KENNEDY HARWOOD

Personal Spells and Myths

Kennedy Harwood is working towards her BFA in Painting at Boston University. There, she also minors in Western Art History and Arts Leadership with the goal of working with an arts organization or museum following graduation. Born in Wisconsin, she returns home between semesters to spend time with family and immerse herself in the Midwestern greenery. Kennedy’s recent work explores the inextricable ties between human activity and the natural world.

 ARTIST STATEMENT

In my paintings, I hope to create imagery that is as transformative of space as installative, textile, or other large-scale works. I strive to paint both what is and is not visible - the music, the emotion, the ever changing quality of being alive - these are all as much part of the visuals as figures, domestic objects, and the natural world. Combining these conceptual elements helps me find a kind of magic through painting.

I see music as a key source of inspiration; I want to create paintings that crescendo and surprise like my favorite songs. Painting at a larger scale and using expressive mark-making have helped me connect my visual work to a fully immersive, temporal experience of art making and art viewing. This all encompassing kind of approach means nothing is off limits when I paint. Everything that I come across in daily life has the potential to be explored through an almost mystical lens.

By lifting up everyday objects and imbuing them with a magic feeling, I am directing and recording the mythology of my own life. I hope the familiarity of these objects and experiences encourages others to approach their life in a way that is not self-aggrandizing, but appreciative of small moments of magic.

ARTIST BIOGRAPHY

Kennedy Harwood (she/they) is a young artist working towards her BFA in Painting at Boston University. There, they also minor in Western Art History and Arts Leadership with the goal of working with an arts organization or museum following graduation. Born in Wisconsin, she returns home between semesters to spend time with family and immerse herself in the Midwestern greenery.

While they are passionate about figurative and portrait-based painting, Kennedy’s recent work also explores the inextricable ties between human activity and the natural world. Their time studying abroad in Italy spurred on this thematic investigation, as well as allowed them to develop a way of painting that evokes cinematic imagery through the use of transparent layers. Further, her four months abroad enriched her knowledge of art history and deepened her appreciation for the artistic lineage in which she is able to participate. www.kennedyharwood.com