The Artists of Heartside Gallery and Studio-- Katalina

Our featured artist for March is Katalina. 

Here's a little bit about the artist in her own words:

‘My name is Katalina and I am an artist.  I’m originally from L.A., grew up in Redondo Beach, but have been in Michigan since ‘79.  I started coming to the Heartside Neighborhood in 1994, while I was living at Hope Community, and started volunteering at Degage.  From there, I met some folks at Heartside Ministry and started going there for church in 1994. Soon after, I became very involved at Heartside, and was doing a lot of volunteering, where needed. I also served on the Board of Directors there. 

Five years ago I was diagnosed with cancer, and have gone through 2 surgeries and lots of radiation.  Family and people from Heartside, especially James Schuen, helped me to get to my appointments and stay with me during my treatments. I have survived with a lot of prayer and support from friends and family.  Thankfully I am very blessed to be the mother of three beautiful and talented daughters: Sarah is 23, Hannah is 18 and Selena is 12.  My heart does belong to the Lord, with Him taking the 1st place in my life. I also have a 1 year old Chihuahua named Lucy, who is a very big part of our family.

My love for Heartside has grown along the way, and I started doing art.  Since 1994 I have grown so much as an artist. It started out as a hobby, but quickly has become a part of who I am as a person.  As an artist, people will often ask me what kind of art I do.  My answer is that I am a self-taught, mixed-media artist.  I use acrylic paints, chalk, pastels, colored pencils, water-colors, ink, found objects and a wide variety of other media that I come across. I don’t limit myself- any medium or found object can be used in creating art.  I also use wood, paper and canvas as a base foundation to work on.  Right now I am really big into creating stories with my collages.  I love using vintage photos from any source, as well as Victorian and modern photos, etc.  I like any photo that speaks to me: of buildings, people, places, dolls and so on.  You can see some of my work online or better yet in person at the studio.  You can find me there Monday through Friday 9am until around 3pm., working on new pieces all the time.  I always enjoy meeting people here and sharing my stories about the pieces I create. 

A final thought: art for me is a very healing power.  Not only do I create something, but I can also express how I feel at that particular moment by telling a new story.

Blessings, peace and love,

Katalina

p.s. Hey don’t throw that away!  I might be able to use it in my art!’

The Artists of Heartside Gallery and Studio is a monthly feature to highlight some of the wonderful people of the Heartside neighborhood.  Visit www.heartside.org and Facebook to keep up with us, to learn about volunteering and other ways to get involved.

Sarah Scott is Arts Coordinator for Heartside Gallery and Studio at Heartside Ministry, and can be reached at [email protected]