Artist Bio
Hiya! I’m Kimberly Zahler, a multi-disciplinary artist based in Pittsburgh, PA. With a career spanning music, digital design, strategy, and art, I delight in finding opportunities and new ideas between disciplines. Life is too short to only focus on one thing!
Being a polymath is tons of fun. What’s that, you ask? “A polymath is an individual with wide-ranging knowledge and skills across different fields.” (Thank you, Wikipedia!)
I firmly reject the idea that I should only do or be one thing. We each contain multitudes of possibility inside us. I believe people are brilliant enough to understand multiple things—therefore, my job is to present my work and point of view through a narrative arc that is engaging and approachable.
Since childhood, I have loved the subtle nuances between colors and learning how things work. I also spent many hours exploring my imaginary worlds. Now, I bring all of those together into luscious botanicals, dreamy landscapes, and intriguing abstracts.
I hope to serve as an example and friendly kick-in-the-pants to anyone else in mid-life (or beyond) who has always wanted to do or create something. Get started—this world needs your creativity, too!
When I’m not painting, wrangling creative code, or facilitating group work sessions, you’ll find me exploring my neighborhood, at the library checking out another dozen books, or cuddling with my darling cat, Minerva.
Artist Statement
Everything is connected. I take great joy in focusing on tiny details and then zooming out to see the big picture. My brain thinks in systems, rhythm, and fractals.
I paint what has captured my imagination and sparked wonder for me. Creating art helps me trust my instincts, see things more clearly, and take power in my decisions.
I believe humans are limitless in our capacity for creativity and development. Drawing from diverse areas of knowledge and skill results in innovative problem-solving and opportunity-finding. We are more than mindless consumers.
Regardless of medium, I use historical practices and principles for artmaking as a deliberate act of rebellion against consumerism and technology overreach in our lives. Exploring different mediums enables new possibilities for expression and connection.
My work invites viewers to slow down, notice connections and details, and consider the world from a new point of view. To sit with apparent paradoxes and be open to wonder.
Viewers are encouraged to fire up their own imagination and to act on their wisdom in ways that make the world a more caring place. I welcome you creating your own meaning from this work—we will create the art and its meaning together!
Education
Master of Arts (MA) in Emergent Digital Practices
University of Denver
Denver, Colorado
Postgraduate Flute Performance & Pedagogy
The Flute Studio with Trevor Wye
Kent, England
Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Flute Performance
George Fox University
Newberg, Oregon