Kenneth Hayden

I have a love of nature that began in my childhood on a farm in rural Kentucky which permeates my art today -- but perhaps in less than obvious ways. I have lived in metropolitan areas for most of my adult life, but find myself instinctively looking back to that time for inspiration. My current work features images of birds native to my childhood. Depicted as solitary entities, in small groups, or as distant flocks in flight, these birds are both subjects and catalysts advancing the movement and emotion in the picture. My work often utilizes limited color palettes, deceptively simple shapes, and abstract elements to produce an unexpected visual energy. Utilizing a variety of media -- inks, watercolors, gouache, acrylics or oils -- and working either from self produced photographic studies or manipulating found imagery, my aim is to create a moment to be experienced.

I work in series, with one piece informing the next. A dialogue between the works suggests avenues for reinvention. Referring to earlier images, I begin by identifying what I consider the essential ingredients, and then re-contextualize them into very different paintings. They have a lineage, but also branch off in divergent directions - keeping the newer work "new" while simultaneously maintaining a connective history.

Kenneth Hayden, April, 2011

http:// www.kennethhayden.com/art

Resume

International Contemporary Art Foundation/21C Museum-Hotel, Louisville, KY
Atlas Brown, Louisville, KY
Brown Forman Corporation, Louisville, KY
Brescia College, Owensboro, KY
Cafe Lou Lou, Louisville, KY
Commonwealth Bank, KY
Republic Bank, Louisville, KY
Red Dog Restaurant, Lexington, KY
Tachau Corp., Louisville, KY
University of Louisville, Louisville, KY
Ventas, Chicago, IL and Louisville, KY
Wyatt, Tarrant and Combs, Louisville, KY

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