ABOUT KRISTIN
Kristin Musgnug’s observational paintings navigate the tension between the idea of the natural and the actual landscape. Based in Fayetteville Arkansas, she is on the faculty of the University of Arkansas School of Art. Kristin has painted on location in every corner of the lower 48 as well as Canada and England. Her work has been widely exhibited, including at the Royal College of Art, London, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the Museum of South Texas, Aqua Art at ArtBasel Miami, Art Chicago, and at numerous college and university galleries. She has been awarded many artist residencies and an Arkansas Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowship.
Kristin’s work is represented by Inman Gallery, Houston, Texas.
ARTIST STATEMENT
These paintings are a series of intimate portraits of forest floor plants and insects from locations in northwest Arkansas. The focus is on natural communities of plants and a few of the insects associated with them. While each clump of plants is shown visually isolated from its neighbors, the presence of insects suggests the extensive and intricate connections among forest inhabitants. In an age of alarming decline of insect populations worldwide, the paintings also callattention to the vital role insects play in our environment. Some of the insects depicted pollinate or feed on only a handful of species.
Insects depicted include: northern pearly eye butterfly, curve-lined owlet moth larva, two-lined spittlebug, copper underwing larva, clouded skipper butterfly, caterpillar hunter beetle, various specialist bees, falcate orange-tip butterfly,eight spotted forester moth and larva, painted lichen moth, smeared dagger moth larva, serpentine webworm moth, spring azure butterfly.
