Kari Matuszewski
Artist for Hire; Visual Arts: Crafts, Illustration, Instructor, Jewelry, Mixed Media, Painting
My life has revolved around art for as long as I can remember. It struck a chord with me, made me “feel” something. I have always been drawn to the eccentric and colorful. To me, Art is what makes life interesting.
In high school, I would tell my parents I was going to a friend’s house, but really I was sneaking on the train to New York(I grew up in NJ and NYC was about a 45 minute train ride) and exploring all the creative goodness that the city has to offer. I discovered Frida Kahlo, Keith Haring, Pierre-August Cot (Springtime Lovers on Swing is hands down one of my favorite paintings), Jackson Pollak, and Georgia O’Keefe, to name just a few. The freedom I felt, walking those NYC streets, observing the grittiness of it, the graffiti, the unique cultures, even the yellow cabs, made it clear to me that New York is where I needed to be and that Art was what I needed to be making.
I was accepted into the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York in the Fall of 2003. Accessories Design and Leather Fabrication is what I earned my BFA in. I can’t begin to explain how much I learned and grew from that experience. After graduation, I worked in the fashion industry for about 8 years before I made the very hard decision to move to Illinois to be closer to my family.
Now, I spend my days being a mom, working at a non-profit, and making Art. This wonderful community of Artists has really made making Art and being creative something exciting again for me.
