An Exclusive Interview With Kathryn Jacobi

Sleepwalking Through the Apocalypse.

- By Ariel Su

"Over my life as an artist, I have worked on two simultaneous and occasionally overlapping bodies of work. The first derives from direct observation of the "real" world, as I find it. My primary interest here is portraiture (in the broadest sense), and even my still lifes derive from that exacting scrutiny. Whether working from sittings, objects, or photographs, my aim is fidelity to the specific subject in these representational and more traditional paintings. The second body of work comes from the inside out. It bypasses rational observation, instead being an imagined response to the world as I find it." -Kathryn Jacobi

Kathryn Jacobi was born in Manhattan in 1947. She attended U.C.L.A., U.C. Berkeley, and California State University Northridge, where she graduated with B.A. in 1978 and her M.A. in 1980. Kathryn has spent much of her life in California. She presently lives in Santa Monica, building a new studio attached to her home.

Jacobi is a classically trained, contemporary realist painter, printmaker, and photographer who has worked professionally for over 50 years, exhibiting in galleries and museums throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe; her work has been featured in international publications, including in the Art Market Magazine Issue #49 in 2019.

Her unique triptych, "Sleepwalking Through The Apocalypse," attempts to merge her art's traditional and more abstract threads into a melded and original vision. It's a great pleasure to discuss the creation of this absolutely outstanding artwork, the vision behind and to feature some of her wonderful Still Life works of art.