Kim Triedman

Artist Statement

Collage is a kind of visual poetry. It seeks coherence in disorder, elegance amidst anarchy.

I am a published poet and novelist. I began working in collage as a way to further indulge my fascination with story.

From the start I’ve found it incredible to see how two distinct images – placed in proximity – can create a totally new and unexpected energy. For me it’s exactly like writing poetry. And it’s this energy that delights me.  It’s this energy I seek to harness in my collages.

Much of my work focuses on issues of gender expectations and historical perceptions of femininity and sexuality. I’m particularly interested in the notion of nostalgia — how old perceptions collide with current societal realities — and the emotional artifacts women continue to carry as a result.

There is a lot of “fragmenting” in my collages: dissociated arms and legs; eyes peering or assessing or spying, mouth’s stuffed, agape, or blacked out. This is something that has just “happened” in my work: it seems to be where I land. No body is entirely intact. Figures are there and not there are the same time. My imagination tends toward the provocative – the visually arresting pairing or detail. A dapper business executive side-eyes a 16th-century Dutch girl, her left hand nested neatly over her belly. A deconstructed Eve in the garden brandishes a perfect, tiny, silver nipple ring.

My pieces have been shown widely in small and large group shows throughout the northeastern United States and earned numerous juror’s awards and mentions. In 2018 I curated and participated in the show “Waste Not,” which was featured as the cover story for ArtScope Magazine (Nov. 2018). My work can be found at kimtriedman.com and in numerous private collections here and abroad. I am also the author of three poetry collections and a novel.

Gallery

Kim Triedman is a visual artist working primarily in collage and mixed media.  She’s exhibited her work at galleries and museums throughout the northeastern and midwestern United States, including Boston and New York City. Her collage and mixed-media pieces have garnered numerous honors and are in several private collections here and abroad.  In addition to being a visual artist, Kim is also a prize-winning poet and novelist, with four published books. She works out of her home studio in Arlington, MA.  

Explore Kim’s work at www.kimtriedman.com and on Instagram at @kimtriedman.  She can also be reached at kimtried@yahoo.com