Kate Domina “Origin Stories” January 22nd – February 20th, 2022 Haven Gallery is honored to present Canadian based artist Kate Domina for her first solo show “Origin Stories” at the gallery. “Origin Stories” will feature eleven oil paintings featuring the artists childlike sitters as they embrace historical mythologies of their predecessors. Domina explores these legendary, female figures from antiquity through her consummate candy coated palettes and sugary landscapes. A mixture of traditional concepts with contemporary stylings create a fresh look on these classical motifs and universal narratives. Each portrait is a metaphor that embarks on a narrative, as depicted through the untainted eyes of the youth. An analogous nod to the genuine nature of humanity and the deific standards in which these divine figures were expected to uphold through legend. Artist Statement Children are unapologetically animals. They are purer breeds and darker minds.I believe there is no better vehicle to understanding the human condition than through the eyes and disposition of the young. My subjects are not based on specific people but are composites of several children and youth, of varying ages and expressions. The result is a layered study of youth that captures the essence of adolescence; fear, naivety, omnipotence and paranoia all seep their way into the faces and environments of my subjects. My work is an attempt to revert to a kid then show you my quiet power ABOUT Kate Domina Kate Domina is a Toronto based figurative painter. Using children and adolescents as her subjects, she incorporates classical representational oil painting techniques with whimsical and often ambiguous narratives. Her critical theory fixation (Lacan, Freud and Jung specifically) weaves it’s way into her work, evolving her portraits into studies of human frailty, and often, neurosis. Domina has training from the University of Toronto, Sheridan College and Ontario College of Art and Design.
