Kristin Lindseth
Two Time Art Party Participant
Interscena
Artist’s Website
www.KristinLindseth.com
Artist’s Statement
As a sculptor and a printmaker I am drawn to the alchemical nature of the processes in which the final piece is only fully realized in its final material after going through several other material states. Intaglio prints, etched on metal plates in many stages, are complete only after the plates have been inked and run through a press. Likewise, bronze sculptures go through different states of being; existing in clay, wood or other materials before being made into wax, which is next burned and melted away, and the hollow shell is filled with molten metal. The final material state always contains an element of discovery. In my work I begin with drawings and eventually use all of the above mentioned materials in a layered process to create the final result in bronze.
The sculptures that I create include heads, figures and fragments. They spring from deeply felt personal experience and from the experience of people who I am close to. Yet they deal with the universal experience of being human. As one writer recently said, “Kristin’s sculptures are borderless”. They deal with the life experience of men and women of diverse cultures, ages, and backgrounds, particularly with respect to inner experience and relationships. The audience that I hope to reach includes people of all backgrounds.
The sculptural heads that I create are constructions which include architectural elements and animal and nature references. They relate the individual to universal concepts. In some cases, these pieces investigate the boundaries between the self and the outer world, and between the self and the collective unconscious, but they are all primarily about inner experience.
Symbols and metaphors used in my sculptures include labyrinths and mazes, which have been used throughout art history as a metaphor for the individual’s journey in life. “Labyrinth of Time” is a meditation on the psychological and spiritual journey that is taken inwardly to find a true and complete life. The “Labyrinth of Time”, which is the title of both a sculpture and several prints that I have made, refers to the choices made in life which define that life, a theme from existentialism. Certain choices, if made through naivete or recklessness of youth, can lead down such dark tunnels in the labyrinth that it can take years to extricate oneself. These dark places of the mind or chambers in the labyrinth, difficult as they may be, bring wisdom, and once the pathway to the center is regained, that wisdom can be used as a gift of connection to the experience of others. If the way is lost, the labyrinth becomes a maze instead and one may never reach the center. Time is the constant that hangs over us all.
Duality is another theme explored in my sculpture. “Union of Opposites”, which expresses the idea that a union of opposites in a relationship produces a stronger and richer union. Both in relationship with another and within our individual selves, there is a constant struggle for balance between dual aspects of our natures. The passions which are necessary to the creative life threaten to take us down paths of imbalance and be confronted by the need for introspection and restraint, which allows for greater depth of thought, imagination and sensitivity. This duality inherent in life is here represented by cultural and mythological symbols. The Quetzalcoatl or plumed serpent of the Aztec world and modern Mexico, a culture of passions and demonstrative personalities, is here tangled with the crane, a cultural symbol of Japan, which is a culture of restraint and serenity. This duality is in all individuals.
Inner alchemy, the art of inner transformation, is the theme of some of my most recent sculptures. Inner alchemy is the process through which we reach our full potential and transcend our original individual boundaries in life. It is the psychological and spiritual travel along the path of life, through trials, injuries, relationships, alienation, happiness and sorrow, through the known and the discoveries made in the unknown, that leads to center. It is the taking of our destinies in hand, and following a path which is unique for each of us and often arduous, which ultimately, hopefully, brings about an alchemical transformation.
About the Artist
Kristin Lindseth is a sculptor, printmaker and educator. She lives and works in the south bay area, and her work has been represented in over 85 exhibitions regionally, nationally and internationally. Among the museums which have shown her work are: Peninsula Museum of Art, Burlingame, California; Solo Exhibition 2016, Morris Graves Museum, Eureka California; Solo Exhibition 2013, Los Gatos Museum of Art, Los Gatos, California; Solo Exhibition 2011, Marin Museum of Contemporary Art (Marin MOCA), Marin, California, the Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara, California, the Euphrat Museum, Cupertino, California, the Haggin Museum, Stockton, California and the Palm Springs Museum, California.
Kristin’s work has been represented by Vorpal Gallery and Freeman Gallery in Palo Alto; Oakland Museum Collectors Gallery; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Rental Sales Gallery; Group 21 Gallery and Solo Gallery, Los Gatos; Collector’s Gallery, Morris Graves Museum, Eureka; and Sandra Lee Gallery, San Francisco. Recently her sculpture was exhibited at Yianna Grammatopoulu Gallery in Athens, Greece.
Kristin Lindseth’s sculptures and printmaking are included in private collections throughout Europe and the United States. Currently her sculpture is represented by Sandra Lee Gallery and by the Morris Graves Museum Collector’s Gallery. She is a member of the International Sculpture Society, Pacific Rim Sculptors, and Nordic Five Arts.
Kristin serves as Instructor of Studio Art at Mission College in Santa Clara and at the Triton Museum in Santa Clara. She has served as guest lecturer for DeAnza College, Mission College, and UC Berkeley Extension.
Kristin Lindseth has received numerous awards and critical reviews for her sculpture and printmaking and has published four exhibition catalogs:
• Inner Alchemy; Sculpture by Kristin Lindseth, Peninsula Museum of Art, 2016
• On Being Human; Sculpture and Painting by George Rivera and Kristin Lindseth Rivera, Morris Graves Museum, 2013
• George Rivera: A Journey of Faith and Hope, Los Gatos Museum of Art, 2012
• Kristin Lindseth Rivera; Sculpture, Los Gatos Museum of Art, 2011