About the Artist

Kathe Drake is an award winning pastel and oil painter.  Like many artists, she has been creating art since childhood.  She graduated from the University of Minnesota with a minor in art and furthered her studies at the Minnesota River School of Fine Art, where she went on to teach pastel painting.  She has also taken a number of workshops from well known artists at the Scottsdale Artists' School.

Most of Kathe's work is created directly from life.  She is particularly drawn to feminine subjects - women and their clothing as well as to flowers, fruits and vegetables.  Even common place objects gain significance when carefully viewed and incorporated into her still lifes. She says "because the visual world is so rich with possibilities, I find there are endless variation to capture in all that I see." 

Many of her works are pastels, which are pure pigment held together with a binder in stick form for ease of handling.  Pastels come in a wide range of color and value (and are not all light in value as is sometimes thought). Her work evidences the full range of value and rich color that is possible with pastels.  Pastels are rich and luminous as well as immediate in handling which makes them an exciting medium to use.

ART EDUCATION

2008-2020, Scottsdale Artists' School

1998-2002, Minnesota River School of Fine Art

1970, BA, University of Minnesota (studio art minor)

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

2002-2005, Faculty, Minnesota River School of Fine Art (now closed)

ORGANIZATIONS

Lake Country Pastel Society, 2019-2020, 2000-2008, President, 2005-2006

SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2019, Zeller Gallery, Hopkins, Minnesota

2007, House of Hope Presbyterian Church, St Paul, Minnesota

2004, Thrivent Financial, Minneapolis, Minnesota

SELECTED JURIED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2020, Pastel Society of New Mexico, online

2020, Pastel Society of the West Coast, online

2020, Pastel Society of Southeast Texas, online

2020, Pastel Society of New Hampshire, online

2020, 2005, 2002, 1971, Minnesota State Fair, St Paul, Minnesota

2020, Best and Brightest, Scottsdale Artists' School, Scottsdale, Arizona

2008, Genus Elephas, Premier Gallery, Minneapolis, Minnesota

2004, Pastel National, Wichita, Kansas

SELECTED AWARDS

2020, Minnesota State Fair, Muessig Family Award

2020, Best and Brightest, 2nd place pastel

2019, Lake Country Pastel Society, 2nd place

2019, Lake Country Pastel Society, Pastel Society of America Award

2007, Lake Country Pastel Society, 2nd place

2004, Pastel National, Honorable Mention

2003, Lake Country Pastel Society, Best of Show

GALLERIES

2004-2007, King's Ideal Market Gallery, Cable, Wisconsin (now closed)

2004-2005 Look Gallery, Marshall Field's Home Store, Edina, Minnesota (now closed)

PUBLICATIONS

Minneapolis Star Tribune South, December 1, 2004