About
Hi, it’s me
I’m an INFP, an introvert, artist at heart, designer by trade and entrepreneur by default (much to my husband’s dismay who’s a finance guy and accountant!). I’m a passionate Anglophile, love history (esp British and ancient history), have to have my tea every morning with milk and sugar of course, love yoga (but need to be more disciplined in making it a practice), and never considered myself an “artist” until I was 28 years old. I’ve also realized that I am a gatherer, (read my post for definition), I’m obsessed with books and magazines, collecting all things visual and all things idea-related. I’m a mess at home with “reminder” piles of things to do, get done or finish (drives my husband NUTS). Definitely the chaos creative type that revels in freedom and going with the flow on a daily basis.
Met my husband when we were 16 years old and haven’t been with anyone else since – not sure that’s good or bad, honestly (think right-brain vs. left-brain typical opposites!), but we are still together after all these years so we must be doing something right! And as we approach our 19th year anniversary, I still can't imagine being with anyone else.
We are also both completely and utterly whipped by our sons, 9 & 5 yrs. They are my joy, my motivation, my soul and my heart. I revel in being their mama.
For all those astro folks, I’m on the double-cusp for both sun and rising (very unusual!) – a Scorpio/Libra, Scorpio/Libra with a Taurus moon . There’s LOTS of water in me but not so overwhelming that I’m drowning all the time. I love personality tests, investigating what makes people tick and what’s their motivation behind their actions, is an obsession of mine (Scorpion of course!), as well as myself. My strength’s finder test revealed my five top strengths are empathy, adaptability, connectedness, ideation and intellection. My fascinate test revealed that my primary trigger (or what motivates me with others) is passion. My secondary trigger is mystique and my dormant trigger (what least motivates me) is prestige.
What certainly gets me up every morning is that search for a deeper connection to why I create and trying to find a reason for my soul’s purpose here in this lifetime. Somehow, being a woman, creativity is at the core of who I am. And I believe that’s so crucial for all women to recognize and cherish. How that expresses and translates into the world is the exciting part. And sharing it and learning from others is the essence of being a woman in this unique creative community. What a blessing!
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and all the professional stuff . . .
Kathryn Neale holds a BA (Studio Art, Graphic Design) from Principia College in Elsah, IL, a MA (Painting and Drawing) from Eastern Illinois University (Charleston, IL) and an MFA in Visual Art (Painting) from Washington University in St. Louis, MO. She was awarded the Louis Roblee McCarthy Scholarship, the Helen Faibish Memorial Scholarship Award for Graduate Sponsorship, and the Belle Cramer Graduate Art Award during her two years at Washington University.
Her artwork has been exhibited at the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum (St. Louis, MO), Des Lee Gallery (St. Louis), Bruno David Gallery (St. Louis), the Lemp Brewery (St. Louis, MO), Townsend Wolfe Gallery (AK), Chesterfield Arts Center (Chesterfield, MO), University Art Gallery at Eastern Michigan Universty (Ypsilanti, MI), Miami University (Miami, OH), Riverside Art Museum (Riverside, CA), Parks Edge Exhibition Center (Idyllwild, CA), Swope Art Museum (Terre Haute, IN) and the Tarble Arts Center (Charleston, IL). Neale has pieces in the permanent collections of the Indiana State University, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel (Clayton, MO), The Eilan Hotel (San Antonio, TX), The Four Seasons Hotel (Boston, MA), as well as private collections.
Most recent exhibitions include “Pattern” Exhibit at the prestigious Manifest Gallery in Cincinnati, OH (2021), “Abstracted Abstraction” in St. Louis Artists’ Guild (2021), “Summer Exhibition” at Angad Arts Hotel in Grand Center Arts District of Saint Louis (2019), “Art St. Louis XXXIII” in Art St. Louis Gallery (2017), and in Des Peres Hospital featuring 15 local artists' work (2016).
Ms. Neale attended the prestigious Painting’s Edge Residency led by Roland Reiss (Idywild, CA) in 2008 as well as was an advanced level intern at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington DC. She has taught as an adjunct professor at Maryville University (St. Louis, MO) for graphic design and illustration.
Currently, she is a UX/UI Lead Designer at Superlative Technologies in O’Fallon, IL and lives in Weldon Spring (St. Charles), MO with her husband and two sons.
Favorite blog posts
Getting to Know Me
“Trip down Memory Lane” - MFA notebooks http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/7p42rcsclngtsnlty77hffxnlp8j97
“Thank you Kant” - MFA notebooks http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/3xs6ter9feypckldelrf4rjjdfkr7h
“Painting that Changed My Life” (April 24, 2015) http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/775
“Proud to be a Gatherer” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/460
http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/681
“Childhood Games” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/475
“Who am I as an artist” (2015) - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/1314
CREATIVE PROCESS & ART MAKING
“Happy Accidents” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/675
“Getting into a Routine” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/n4rsfantfjwxrcx74tz73gxrjx9dz5
“100 Day Project” (Original) - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/460
“Creative Process, Mindfulness & Ritual” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/rhlnmrrekjggr7hzlb7rwr9pdj795j
“What is Freestyle Painting (2015)” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/830
10 TIPS
“Paint Ugly Paintings” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/870
“Mark Making” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/nll6n9aefjxkfgw2yn3ynd4xdc972m
“Practice Not Perfection” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/nwjr9zejmxegmbbtpsp7fz5yxk3dm8
“Paint Liek a Kid Again (2015”) - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/874
“Embrace the Blank Canvas (2015)” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/872
IN THE STUDIO: PROCESS OF PAINTINGS:
“Making Rose” (2018) - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/r5krjhgab2rp6pgnf664tzcmrwj958
“Making of French Teal (2018)” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/ml98gzmc8xtxkkp8h7n5w2j34gaphs-38bsl
“How to Make Your Own Christmas Cards (2015” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/1467
“2015 - 1st 25 days of 100 Day Project Milestone” - http://www.kjnstudio.com/kathryn-neale-studio/827