Represented by Triangle Gallery, Rockland, ME
Artist Statement
As soon as I enter a forest or step onto a rocky shoreline I feel part of a world humming with life. The sounds of wind and water calm the neural waves in my brain and immerse my senses in the rhythmic energy connecting everything around me. From the viewpoint of physics, all life in our universe is vibrating at various frequencies, including rocks, trees and objects that appear stationary. Today this delicate balance of rhythms that we depend on for life is endangered by climate change.
Drawing from my early training in piano and the interplay between equilibrium and chaos, I let music flow through my body as I combine monotype, paint, drawing media, and collage pieces cut from earlier paintings. I think of these mixed media paintings and freeform collage as stories hidden in nature’s rhythms, a reminder of connection when there is still time to choose reconciliation and renewal.
Bio
Originally from Montreal, I studied classical piano from age four through 20, then worked in New York and Baltimore as an offset printer, pacifist magazine editor and graphic designer. After a year of independent international bicycle travel that included China, Tibet, Bali and New Zealand, I built an graphic design firm in Maryland that served nonprofit clients. I’m now a full-time artist living and working in Belfast on the Gulf of Maine, which has warmed faster than 99% of the global ocean.
Selected Exhibitions
2025
A Stroll in the Park, Triangle Gallery, Rockland, ME, October 28–December 31,
Delirium, Juniper Rag, Jean McDonough Arts Center in Worcester, MA, in collaboration with the Hanover Theater’s 5th Annual Edgar Allan Poe Double-Header. October 29–November 1.
Within: Paintings & Sculptures by Kathryn Shagas & Tony Machowski, Triangle Gallery, Rockland, ME, September 5–October 11,
Maine Observed, Maine Art Gallery, Wiscasset, June 19–July 27.
Expanding Visions, Lyme Art Association, Lyme, CT, June 6–July 17. Honorable Mention award.
Whimsy: Flights of Fancy, Maine Art Gallery, Wiscasset, May 1–June 15.
Common Ground (online), Juniper Rag, April 8–May 2.
Artists Touched by Addiction, Juniper Rag, Opened March, 2025. Permanent collection at Spectrum Health, Worcester, MA.
Spring Shows, I and II, Triangle Gallery, Rockland, ME, March 5–April 26
For the Love of Art, Triangle Gallery, Rockland, ME, February 5–23
Dark Skies Waterfall Arts / Union of Maine Visual Artists, January 17–February 28.
2024
Deck the Walls, Triangle Gallery, Rockland, ME, December 5–January 26, 2025
I've Been Wrong Before, Waterfall Arts, Belfast, ME, October 19 –November 29
Press: https://www.bangordailynews.com/2024/10/29/midcoast/midcoast-culture/waterfall-arts-exhibit-belfast-maine-changing-your-mind-joam40zk0w/
Refuge, Union of Maine Visual Artists, MCI National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center Gallery, Rockland, ME, September 27–December 13
Nocturne, Maine Art Gallery, Wiscasset, ME, September 12–October 20
Convergence: Art Meets Science, art auction to benefit Hurricane Island outreach programs. My painting is on display at the First National Bank in Rockland until it will move to the exhibit of all paintings at Pascal Hall, September 25–28. Benefit auction and party: September 28th, 5 PM, Pascal Hall, Rockport, ME. Online auction is open. https://www.hurricaneisland.net/convergence
Artists on Fire, Juniper Rag/Worcester Center for Crafts, July 19–August 10
Drawn to Maine, Maine Art Gallery, Wiscasset, ME, June 13–July 21
Three Breaths (three-person exhibition), Triangle Gallery, Rockland, ME, May 16–June 16
https://www.trianglegallery8elm.com
Generations: The Legacy of Mentors, Maine Art Gallery, Wiscasset, ME, May 4–June 9
https://www.maineartgallerywiscasset.org/generations-mentors-2024
2023
Veil, Juniper Rag, October 27–November 30
https://www.juniperrag.com/veil-exhibition/#kathrynshagas-veil
Water, Union of Maine Visual Artists, Portland, ME October 30–November 24
Fountain Street Gallery Annex, Boston, three-person exhibit. August 31–October 1. https://www.fsfaboston.com/annex-show-september-2023
Little Sparks, Lights Out Gallery, Norway, ME. August 24–October 7. https://www.lightsoutgallery.org/littlesparks
Waterways, Union of Maine Visual Artists, Damariscotta, ME. July 15–September 15.
Prince Street Gallery Annual Juried Show, NY, NY, August 1–19
https://princestreetgallery.com/juriedshow2023ex
In Balance/Imbalance, Union of Maine Visual Artists, Portland, ME. July 1-29. https://maineartsjournal.com/umva-showcase-summer-2023-artists-s-z/
2022
On the Edge, University of New Hampshire Museum of Art
2021
{ONnow} Concurrence, Center for Maine Contemporary Art (CMCA)
Deepening the Meaning: 18 Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painters, d | a | c concepts, Miami, FL
2020
Reflections on Water, Maine Farmland Trust Gallery, Belfast, ME
Art Saves Humanity, SeeMe
Art 10 Baltimore, NIH/NIDA/Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, Baltimore, MD
2019
Picture Whimsies, a Celebration of Art Through Music, collaborative exhibit / Concert, Baltimore, MD
Art 10 Baltimore, Max Gallery, Baltimore, MD
NIH/Johns Hopkins Bayview, Baltimore, MD
Art 10 Baltimore, Village Cafe, Baltimore, MD
Art 10 Baltimore, The Charles Theater, Baltimore, MD
2018
Y:Art, Baltimore, MD
Summer Stable Show, Maine Farmland Trust Gallery
Abstraction, River Arts, Damariscotta, ME
2017
Summer Stable Show, Maine Farmland Trust Gallery, Belfast, ME
Art for Land's Sake, Owings Mills, MD
Art 10 Baltimore, Hoffberger Gallery, Baltimore, MD
Castine Arts Plein Air Festival, honorable mention award
2016
Thrive, Jordan Faye Contemporary, Baltimore, MD
Bromo After 5, Bromo Seltzer Arts Tower, Baltimore, MD
Summer Stable Show, Maine Farmland Trust Gallery, Belfast, ME
2015
Jordan Faye Contemporary, Baltimore, MD
Hoofs, Roots & Wings, Maine Farmland Trust Gallery, Belfast, ME
2014
Two-person exhibit, Sascha's, Baltimore, MD
Thrive, Jordan Faye Contemporary, Baltimore, MD
Represented in Maryland by Bozzuto-Green Art. Works are included in numerous private and corporate collections.
Education
BFA , University of the Arts
Studies at the New York Studio School and Maryland Institute, College of Art