About Kat

Katie Hagen (Kat), neé Mather

Artist as a way of being.

A first glance my practice may seem to be one of a painter. However, unlike traditional painting, which is two-dimensional in its nature, and can generally be defined as the process of applying paint onto a surface, my works interact with their environment and the viewer in a spatial way. One could say my works lie at the interesection between painting, sculpture and architecture.

To fully perceive and experience my works, one must move around them.   

I began ‘Mark Making’ as a young child. At age 16 I travelled to Tuscany to study art as part of the school program ‘Cheshire Art in Tuscany’. It was here, while staying at the Sargiano monastery, located in the beautiful Italian hills of Arezzo, that I first began to understand painting as an integral part of who am I. The monks taught us how to find peace through simple acts of observation. For me, art is something I do, and artist is my state of being.

Henry Millar (American artist / writer, 1891-1980) has a quote that resonates within me - “To paint is to love again, and to love is to live life to the fullest”

My language is visual, tactile, kinetic and sonic, while deeply rooted in the feminine. I am connecting and dissolving the boundaries between I, We and Us. My focus is on feminine energy, the female psyche, our suppressed wisdoms, and redressing the balance between the masculine and feminine energies in society. A balance I believe is fundamentally important if we are to move humanity forward in a holistic way. My current works aim to create an awareness around the oppression of the feminine – and women – our silenced wisdoms, and to give our ability to feel – to sense – a legitimacy as great as our ability to rationalize.

“Art is not neutral. It either upholds or disrupts the status quo, advancing or regressing justice. We are living now inside the imagination of people who thought economic disparity & environmental destruction were acceptable costs for their power.” Adrienne Maree Brown.

I have an extensive knowledge of materials, an understanding of environment, and deep spatial awareness from my former career as an architect. This of course greatly influences how I approach my work. I use texture, light, movement, glass, steel, wire, twigs, fire, water, air, earth, sounds and their inherent properties as ‘paint’ with which I am interpreting and expressing the subtle nuances of felt and embodied emotions. The materiality of the actual canvas / surface one would traditionally paint on, I ‘paint’ with. My canvas is an integral part of my language, and not just a surface. My canvases have no frame. They are tactile, kinetic, and morph (are shaped) in response to both the physical and emotional space from which the works are viewed.

My works are fluid. They embrace the spaces in which they are located.

One could regard my works as living sculptures that change over time in dialog with each other and in response to the physical spaces in which the works are presented. It is rare to find a space where my larger canvases can be displayed in their entire length. They must be temporarily reshaped. They are transformed, merged with and occupy the space. They have a physical presence within a space that is more related to sculpture than painting. 

Member of NBF – Norwegian Sculptors Society

Member of NBK – National Association of Norwegian Visual Artists

ArtCHAT

In 2015 I began ArtCHAT - a 'not for profit' initiative. I initially worked with both local teenagers and those still waiting to be granted asylum in my current hometown, Rjukan, before I expanded and started travelling to other refugee centres and communities in Norway. I believe in the transformative power of art. I use artistic activities and expressive art facilitation as a tool to increase our awareness of self and our connection to others, as well as a tool to create a deeper understanding of identity, place and community. Learn more

Based in Rjukan and Oslo

Tel: +47 92281724 Email : kat@kat-art.no