Kari Serrao
Kari was born into a family that moved around a lot, which exposed her to various creative avenues during her developmental years in the Caribbean. She went on to study at The Ontario College of Art (and Design University), where she spent a year in their renowned Florence program. Recently, she spent a year living in the south of France, both these years abroad have heavily influenced her artistic practice.
Now based in Toronto, Kari's art practice has expanded from an exclusively encaustic one to include oil painting. In the post-pandemic world, her work has become quieter and more contemplative while still examining the human condition through anthropomorphic portraiture.
Her work is held in collections across Canada, the United States, Europe, the Caribbean, and Australia.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
As we sailed into the bay, the glow of pink from the bauxite factory overcame my field of vision, a vision that then became fragmented and dissolved to black. I was five years old and thus began a series of fainting spells.
A childhood in what others perceive to be an idyllic local, surrounded by tropical flora and fauna, the ocean, and the beach, was filled with fear - of what I can't recall, but it was genuine then. The hare, a symbol of renewal and growth, is my chosen subject; as I navigate these childhood memories, I identify with this often skittish nocturnal creature, tentatively leaning forward, peering through the branches in her attempt to reframe her fear.
Kari was born into a family that moved around a lot, which exposed her to various creative avenues during her developmental years in the Caribbean. She went on to study at The Ontario College of Art (and Design University), where she spent a year in their renowned Florence program. Recently, she spent a year living in the south of France, both these years abroad have heavily influenced her artistic practice.
Now based in Toronto, Kari's art practice has expanded from an exclusively encaustic one to include oil painting. In the post-pandemic world, her work has become quieter and more contemplative while still examining the human condition through anthropomorphic portraiture.
Her work is held in collections across Canada, the United States, Europe, the Caribbean, and Australia.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
As we sailed into the bay, the glow of pink from the bauxite factory overcame my field of vision, a vision that then became fragmented and dissolved to black. I was five years old and thus began a series of fainting spells.
A childhood in what others perceive to be an idyllic local, surrounded by tropical flora and fauna, the ocean, and the beach, was filled with fear - of what I can't recall, but it was genuine then. The hare, a symbol of renewal and growth, is my chosen subject; as I navigate these childhood memories, I identify with this often skittish nocturnal creature, tentatively leaning forward, peering through the branches in her attempt to reframe her fear.