About Me
Hello, my name is Kaitlin Wilfing, I am an artist and curator, receiving my BFA with an emphasis in Painting and Minor in Psychology in 2018 from Webster University. While getting my undergraduate degree I studied abroad twice in Vienna, Austria first in 2016 for Psychology and again in 2018 for an artist residency program. Shortly after graduating I became a volunteer, and later the Exhibitions Manager, at the Foundry Art Centre in St. Charles, Missouri. Since the pandemic, I've started working at Craft Alliance, the Mildred Lane Kemper Museum at Washington University, and at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation.
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I grew my love for art, craft, art history, and antiquity over the years which has now culminated in my current works. Revolving around the play with found objects, their history, and the layered history of how we make and treat our craft, I aim to tackle specifically the underappreciated labor of women throughout history. Using the interplay of portraiture, positive and negative space, mixed with our contemporary understanding of historic objects and craft, I create works that showcase the many hands that went into every piece. Even the ones that are not my own.
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Object symbolism, historical reference, and color theory are just a few ways I infuse a frame of reference into my work for the viewer to connect with. I'm inspired by the images of Georges de La Tour, Paul Delaroche, William Adolphe Bouguereau, and Artemisia Gentileschi and the expressive techniques of Gerhard Richter, Francis Bacon, and Alma Thomas.
Artist Statement
A granddaughter to immigrants and the rural Midwest, my work has to do with the interwoven narratives of legacies and objects that survive through the generations. Currently I’m using found objects such as lace fabric and doilies, objects that tie to women's labor typically dismissed as frivolous, and giving them new life. I use them as canvas to paint identifying parts of female bodies, giving these objects an 'identity'. While utilizing the negative space of these objects as a reminder of the holes in our own tales and stories, as the spaces we leave behind within our past.
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Education
2018Â Â Â BFA with Studio Emphasis in Painting earned at Webster University in Webster Groves, MO
2018Â Â Â Summer Studio Residency, Vienna Austria
2016Â Â Â Study Abroad in Vienna, Austria, spring semester
2010Â Â Â Missouri Fine Arts Academy Residency Program
Employment
2023-Present    Visitors Associate, Studio Assistant, and Curatorial Research Assistant, Pulitzer Arts Foundation, St. Louis, MO
2023-Present    Visitors Associate, Mildred Lane Kemper Museum, Washington University, St. Louis, MO
2022-2023Â Â Â Â Art Handler, Craft Alliance, St. Louis, MO
2022-2022Â Â Â Â Fine Arts Teacher, DaySpring Arts and Education, Maryland Heights, MO
2019 - 2020Â Â Â Exhibitions Manager, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2018 - 2019    Exhibition Volunteer, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2015Â - 2018Â Â Â Â Studio Assistant, Webster University, Webster Groves, MO
2015 - 2018Â Â Â Office Assistant, Webster University, Webster Groves, MO
Exhibitions
2022 Negative, Intersect Arts Center, St. Louis, MO
2021 March Art Show, Jones Gallery, Kansas City, MO
2019 Visual Thinking: A Drawing Exhibition, Ronald L. Barry Gallery, New Albany, IN
2018 Sisu: A Women's Exhibition, Arcade Contemporary Arts Project Museum, St. Louis, MO
2018 Wegerer Studio Showcase, Mellergasse 4, Vienna, Austria
2018 Confluence: a BFA Exhibition, Arcade Contemporary Arts Project Museum, St. Louis, MO
2014 AP Art Exhibition, Lillian Yahn Gallery, O'Fallon, MO
2010 Missouri Fine Arts Academy Closing Exhibition, Missouri State University, Springfield, MO
Art Fairs
2023Â Â Night Market, Saint Louis Artworks, St. Louis, MO
2023Â Â Holiday Pop Up Shop, Orange Pop Designs, St. Louis, MO
Curatorial Work
2020 - 2021, November - January Paperworks VII, juried exhibition, Main Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020 - 2021, November - January Vibrant Bounty: Chinese Folk Art from the Shaanix Region, Main Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020 - 2021, November - January Thou Art... Will Give..., Eric Kunsman's Emerging Artist Series exhibition, Ameristar Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, October - November Focal Point, juried exhibition, Main Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, October - November Celebrating 100 Years, Gallery III, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, October - November Falling Though The Map, Matt Steiniger's Emerging Artist Series exhibition, Ameristar Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, August - September Global Impact: The Wake of Covid, juried exhibition, Main Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, August - September Determined, Michael Loren Diaz's Emerging Artist Series exhibition, Ameristar Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, March - June Voting Daughters: 100 Years of Women's Suffrage, juried exhibition, Main Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, March - June I Couldn't Sleep Last Night, Tanner Martine's Going solo exhibition, Gallery III, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, March - June Lost & Found, Sue Raker's Emerging Artist Series exhibition, Ameristar Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, January - February Dirty Fingernails IV, juried exhibition, Main Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, January - February ALIVE!, Sharon Hutson's Going solo exhibition, Gallery III, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2020, January - February Shaping Spaces, Jennifer Mishra's Emerging Artist Series exhibition, Ameristar Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2019, December - January Comfort & Joy, juried exhibition, Main Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2019, December - January Saints & Sinners, Leighton McWilliams' Going solo exhibition, Gallery III, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2019, December - January Out of the Past, Michael Cabrera's Emerging Artist Series exhibition, Ameristar Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2019, October - December Quilt National '19: The Best of Contemporary Quilts, Main Gallery, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles, MO
2019, May - July We Made (Pretend) Plans, Susan Campbell's Going solo exhibition, Gallery III, Foundry Art Centre, St. Charles
2018, May - July Confluence: a BFA Exhibition, Arcade Contemporary Arts Project Museum, St. Louis, MO
2018, March - April Sisu: A Women's Exhibition, Arcade Contemporary Arts Project Museum, St. Louis, MO
Publications
2020, September  "Focal Point", STC Now Magazine
2020, January    "Dirty Fingernails IV", STC Now Magazine
2018, February    "'Sisu: A Female Exhibition' Opens at Arcade March 10", Webster University Newsletter
Video Interviews and Media Promotions
Paperworks VII & Vibrant Bounty
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Eric Kunsman's Thou Art... Will Give..
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Focal Point
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Global Impact
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Voting Daughters
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Dirty Fingernails IV
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