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"Ever since I was a child I have always loved being outside. Painting the landscape allows me to go outside, relax, focus and simplify. When I am in the landscape that is all there is; it is time to myself where my mind is clear. I like trying to capture the quiet, peaceful, openness of the landscape. In these paintings I am not only observing and painting what I see, I am also taking what I see and interpreting it in my own way by changing some colors and abstracting some forms. The resulting paintings don’t always look exactly like the landscape that is surrounding me, but that landscape is the spark, the resource and inspiration for what comes out on the paper or canvas. My paintings are the essence of my feelings at that time, a wordless diary of my life. I want to take the smells, sounds, movements, and colors and through areas of color, mark making, and giving the paint freedom to do what it wants, bring my paintings to life so they can live, breathe, and take the viewer to another place. These paintings are everything I feel, see, and do; everything I can’t find words to express."rnKatrina Schmidt-Rinke was born in Montreal, Canada. She grew up spending lots of time in the Laurentien mountains of Quebec, Cincinnati, Ohio, and Asheville, N.C. Nature has always had a big influence on her life and so she enjoys portraying that in her artwork. She received her B.F.A. from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 1999 and her M.F.A. from SCAD in 2001. Katrina is the recipient of many distinguished honors, including the presidential fellowship of the Savannah College of Art and Design. Her work is held in many private collections and is highly sought after for their minimal approach and cool, modern design. Each painting is painted on site, as the artist’s experience with the landscape is absolutely integral to the development of her work. A master of her own technique, Schmidt-Rinke has streamlined her style over the years and the effect is truly extraordinary.
