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Katie O'Keefe

Drawing, Fiber, Painting, Paper / Book / Illustration, Visual / Media

Continuing in the tradition of mending with needle and thread, I stitch together layers of sheer fabric; painting an intimate picture of my healing journey. The twisting threads embedded into my work mirror the *spirochetes that have etched themselves into my body. I take note of how my body has changed, is changing, and replace fear with fascination as I trace lines of nerve pain down my arm all the way to my toes. Slowly I attempt to unravel these internal sensations, contextualizing them through the repetitious process of embroidery. The transparency of the material offers a doorway into the marks that were made in each individual layer through this intricate process. I reflect on the levels of vulnerability I am willing to hold in different spaces, with different people. In my work I have taken down these barriers to allow for an honest conversation around the entirety of what lies beneath the surface. In sharing the personal experiences I have had dealing with chronic illness, I hope to hold space for those that want to share their own personal experiences but hold back out of fear of being met with stigma and judgment.

*A flexible spirally twisted bacterium

About the Artist

Katie O'Keefe was raised in a quiet village in the Hudson Valley, New York. From the age of 14 Katie has been dealing with Chronic Lyme and her experience with this illness has had a great impact on her creative work. Throughout her teenage years, she studied drawing and painting at The Art Effect (previously known as the Mill Street Loft) in Poughkeepsie NY. When Lyme temporarily limited her dexterity she shifted her practice to adapt; discovering the joys and sensuality of working with thread. She received her BFA in Fiber Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art and studied textiles abroad in Turkey. While in New York she interned at Dieu Donné Papermill, where she learned the intricate processes of handmade paper. She is currently a resident artist of the City Arts live/work spaces in Station North, Baltimore, Maryland. Between 2020 and 2021 Katie was awarded the opportunity to study multiple small-scale metal smithing techniques at the Baltimore Jewelry Center. During which, she focused on interconnecting the skilled crafts of Metal and Embroidery. Katie has notably exhibited her work at School 33 Art Center, Towson University, Stevenson University, and The Baltimore Jewelry center and most recently presented her first solo show at Gallery CA.

Katie O'Keefe website Katie O'Keefe's Baker Artist Portfolio

Featured Work

Photos

Healing has never been a straight line. It ebbs and flows. Here I look back at the progress I have made in both physical wellness and appreciation for my body as it is in each moment. Individually each piece of this tryptic marks an important point within my healing process. Together they speak to the cyclical motion of healing, rejecting the notion that progress happens without interposed reflection. (Photography by Kimber Harris-Wiegand)
Using reclaimed threads from my previous works and mixing them into paper pulp, I build a surface that becomes symbolic of how the past can impact you in present time. The figures in red represent the unseen inner world. A raw and unfiltered response to the intense sensations running through my body, along with the strong emotions that go with it. Whereas the figures in full color offer a more complete view. A conduit of converging experience. (Photography by Kimber Harris-Wiegand)
Inaction, during times of crisis, can have devastating repercussions on oneself and those around you. Is the woman in "Idle Sacrifice" neglecting aspects in her life that will lead to her inevitable fall? Or is she willfully ignorant of her own contribution to the tumult below? (Photography by Kimber Harris-Wiegand)
(Photography by Kimber Harris-Wiegand)
Self-care, true self-care, is mandatory while living with chronic illness. The body is quick to answer avoidance. It’s ever-present aura is both exhausting and impelling. (Photography by Kimber Harris-Wiegand)
When confronted with the notion of ‘Rest’ as an idea, I find myself conflicted. What was spurring this feeling of hesitation towards rest? Rest is generally thought of as being a state of inaction, yet for me it takes a significant amount of effort for me to settle my body into restorative Rest. Laying still, in bed, my body wakes up to the wear and tear I have forced her through during the day, but ignored out of fear and necessity. In my piece Entwined Repose I sought to capture the history of movement as I toss and turn, searching for a place of comfort. In the act of accepting rest I find strength in vulnerability.