A Bright
World
Inspired
by Nature
Kathy Sharpe's
Cheerful Carmel Galler y
B Y M I C H A E L C H AT F I E L D
T
o step through the Dutch door of Kathy Sharpe's stu-
dio and gallery is to enter a wonderful world of color,
flowers and sunshine. The walls are covered with her
work, showing various "periods" of her painting life. There's
the "Rubber Duck period," the "Cow Period"…and the
vibrant hues and exotic shapes of her current "Floral Period."
The gallery space is a riot of color that lifts the spirits and
brings a smile to one's face.
"I've been drawing and painting since I was a little girl grow-
ing up in Winnetka, Illinois," the artist says. She adds with a
laugh: "I guess I started by drawing on the walls with crayons."
There's art in her genes too. Her grandfather was a costume
designer for the renowned Vienna State Opera—The Wiener
Staatsoper—and a cousin is a well-known cartoonist. "I guess
creativity is in my blood," Sharpe says.
264 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • S U M M E R / F A L L 2 0 1 5
Artist Kathy Sharpe works
in watercolors but describes
herself as "primarily an
Impressionist oil painter,
inspired by nature and still life."
Photo: Kelli Uldall