ARTIST STATEMENT

If energy were a color, contemporary painter Kitty Parakh would know how to mix it.

Along with exuberant color, Kitty’s bold, expressionistic style of painting brings abstractions to life. Her art shows the depth and quality of her thinking,
reflecting an awareness of life as both brilliant and fragile.

Kitty Parakh was born in Calcutta, India in 1950. Her maternal grandfather was
a sculptor and she grew up demonstrating an aptitude for artistic expression.
She came to the United States in 1988 with her husband and children and
earned her M.A. in Fine Arts from Marshall University in West Virginia. While
there, she exhibited in a number of places and was very involved in the arts
community. She moved to New Orleans in 2001 where she continues to paint,
show her work and share ideas with other artists.

She draws inspiration from her Indian heritage, as well as from nature, life
experiences and travel. Before beginning a painting, Kitty thinks, reads,
doodles, daydreams images – in fact, her mental preparation is the hallmark of
her approach to abstract art. The more abstract the painting, the more time
she spends mulling over the direction it will take. The complexity of her
thinking and preparation is hidden beneath the simplicity of the painted image
on canvas.

For Kitty, art is a process from which all people can gain insight. To make a
visual connection with the viewer is her reason for painting. For those who
enjoy her work, her paintings stand the test of time. Currently a sojourn to
France has rejuvenated her love for the “figurative in light” and it has added a
new dimension to her representational series.

Kitty Parakh invites you to share in her world. “I want you to know my energy,
my thoughts and ideas and see the creative process in the image itself.”

RESUME

Juried Exhibits of Recent Works

· Multi Media National Exhibit, Union Art Gallery, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 2005
· Art with a Southern Drawl, University of Alabama, Mobil, AL 2004
· St. Mary Arts & Humanities Council, LA  2004 1st Place Mixed Media
· Morgan City Art Show, Morgan City, LA 2003 1st Place Mixed Media (Juror Rene Ghirardi)
· Artists Guild Unlimited, Morgan City, LA 2003 2nd Place Mixed Media, 3rd Place Oils (Juror Sara Parker)
· Slidell Art League,  41st Regional Juried Exhibition (Juror Susan Brunner) Slidell, LA 2003
· Terrybone Fine Arts Guild, Houma, LA 2003 Creative Award & Merit Awards.
· West Bank Art Guild, New Orleans, LA 2003, 2002 First, Second places.
· Crescent City Brewhouse, West Bank Guild, New Orleans, LA 2003
· Cardinal Valley Show,  Ashland, KY  2000, 1999 and 1995 with Merit Awards
· Allied Artists Exhibit,  Sunrise Museum, Charleston, WV  1998
· The Town House Gallery Show,  Sistersville, WV  1998 & 1996
· The Juried Show at the Cultural Center,  Charleston, WV  1997
· Crosscurrents, Wheeling, WV  1997

Private Exhibitions

· Private Exhibit, Ochsner Art Foundation, New Orleans, LA – 2004, 2011.
· House of Ruth, St. Charles Ave, New Orleans, LA - 2010.
· BECA Gallery, Private Group Show, New Orleans, LA - 2009.
· Chairish the Children, Louisiana Children’s Museum, New Orleans, LA - 2005.
· Solo Exhibit, Galerie Royale, New Orleans, LA – 2004.
· Private Group Show: La Petite XI, Alder Gallery – Coburg, OR – 2004.
· Private Group Show: Abstractions – New Orleans, LA - 2003.
· Neutral Grounds Coffee House, New Orleans, LA - 2002.
· Tamarack, David L. Dickirson Gallery, Beckley, WV - 2001, 1999.
· Main Street Studio,  Hurricane, WV - 2000, 1999.
· University of Charleston,  Charleston, WV - 2000, 1998.
· Sunrise Downtown at Bank One,  Charleston,  WV - 2000, 1998 (solo exhibitions).
· Carnegie Hall,  Lewisberg, WV - 2000, 1998.
· Marshall University,  Huntington, WV - 1997.
· Roger Lucas Gallery,  Charleston, WV - 1998, 1997.
· One Valley Bank,  Charleston, WV - 1998.

Represented in New Orleans, LA by Galerie Royale and Agora Gallery

Experience

· Workshop in Argenton Chateau, France with Timothy Stotz, 2011
· Workshops with Jack Beal, Shirley Campbell, Frank Webb, Alex Powers, Al Stine, Auseklis Ozols and Carol Peebles
· Encaustic workshop with Paula Roland, Santa Fe NM 2008
· Taught 5 day workshop Exploration of the Abstract for St. Charles Parish Art Guild - 2006
· Art Instructor at Holtz Elementary School

Professional Membership (Past and Present)

· Allied Artists of West Virginia. (Vice President 2000-1)
· Tri-State Art Society, West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky
· Main Street Studio, Hurricane WV (Secretary 1998-2001)
· The National League of American Pen Women, Inc. Washington, DC
· Artina – Westbank, New Orleans
· West Bank Art Guild, New Orleans
· New Orleans Arts Association
· New Orleans Arts Council
· Cider Painters of America (miniature art)

Education

· 1997  MA Fine Arts (painting major) - Marshall University, Huntington, WV.
· 1994  BA Fine Arts - WV State College.
· 1984  MA English Literature - Bhopal University, Bhopal, India.
· 1970  BA (Honors) Education – Calcutta University, Calcutta, India.

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