About

Poised between creation and imminent collapse, Kirsten Reynolds’ architectural installations and sculpture conjure absurd, theatrical events that evade certain knowing.  Brightly colored facades attached to a baroque tumult of exposed 2’x4’ carpentry depict architecture as a carnivalesque performance, perpetually regenerating through chaos and subversive play.  Painted faux finishes of exaggerated wood grain and printed patterns complicate the distinction between physical materiality and surface illusion. Space is simultaneously an experience and a representation; upon entering these unstable architectural tableaus, the viewer becomes dislocated from the familiar and a participant in an irresolvable narrative.

 

Kirsten received her BFA from Syracuse University and MFA from Maine College of Art. Her work has been exhibited widely, most recently at the Burlington Center for the Arts, VT and the Boston Sculptors Gallery, MA, as well as the Blue Star Contemporary Museum, TX, the Currier Art Museum, NH and the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park, MA.  Notable grants and awards include the Vermont Studio Center Fellowship, the Piscataqua Region Artist Advancement Grant and the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation Artist Resource Fellowship.  Kirsten also teaches short and long-term residencies, workshops and lectures with k-12 schools and universities, including the Maine College of Art, the Museum School of Fine Arts and the Massachusetts College of Art.  She lives and works in Newmarket, NH with her husband and two children.

education

2004

MFA, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME

1994

BFA, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY

SOLO/TWO-PERSON EXHIBITIONS​

2020
The Slightest Shift | Boston Sculptors Gallery, Boston, MA
2019
Switchback | Housatonic Museum of Art, Bridgeport, CT, (Barbara O’Brien, curator, Close to the Line with Mari Rantanen)(Cat.)
2017
Spin | Boston Sculptors Gallery, Boston, MA
A Functional Incident | McIninch Gallery, Southern New Hampshire University Manchester, NH
2016
Splitsplice | Blue Star Contemporary Museum, San Antonio, TX
2015
Cut | 3S ArtSpace, Portsmouth, NH, (Jamie DiSimone, curator, Framing Space with Hio Ridge Dance)
2014
Fragments | Fernando Luis Alvarez Gallery, Stamford, CT
2013
Structo | Fernando Luis Alvarez Gallery, Stamford, CT
2008
The Former Mistake | Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH (Sharon Matt-Atkins, curator, Spotlight New England)(Cat.)
2007
The Other Last Moment | Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center, Buffalo, NY, (Cat.)
2006
It’ll Be Allright | The Contemporary Art Center, North Adams, MA
Another Possible Ending | The Vox Populi, Philadelphia, PA
Evidence | ArtSpace, New Haven, CT
2005
At This Last Moment | Firehouse Gallery, Burlington, VT, (Ruth Erickson, curator, At An Angle with Asuka Ohsawa)
They Pushed It Aside | Evos Art Center, Lowell, MA
2003
In The Room With It | Friedman Gallery, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2021
Unbound | Burlington Center for the Arts, Burlington, VT (Heather Ferrell, curator)
2020
Ring: Annual Member’s Group Exhibition | Boston Sculptors Gallery, Boston, MA
2019
Opposites Attract: Annual Member’s Group Exhibition | Boston Sculptors Gallery, Boston, MA
2018
The Emotion of Color | Belmont Gallery of Art, Belmont, MA
2017
Impact | Museum of Art, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH
2016
Art Hamptons Fair | Hampton, NY, presented by the Fernando Luis Alvarez Gallery
2015
Journey in Creation | Fernando Luis Alvarez Gallery and Sacred Heart University, Stamford, CT
2011
Home Sweet Home | Montserrat College of Art, Beverly, MA (Leonie Bradbury, curator)(Cat.)
2010
Projects ‘10 at the Carriage House | Islip Art Museum, East Islip, NY
2008
The DeCordova Annual Exhibition | The DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park, Lincoln, MA (Nick Capasso and Dina Dietsch, curators) (Cat.)
The Last Decade: A Gathering of NH Visual Artist Fellows | Sharon Arts Center, Peterborough, NH
Momentum VI | George Marshall Store Gallery, York, ME
2007
Intervals | Maine College of Art, Fort Andross, Brunswick, ME
(un)Building | Mills Gallery, Boston Center for the Arts, Boston, MA (Dina Dietsch, curator)(Cat.)
2005
Faculty Exhibit | Chester College of New England, Chester, NH
2004
M.F.A. Thesis Exhibition | Maine College of Art, Portland, ME (Cat.)
2003
Open Studios | The Bakery Studios, Portland, ME
NH Institute of Art Juried Biennial | NH Institute of Art, Manchester, NH
2002
Joan L. Dunfrey Juried Exhibit | Lincoln Levy Gallery, Portsmouth, NH
Faculty Exhibit | Chester College of New England, Chester, NH

FELLOWSHIPS, GRANTS AND RESIDENCIES

Artist Entrepreneurial Grant, New Hampshire State Council on the Arts (2022)

Joan Mitchell Painter and Sculptor’s Grant Nominee (2015)

Vermont Studio Center Residency (Full Fellowship), Johnson, VT (2010)

Spotlight on the Arts: Best Sculptor, Portsmouth Herald (2008)

Artist Advancement Fellowship | NH Charitable Foundation, Piscataqua Region (2007)

Artist Resource Trust Award | Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation (2007)

H.A.R.P Award | Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center (2007)

Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center Residency, Buffalo, NY (2007)

Individual Artist Fellowship | New Hampshire State Council for the Arts (2006)

Contemporary Art Center Residency, North Adams, MA (2007)

Maine College of Art Scholarship Award | Maine College of Art (2003-04)

Scholarship Award | New Hampshire Charitable Foundation (2003)

Juror’s Choice Award | Annual Member’s Prize Show, Cambridge Art Association (2001)

Juror’s Choice Award | Cambridge Art Association (2001)

ARTIST TALKS

2019
College of New England, Institute of Art and Design, Manchester, NH
2018
Boston Sculptors Gallery, Boston, MA
Belmont Gallery of Art, Belmont, MA
2017
Southern New Hampshire University, Manchester, NH
2016
Blue Star Contemporary Museum, San Antonio, TX
2015
Pecha Kucha (panelist), 3S Artspace, Portsmouth, NH 3S ArtSpace, Portsmouth, NH
“Imagining the Past, Present and Future of Art-Making in the Seacoast,” (panelist), 3S Art Space, Portsmouth, NH
2013
“Fail Better: A Salon on Works in Progress” (panelist), Nave Gallery, Somerville, MA
2012
“Stem in Steam,” (panelist), NH State Council on the Arts, Arts in Education Conference, North Sutton, NH
Maine College of Art, Portland, MA
2011
Montserrat College of Art, Beverly, MA
2009
Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH
2008
Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH
Maine College of Art, MFA Program, Portland, ME

Workshops and teaching

2023
Artist-in-Residence, Kensington Elementary School, Kensington, NH
2023
Workshop, Kittery Jr./Sr. High School, Kittery, Maine
2019
Artist-in-Residence, Pittsfield Elementary School, Pittsfield, NH
2018
Artist-in-Residence, Warren Village School, Warren, NH
2017
Artist-in-Residence, Contemporary Art History, Southern New Hampshire University, Manchester, NH
2014
Workshop, New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, Greenfield, NH
Workshop, “The Big Draw Festival,” Peabody Essex Museum, MA
2013
Artist-in-Residence, Main Street Art, Newfields, NH
2008
Artist-in-Residence, Open Studio Program, Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH
2006
Artist-in-Residence, Boys and Girls Club, Pawtucket, RI
MFA Thesis Technical Advisor. Maine College of Art, Portland, ME
2005
Adjunct Faculty: Creative Arts in Learning, Department of Education University of New England, ME
2005-02
Adjunct Faculty: Foundations of Art and Design, Drawing 1, Drawing 2, Three Dimensional Design, Color Theory, Images and Ideas, Chester College of New England, Chester, NH
2001-02
Instructor, New Hampshire Institute of Art, Manchester, NH