About the work

Kelly Chorpening’s drawing practice has intertwined technical and philosophical aims. The faithful appearance of simple subjects such as tree stumps, rocks and road markings, are a means to contemplate the complexity of current conditions at large. Recently, her focus has pivoted to the rural setting, where she contemplates the difference between ‘landscape’ as an artistic genre, and the reality of the natural world in a climate emergency. Walking is a key component of this process, where natural beauty inevitably includes the presence of discarded materials, often made of plastic. In an age of the instantaneous mass-shared photograph, this slowed-down method of drawing serves to highlight the human capacity to notice and care, and to observe the forces and conditions that are shaping the world around us.

Date and country of birth

1970, US

Career Highlights

Kelly Chorpening is an artist who also produces projects, exhibitions and publications. Activities in 2023 include the co-curation of Drawing in Social Space, which culminated in a display at Drawing Room, a solo exhibition at the Tahoe Gallery in Incline Village, NV and the organisation of a multi-disciplinary conference at the Nevada Museum of Art entitled ‘Land, Water, Place: an Art Science Collaborative.’