Colleen Blackard (b. 1987)

Colleen Blackard is a Brooklyn artist who recently returned home to Austin, TX. She is currently pursuing an MFA in Studio Art at The University of Texas in Austin, and received her BA from Hampshire College, MA. She is a recipient of the Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant and has completed residencies at Atelierhaus Hilmsen, Germany, Cill Rialaig Artist Retreat, Co. Kerry, Ireland, Jentel in Wyoming, and PLAYA in Oregon. Her work has been shown in such venues as ACA Galleries and Owen James Gallery in NYC and Redbud Gallery in Houston. Her drawings are in Pierogi Gallery's Flat Files and she was interviewed for their artists’ Q&A. Her work has also been featured in Drawing Magazine and Artspace.

Artist Statement

I am fascinated by the evolving atmosphere that light creates around transient subjects such as storms, nightscapes, and other emotionally-charged spaces. My work explores the phenomenon of being immersed in these realms. Recalling dreams and memories of the natural world, I utilize methods of printmaking, drawing, painting, and scenic art to connect external and internal landscapes. My finished work becomes a traceable imprint of this exploration.

During my recent month-long residency at Atelierhaus Hilmsen, I used my time to create work inspired by my adventures in Scandinavian woodlands, fjords, and islands. The resulting monotypes are also influenced by the folklore and myths of the region I have been reading during my travels, from Norse mythology to the Norwegian folktales and legends collected by Asbjørnsen and Moe.

In 2021, I traveled to the foothills of the Bighorn range in Wyoming and the Great Basin in Oregon to work directly from the landscape. The resulting prints capture my response to my experiences within these spaces, such as watching the shadow of the new moon rise over a distant ridge while coyotes howl.

During the first winter of the pandemic, I reflected on my recent time in a historic cottage at Cill Rialaig Artist Retreat in Co. Kerry, Ireland. I created a series of monotypes envisioning a moonlit return to the nearby 8th century monastic ruins of Kildreelig. Researching pigments in circulation in early medieval Europe, I used a reduced palette of colors available to the monastery’s residing hermit monks. This series is a contemplation on those who have come before and the space found in their wake.

Colleen Blackard

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