have to learn to ride with the unexpected… no expectations with art! Not everything we create will be something we want to frame or sell. But if we stick to the prices as our true, then we will find treasure. It’s that simple really. Show up and put the brush to paper. Explore. Allow the element of chance to enter into your work—it’s the breath of spirit that brings our work presence, poetry and life.

Learn more about Kateri’s work on Instagram @kateriewing and online at www.kateriewing.com/Kateri is the author of Drawing Is for Everyone (new!), Watercolor Is For Everyone, and Look Closer, Draw Better.

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