Artist

Statement

Author and Artist Davida Kilgore’s portrait of Virginia Townsend

Simply put, I paint what I feel and shine light on dark places.

In grandiloquent purple prose, I express my experience with mental health and skills through abstract and figurative art. My visual language feels intuitive and novel, connecting color to mood, activity to internal activation, and intersecting structures to inner unrest. I do this alongside figurative depictions to enhance the viewers’ ability to creatively interpret. Using acrylic paint I paint quickly and efficiently, at the same pace as my thoughts. My palette combines neon, fluorescent and rich, warm earth tones, and contrasting colors to render a full spectrum encounter. Changing mark making tools fosters visual depth and meaning, whether a rugged edge as pain of loss, or rows of lines as repeating behavior.  

I start each painting with an open mind, allowing the creative process to unfold organically.  I let the events of the day and week trickle through my consciousness, guiding how fast I put down a line, the pressure I use, and how many times a section breaks apart. As the painting draws to a close, its message becomes apparent to me. My works contain joy, anger, flashbacks, nightmares, memories, hope, trauma, and coping skills, with an overarching theme of healing.