Artist Statement & Bio

 

   Artist Statement

     I view abstraction as the only way forward for me. It has no rules to abide by, the only limit is my own mind. I derive most of my work from nature and the relationship between man and nature. But truly I believe there is no difference. I see man as nature and a co-creator alongside the Creator. I humbly believe we’re all instruments for the greater good and my individual path is to create beauty and be a conduit for that energy to reach the material world. I make art because I believe it’s part of my journey on Earth and I believe beauty is a very important path forward for humanity.

     I love texture and I view my work as a wall sculpture more than I would a painting. I try  to leave myself open to materials that may have certain qualities of beauty if looked at through a slightly different lens. My first love was paper and its sense of texture and its myriad of ways it can be used. I also love plaster and how it can be built up and torn down. Any material is on the table so long as it fits into the holistic picture of the work. I don’t start out with a drawing, or plan whatsoever I just let the work guide me as I go. And it’s when I truly have faith in the process and have let go of my own ego that a certain energy is able to come through that I would view as worthy. When someone views my work I hope they can see that energy that I have tried my best to capture in the moment and freeze into a material form. 

 

   BIO

   Chad Kilgore is a self taught artist living and working in rural Missouri. He has been a full time mixed media artist for 6 years working with any material that can bring his vision to life. He played football most of his life including stints with the Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders and one season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League. The fire to play football eventually burned out and he was forced to do some soul searching to find out who he really was.

     Going on an antique "pick" with his parents he found a stack of vintage glass in the mud in an old barn with paper dividers between the panes that had decayed beautifully in the elements. This was the catalyst and inspiration that started his journey into art. He derives his inspiration from nature, human consciousness, the rise and fall of civilizations, and the balance of humanity and nature. The cycle of man's creation and nature reclaiming what man has built.

     Chad shows his work twice a year in Round Top, TX and does commission work between shows. He has made work for collectors and clients in nearly every state including some in Europe.