Featured Artist April - May 2018

Kristie Hansen

Kristie Hansen was born in Connecticut and has lived in San Francisco since 1991. Her solo exhibitions include The 11.01.11 at Queen’s Nails Projects (2011) and five annual solo shows at Summer School Gallery (2013 - 2017). Group exhibitions include L. Quan Healing Arts Center, Ratio 3 (2015); four shows at Don Soker Contemporary Art (2012 - 2016); and Crank, Southern Exposure (2015). She has participated in three member shows at Berkeley Art Center (2015-2017). Hansen had a residency and exhibition at the local clothing company, N.I.C.E. Collective (2016). Recently she exhibited at two local boutiques, M.A.C. (2018) and Maison Margiela (2017). Hansen will be participating again in the SF Skate Club’s fundraiser on April 29 at Luggage Store Gallery in San Francisco. 

Artist Statement

San Francisco-based Kristie Hansen is a conceptual artist working primarily in sculpture. Concerned with the disposable nature of today’s society, she seeks to reflect on the fragility of nature and our human connection to its strength, power and energy. Unwanted commodities are manipulated and joined with the natural world to transform them into evocative works that raise questions about the environment, consumerism, community, beauty, and the world around us. 

The Nature Fights Back series reflects the fragility of nature and our human connection to its strength, power and energy. The wood came from a tree outside the artist’s studio in San Francisco that she has had for over 22 years. The majestic tree provided privacy, a dose of green nature, and protection from the city funk. When it became inconvenient for the city to care for and maintain, it was removed. Wanting the tree to live on, she retained much of it for future projects. In these works, discarded fashion and branches come together to reveal a simple beauty that is often lost in a rapidly changing city.

Click here to visit the artist's website.