Kathleen Theriault is an artist whose abstract paintings explore the deep relationship between place and the essential elements of art: line, value, shape, color, and texture. Her process is organic and intuitive, beginning with no preconceived image and evolving as she interacts with her materials.
“Mexican Terrain” 15”x22” oil and cold wax on Arches Oil paper
Theriault approaches each canvas with openness, letting go of rigid expectations. She plays with paint and collage elements, allowing the interaction between mediums to shape the direction of the work. This method keeps her process fluid, ensuring that each piece remains fresh and unexpected. She sees painting as an evolving conversation—one where she listens as much as she creates. The results are layered, textured compositions that capture both movement and stillness, offering viewers a space to reflect and connect.
The Work: Layers of Experience
“My art is an exploration of life, translated through layers of paint and personal experience,” says Theriault. Her pieces are not just abstract forms but reflections of emotion, memory, and place. Each painting is a dialogue between intention and improvisation, shifting dynamically as it develops.
Theriault is deeply inspired by nature. Not as a literal subject, but as a guide to rhythm, tone, and mood. Her process mimics nature’s unpredictability—storms that roll in without warning, rivers that carve their own paths, and seasons that shift seamlessly from one to the next. She allows her paintings to unfold in a similar way, responding to the movement of paint on the surface rather than forcing a direction.
Color is central to her work. She selects palettes based on mood, allowing hues to evoke emotion before form takes shape. Some pieces pulse with warm, sunlit tones, while others lean into the cool, meditative blues of twilight. The way she layers colors—sometimes blending softly, sometimes colliding in contrast—creates energy and depth. These choices transform her landscapes into something both familiar and dreamlike, offering a sense of place that is deeply personal yet universally resonant.
“Salish Wish” Tiny Series 3”x4” oil and cold wax on arches oil paper
Finding the Image Within
Theriault’s work begins with pure abstraction. A canvas covered in washes of color, gestural marks, and collaged textures. But as she continues, a structure emerges. She sees something—a shape, a path, a hint of land or sky—and refines it. Some paintings remain completely abstract, while others take on the qualities of a distant horizon, a quiet field, or shifting waters.
Her approach is not about representation, but rather capturing an impression. The landscapes she paints are not specific locations, yet they feel like places we have seen before. They are memories rather than maps—fragments of experience rather than fixed destinations.
She believes that this ambiguity invites viewers to engage with the work in a more personal way. Without clear definition, there is room for interpretation. A painting might remind one person of a childhood beach, another of a mountain range seen in passing. In this way, Theriault’s paintings become shared experiences—individual yet collective.
Art as Reflection
There is a meditative quality to Theriault’s work. The layers of paint build slowly, each one affecting the next. She embraces the moments when the painting takes an unexpected turn, shifting direction from her initial intent. These surprises, she says, are often where the most powerful elements emerge.
She does not seek to control every detail. Instead, she lets the work guide her, trusting that the process itself will lead to something meaningful. This openness results in paintings that feel both spontaneous and deeply considered.
Her hope is that her work offers viewers a space for contemplation. “I seek out scenes that invite reflection and provide respite,” she says. “I want my paintings to evoke memories of cherished places, inspire dreams of future destinations, and offer a meditative escape into the beauty of the natural world.”
In a fast-moving world, her art invites us to pause. To step into a moment of quiet, to let the colors and textures wash over us. To feel, even for a moment, that we are somewhere familiar, even if that place only exists in our minds.
