Kathryn Orton Sold at Auction Prices

Kathryn Orton is an artist based in Wollongong. Her own arts practice includes drawing, printmaking, artist’s books, painting and sculptural furniture. She studied graphic design in Sydney and later Creative Arts at the University of Wollongong. Kathryn has worked as a graphic artist and taught in the Arts & Media faculty of Illawarra Institute of TAFE NSW since 1987 in Wollongong, the Southern Highlands and Goulburn. Kathryn has also tutored in printmaking at the University of Wollongong and teaches special interest workshops in various locations.

Kathryn has taken part in solo and group exhibitions nationally and internationally throughout her career. Recent solo exhibitions include Out of the Ordinary at Wollongong City Gallery (2010), On the Streets at Goulburn Regional Art Gallery (2009) and Some time Elsewhere at Legge Gallery (2007).

Recent group exhibitions include Fair Trade: Ex-TAFE Teachers Exhibition at Goulburn Regional Art Gallery (2013) which saw the start of her collaboration with Marianne; Shoalhaven: from source to sea at Shoalhaven City Arts Centre, Nowra (2013) with Marianne & Liz Jeneid. She was part of the WCG Friends Resident Artist Program 20th Anniversary exhibition and Stand Up Close Remembering Ron Lambert at Wollongong City Gallery (2012). Kathryn was also invited to be part of the Kedumba Drawing Award at Wentworth Falls in the Blue Mountains in 2011.

She has exhibited widely since 1984 both locally and nationally. Kathryn held seven solo exhibitions with the Legge Gallery and has had work displayed in the Portia Geach Memorial Award, the Sulman Prize, the Dobell Drawing Prize, the Shell Fremantle Print Award, Jacaranda Acquisitive Drawing Award and the Silk Cut Award. Kathryn was resident artist at Wollongong City Gallery 1994, and has had residencies in Yirrkala, North East Arnhem Land 1996, the Skopelos Foundation for the Arts 2007, Greece and Hill End in 2012.

Kathryn’s Statement

I love trees, the life force they embody and their beauty, their proportion and various forms, their colour. They have been an ongoing pre-occupation in my work for the last few years – since I took part in some field study trips around the upper Shoalhaven catchment area near Braidwood. In these collaborative prints I have enjoyed playing with colour relationships, transparency and layering images and have been constantly surprised at the results.