Kelly Pennington
Contact:
Kelly Pennington
P.O. Box 73
Goodwell, OK 73939
Phone:
(580) 272-3442
Email:
Website:
Discipline:
Visual Arts
Participants:
Adolescents
Adult
Elementary
Older Adult
Youth at Risk
Settings:
Art Centers
Elementary Schools
High Schools
Middle Schools
Availability:
Evenings
School-year
Summers
Weekdays
Weekends
Year-round
Bio:
Kelly Pennington is an Oklahoma artist who paints from her love for the outdoors. East central Oklahoma is where she began. She currently resides in the Oklahoma panhandle, where she finds her subjects in the rural country. Grazing livestock, country backroads, and the ever-changing seasonal color palettes in the local landscapes keep her engaged. Pennington paints on location and in the studio on larger complicated works.
Outdoor painting (plein air) has been a strong force in Pennington’s training. Durin the first several years of her artistic career, she painted extensively out of the back of her car, referencing sunrises, trees, and clouds as subjects as she observed and scouted the beauty around her. She loves traveling and painting unfamiliar places. After returning home, she sees her rural countryside with new eyes.
Pennington paints with the highest quality oils in an alla prima (one setting) approach. Her colorful and energetic marks are applied to linen panels on location or large cradle boards with linen in the studio. Close observation of her paintings reveal a variety of brushstrokes and textures with a structured underlying design.
I paint landscapes, animals and structures that capture me emotionally in a representational style. Studying from life is an important portion of my painting process. I am always scouting for interesting compositions along the country sides of rural Oklahoma. Some places I will revisit to paint in different seasons. When I find a interesting location, I will get out of the car and wonder around to see if it’s a place worth spending time with. If the art principles align with my emotions, I will set up my minimal painting gear: outdoor easel, organized palette, bristle brushes and linen panel. I am organized so that I can freely connect to that environment with no distractions. Through these painting experiences, I have developed a keen eye of what happens to light, color, and values within the earth elements. I am noting accurate color spots, editing what is not important and exaggerating what needs to speak. My brush action has more energy because my senses are in overdrive as I pace back and forward to the easel. Oils are my preferred medium because of its thin transparent and opaque brushstroke qualities. When I’m finished painting, I’ll take my studies back to the studio along with photographs of subjects that will not sit still. My outdoor brush mileage has been beneficial to my confidence in painting nature. I have built in a mental file full of outdoor experiences and knowledge. This file allows me to better plan and create larger refined works in the studio. I compare painting outdoors to seeing a live concert. Would you rather see the live concert in person or a concert on tv?
Learning Goals:
Programs include Drawing and Observation, Exploring Light vs. Shadows using the Power of Charcoal, Experimenting with Watercolor and Mixing Color, Exploring our Natural Environment through Plein Air Painting, and Design through Mosaic. My goals for my students are to Experiment, Explore and Experience Visual Art. I want them to have a better understanding of the medium and process. They will exercise their own unique perspective and realize art is just another form of language.