Kristin Kjorlaug

Notes

  • Thomas Hendrich Kjorlaug

    Thomas Hendrich Kjorlaug

    listens to the story of the mustard seed.

    What I see in this painting

    Yes, Thomas would have heard from the big Book like a good Norwegian Lutheran. His grandfather had even helped build the little church building near the farm. It was his sister though, that told Dorothy all it’s stories, and she told them to my father, who in turn told me. 

    My Norwegian ancestors lived on a farm in Norway in a small region called Kjorlaug. The 4 Rosemaling seed paintings are from bits and pieces of stories my Norwegian grandmother told. Thomas was my great grandfather.

    Norwegian Rosemaling is an ancient Norwegian folk art taught to me by my grandmother. 

    What is underneath this painting

    “He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.””

    Matthew 13:31, 32 NIV

    What will it look like to be a follower of Jesus? A tiny seed, Jesus says, that’s what it will look like. As it grows it will weave it’s heart shaped leaves in and through and around all the empty places until it can’t be gotten rid of. You may cut down one part while another part is vivaciously climbing in a place you can’t reach—a huge nuisance weed to some but a haven to others. 

    This art series began on a rabbit trail I was trekking down to find trees in the Bible (there are so many!!!) I love trees, but four arrested my attention and became the subjects for this Rosemaling seed series. Trees are a picture God often uses to describe humans and these four—the date palm, the almond tree, the oak, and the mustard— are how God pictorally described the righteous (those who follow Him). Now when I look at these trees, I feel seen and described by my God. The trees were brought back to seed form in the creation of these pieces because spring was coming when I made them, and I was so looking forward to it. —Kristin

    8×10 inches. Watercolor & Ink
    Part of a series of 4 seeds paintings

    If the title does not say [SOLD] then this piece is still available. I am willing to do prints of [SOLD] artwork only. Contact me if interested in Thomas Hendrich or the Seed Series.

  • Kimball [SOLD]

    Kimball [SOLD]

    Dorothy married Kimball—artist and engineer entwined to create a new thing that never could have existed before.

    My grandpa fixed everything on a dime and squeezed quarters out of our ears while doing it (yes, he literally pulled quarters out of my ears every time I saw him as a kid). Whatever object, he could find the problem and remedy it, ten times better.

    So when my grandmother said she wanted to etch her artwork into brass ornaments, Grandpa made the chemical etching baths, brass coaters, and buffers to create thousands of ornament and a decade of artistic business for my grandmother. 

    Her handiwork was delicate scrolls and wings, his was machinery.

    I named this piece of artwork “Kimball” to honor my grandfather and all the people like him behind the scenes. This art piece is a cohesion of artist and engineer, interweaving precision and flow. Dorothy took on Kimball’s name in marriage, the “C” hidden in the artwork is for Cummings. The union of two vastly different people enabled an artistic dream to become a reality.

    To those who support creatives and run the “machines” behind the beauty, I submit this piece of art to you. I see you. And it makes my heart sing to know that it’s hanging on the wall with someone who walked those awkward growing up years with me and supports me to this very day still.

    KK

  • Dorothy [SOLD]

    Dorothy [SOLD]

    “Name your paintings”

    they said, but naming something is one of the hardest tasks I’ve ever taken on as a human. It is also a great honor—one I will hold respectfully every time a new thing comes to life and needs naming.

    It is with great nostalgia that I begin by introducing you to a painting named “Dorothy.” Painting for me began with Dorothy, my grandmother. She was the first real artist I knew and the first to sit and paint with me for hours upon hours. She was the first to make me practice a paint stroke a hundred times and the first to introduce me to exotic names like burnt umber and raw sienna.

    This painting began with a bright red petaled flower reminiscent of my grandmother’s gorgeous red hair and firey spirit. She was power and grace. I surrounded the flower with the Norwegian Rosemaling paint strokes that she taught me. Rosemaling is an ancient folk art that Dorothy’s family brought over from Norway a generation before her. She studied the art regularly and adored her Norwegian heritage, so much so that she took on the family farm name—Kjorlaug— as her artist name.

    I used watercolor as my medium instead of the oil paint she taught me with, because I’m exploring and trying to find my art loves. Watercolor is fast becoming a favorite.

    It is a joy to know that this painting found a home January 2022.

    And so it begins…

    KK

  • A Digital Word for Physical Art

    A Digital Word for Physical Art

    It would be true to say that we’re all a little tired of words. I am.

    But put pictures with the words and I’m listening again. (Am I the only adult that still wants to read books with pictures?)

    Pictorial Art has the innate job of storytelling. This often requires some words. I can’t fully tell the story of someone else’s art but I can mine.

    As I tell the story of each piece of art, I am inviting you into my place and we’re walking around looking at the art I’ve hung on the walls—digitally or physically.

    So welcome…