Kiki SlaughterKK Harris
Make no oversight about it: Kiki Slaughter is an artist at heart. The Richmond, Virginia–based painter-turned-textile designer is on a mission to make the world a additional lovely spot. “I am most influenced by the very act of staying innovative,” she tells Enterprise of Dwelling. “I try to make get the job done that will make the viewer come to feel something optimistic and with any luck , share that spark of energy that producing the painting gave me.”
She initial commenced experimenting with artwork at the tender age of 7, when she first encountered painting as a result of her mentor, Karen Shea. “She was an incredible artist and taught me almost everything she could about different artwork mediums and models,” says Slaughter of Shea. “She showed me that currently being a specialist artist was attainable.”
Slaughter analyzed art record at the College of Virginia just before enrolling at Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London, where by she acquired a master’s degree in modern day art heritage. “The program was structured all over the numerous profession alternatives in the artwork world, from gallery owner to art critic, or do the job at an auction home,” suggests Slaughter. “It was a fascinating practical experience, and I returned dwelling with an even bigger knowing that remaining an artist was the only route for me.”
A expert artist given that 2005, Slaughter always felt her abstract paintings—which function a medley of saturated hues and expressive linework—would translate perfectly into textiles. “Being an artist and operating closely with consumers to identify the ideal painting for a room furnished a pure bridge to interiors, as did decorating my very own home,” she suggests. “I desired to get my art further than the canvas and into other decor.”
An assortment of textiles by Kiki Slaughter KK Harris
This thirty day period, Slaughter launched her inaugural house line, a selection of six cloth and wallcovering patterns based mostly on original artworks. “This series requires my painterly aesthetic to a new medium and will give any place a exclusive artistic contact,” she claims. “I wanted to have a different merchandise to offer to shoppers in addition to my paintings—another way to increase artwork to the household.”
All of Slaughter’s designs begin as mixed-media paintings, which are digitized and turned into repeat designs with the enable of textile printing firm Twenty2. “I pour, scrape and manipulate the paint—adding levels above time till I feel a balanced composition is achieved,” she suggests. “The modest-batch printing system ensures each individual piece seems to be and feels like an original get the job done of art.”
A range of samples by Kiki SlaughterKK Harris
Get, for instance, her Dots sample, which offers a paint-soaked background contrasted with textured marks to build a present-day alternative to a traditional polka-dot motif. Or Moments, a kaleidoscopic print clad in a rainbow of unruly brushstrokes and amorphous natural styles. “We realized the assortment was completely ready to launch when all of the strike-offs have been sprawled about my studio floor and blended in properly with my coloration-saturated paintings,” states Slaughter.
In addition to textiles, Slaughter also produces commissioned artworks for designers and customers across the country, which include Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Marigold Restaurant at Keswick Corridor in Virginia. “I am extremely encouraged by a perception of location, so it is specifically exciting to come across techniques to seize the accurate essence of a house,” she claims.
Now difficult at function on a number of new patterns, Slaughter has programs to launch a line of lampshades—made in collaboration with a quickly-to-be named lighting artist—later this slide. “I hope to continue on to broaden my portray models into additional collaborations,” she states. “I always want to be painting and making and doing work on assignments that deliver me these fulfillment.”
If you want to master additional about Kiki Slaughter, check out her web site or follow her on Instagram.
Homepage picture: An assortment of textiles by Kiki Slaughter | KK Harris
