Statement

In my passion to understand the emotional, psychological, and physical forces which continually shape our lives, I instill the feel of these universal forces into my paintings, drawings, and prints. I begin each work with a desire to explore a primal sensation by funneling its energy into materials and objects from both the natural world and human processes. I build multiple layers of translucent glazes to express these sensations within the lush sensuality of oils. As each painting evolves, I add ground semi-precious stones, metallic leaf, found objects, or other materials to deepen the sense of mystery. I then imbed healing sound frequencies into the paint in an ancient Tibetan Bon tradition that I learned during my years of studies with Asian lamas, monks and scholars. I was given the sacred transmission which enabled me to imbed these frequencies into wet paint which will continue to emanate healing vibrations long after the paintings have dried. In my mixed media works on paper, I blend pollen, ash, ink, 24k gold leaf with other materials to build complex surfaces, and often use a blowtorch or candle flames to transform surfaces into a new version of their former selves in my own process of alchemical transformation. My mixed media art is a sensual expression of the richness of our human cultural diversity in our metaphysical and physical realities around the world.

Bio

Kathleen Trestka is a mature artist who has been working in oil and mixed media painting and works on paper, printmaking, and photography. After her early adult years as a self-taught artist, Trestka attended Smith College as a non-traditional aged student. As the granddaughter of immigrants fleeing political persecution, she is the first in her family to attend college. Trestka graduated with a BA, summa cum laude, Fine Art and Phi Beta Kappa from Smith in 1995. She continued her studies at the Provincetown Fine Arts Work Center and Ligmincha International, and elsewhere. Her work has been exhibited in galleries, museums, and nonprofit spaces, and is in private collections. Trestka’s work has most recently been exhibited at Bendheim Gallery in Greenwich, CT curated by Brinda Kumar, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, as well as at Cape Cod Museum of Art, Dennis, MA, and Manhattan Arts International, NY, NY. She has exhibited in numerous other galleries, juried exhibitions, nonprofit spaces, and art museums in New England and NYC throughout her life.

Trestka was awarded residency grants to attend several art colonies including as a solo artist-in-residence at the Art Complex Museum in Duxbury, MA. She later returned to develop and curate a youth community outreach program for several years based on the museum’s permanent collection. Her work has been featured on WGBB Springfield News Center 40, on “The Artist Hour” on Boston-area PAC/TV Channel 40, and in an Allston Street Production Independent film. Her art has been on the covers of The Current, Journal of Art and Politics and Naugatuck Review, and included in the anthology “Textured Lives, Anthology of Women Artists and Writers.” She recently retired from decades as an art critic and writer and as a master-level shamanic and sound healing therapist in private practice, wellness centers, and hospitals. Kathleen Trestka maintains a studio in the tri-state area of Connecticut and welcomes studio visits by appointment.

 Extended Bio

Kathleen Trestka is a multidisciplinary artist living and working in her studio in Connecticut. She works primarily in oils and mixed-media painting and works on paper, as well as in printmaking and photography. Her work has most recently been exhibited at Cape Cod Museum of Art, Manhattan Arts International in NY, NY and the Bendheim Gallery in Greenwich, CT. She has exhibited at Paula Barr New York, and Studio 609 in Chelsea, NY,NY, The Art Complex Museum and Snug Harbor Gallery in Duxbury, MA, Provincetown Art Museum and Four Eleven Gallery in Provincetown, MA, Smith College Art Museum Symposium, Hosmer Gallery and Hillyer Gallery in Northampton, MA, Russell Gallery in Plymouth, MA, Taber Art Gallery and Canal Gallery in Holyoke, MA, Grubbs Gallery, Easthampton City Arts, d.Art Gallery, and New City Art in Easthampton, MA, Windham Art Gallery and Canyon Crossing Gallery in Brattleboro, VT, and in other galleries, juried exhibitions, and alternative spaces.

Trestka was a 6-week Solo Artist-In-Residence at The Art Complex Museum in which she exhibited her work, gave public talks, and held open studios. Smith College awarded her a Praxis Grant to mentor a Smith fine art student in a 220-hour internship program for hands-on studio art and business instruction to assist Trestka in preparation for a museum exhibition. She was twice awarded a Vermont Studio Center Residency Grant and received a Massachusetts Cultural Council Grant to develop a museum community outreach program.

Her mixed-media work on paper was featured on the 6pm & 10pm News on WGBB Springfield News Center 40 in which she was interviewed about her transformative process of drawing with fire. Trestka’s paintings were featured in the Allston Street Production independent film “The Death of David,” and in which the Emmy award-winning director commissioned her to create new art to deepen the film’s narrative. Her art has been included in “Textured Lives, Anthology of Women Artists and Writers,” on the cover of Naugatuck River Review, and on the cover of The Current, Journal of Art and Politics. She was featured in a solo interview for “The Artist Hour” on PAC/TV Channel 40 which aired on Boston-area stations. Her art has been reviewed in numerous publications and is in collections in the US and Europe.

Kathleen Trestka was invited to speak about the creative process in a Smith College advanced seminar and is a published poet and writer. She has been both Art Editor and Associate Poetry Editor for Naugatuck River Review, was commissioned to redesign and write the New York State Art Teacher Certification Test, and has been both a juror and judge for numerous fine art and poetry competitions including a regional art exhibition in the Massachusetts State House, Boston. She has been a freelance art critic publishing reviews of museum and gallery exhibitions in New England, and as a Board of Directors member has written all press reviews for the nonprofit Helen Bumpus Gallery in the Duxbury Public Library, Duxbury, MA. Trestka co-designed “Complex Collaborations,” an ongoing community youth outreach program based on the permanent collection in the Art Complex Museum in which she taught and curated exhibitions for several years.

Kathleen Trestka attended Greenfield Community College as a Fine Art major before transferring to Smith College where she graduated with a BA, summa cum laude, Fine Art in 1995, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and received departmental awards for her writing in poetry, nonfiction, and fiction. She has continued her studies at the Provincetown Fine Arts Work Center, Ligmincha International, and numerous literary conferences. She recently retired from over twenty years as a therapist and teacher working in energy medicine and sound healing in private practice, wellness centers, hospitals, and works full-time in her studio. She welcomes both virtual and in-person studio visits by appointment.

CV available on request