Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Hector.
Hi Katie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up on the east coast and did ungrad at Rutgers University in New Jersey. I spent a number of years in New York making paintings, curating shows, and writing before moving out to California. I initially moved to the west coast during the pandemic to pursue grad school but had to switch gears and I’ve been happily stranded in LA ever since.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Absolutely not! I’ve had to accept so many failures over the years wherein I have a rather large appetite for failure at this point or maybe I have a thick skin. I’ve learned to take risks, huge risks, but also calculated risks. I’ve learned to always bet on myself and my abilities and I’ve learned to sharpen my intuition.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a painter who doesn’t always use paint. I’m starting to ease back into acrylic but I often work in bleach and dye to create portraits of friends, family, lovers, and complete strangers. I developed a style of painting with bleach and dye during the pandemic, it’s a quasi-alchemical process that results in saturated light and dark tones that kind of vibrate. These portraits speak to memory, erasure, and intimacy.
What were you like growing up?
I grew up in a suburb in New Jersey and was often shuttled between industrial warehouse spaces and bucolic farms. I feel like I was a fairly strange kid; always drawing, always going off and getting lost in the woods or in a dumpster. I have always been drawn towards creating, drawing, painting, knitting, and woodworking.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.katiehector.com
- Instagram: @katiehector
