Katie Petersen, a Nebraska-based visual artist, draws inspiration from her formative years on the border of Omaha. Petersen was born with a deep curiosity to her environment, spending much of her childhood exploring the forested areas and the lakes of her home. Experiencing horseback riding, track and swimming along with other athletic pursuits was a staple in growing up. Through her artistic practice, she transforms the physicality of movement into compelling visual narratives. Petersen's creative mediums are with oil, watercolor, pastel, ink drawings in addition to writing.
The foundations of Petersen's artistic practice emerged during her high school years, later developing her distinctive style and technical mastery of oil on canvas and color through her undergraduate studies. As her work began to mature she developed an interest in figurative work and watercolor both describing the literal physicality of the body and the internal space that the body occupies within our consciousness. As an arts educator, she dedicates herself to fostering creative development and artistic literacy in others while also encouraging her students to look inwards and think deeply about what it is they wish to express with their work.
Her artistic vision is enriched by international residencies, including a transformative stay in Finland's wilderness and studies of medieval artistic practices in France. These experiences have deeply influenced her contemporary work through the integration of traditional techniques and diverse cultural perspectives of female bodies and the expectation of being a woman.
Beyond her studio practice, Petersen demonstrates a strong commitment to community engagement, serving on the board of directors for a women's domestic violence shelter, where she holds the distinction of being a founding member and board member. At the shelter Petersen has plans to not only create a safe place for women and children but to also empower women through art education. Her dedication to social causes extends to supporting local charity drives that assist families in need within the county.
My artistic practice explores the dialogue between mind and body through meditation and chronic pain management, influenced by my experience with scoliosis. I approach repetitive exercises—swimming, biking, and running—as forms of moving meditation that both heighten and selectively dim bodily awareness, creating a delicate balance in pain perception.
Working from X-ray foundations, my paintings capture figures in various stages of exercise, building layers that reflect this physical meditation practice. I experiment with texture, brushwork, and color relationships: vibrant, expressive strokes represent mental states, while muted, softer marks evoke bodily consciousness, all interacting with underlying X-ray imagery.
Drawing inspiration from Futurism, I create sequential compositions by selecting frames from exercise recordings, arranging them to convey the meditation experience. Through transparent papers, luminous color relationships, and layered figures, my work demonstrates the transformative power of meditation and physical awareness.
Using transparent materials and layered imagery, I illuminate how meditation serves as both sanctuary and resistance. My recent work extends to examining societal pressures on women's bodies and minds, exploring how meditation practices can offer both refuge and empowerment.
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