Artist Statement

Stephanie Kirkland’s abstract expressionist paintings are informed by the many miles she’s spent hiking in remote parts of the globe. Channeling the calm and resilience she feels on the trails, her paintings are characterized by nature-inspired colors and compositions reminiscent of light shining through tree leaves. Mimicking the process of hiking, she embraces the unknown and lets color and exploration drive her work. She rarely pre-plans her paintings but uses layers of color and expressive mark-making to capture mood. Interested in nature as metaphor, her paintings explore themes of resilience, authenticity, and finding beauty in challenge.

Bio

Growing up in the rural South, Stephanie has always been deeply inspired by the landscape. She began painting and hiking in college, and since then, the two have become inseparable—with hiking-inspired color palettes and compositions informing her work. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in painting and English in 2012, and after a brief stint teaching high school in rural Alabama, she began a career in communications. She returned to painting in 2017 longing to expand her own creative work, and spent several years growing her painting practice while working as a magazine editor and communications director. She is now a full-time writer and artist living in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.