Understory
Katie O’Rourke and Neha Shukla
On display in the Kitzmiller Fiction Room and hanging from the mezzanine the month of September
Understory is a collection of work by long time friends and co-conspirators: acrylic paintings by Katie O’Rourke and mixed media collage and sculpture by Neha Shukla.
Katie O’Rourke is an abstract artist whose paintings are created through an intuitive process of markmaking, layering color, and trust.
Rather than beginning with a fixed plan, she responds to each painting as it unfolds, allowing curiosity and instinct to guide the work. Drawing on years of experience with color, Katie creates expressive paintings that invite viewers to slow down, notice, and find their own meaning within the layers.
Neha Shukla makes work which is inspired by the expansiveness of nature and also by the intricacy of its tiniest details. In her collages, she uses translucent tissue paper, graphite, and acrylic ink, exploring the material’s potential for both bold simplicity and layered complexity. Her sculpture on display, hanging above the main level of the library, is made of willow rings suspended from river driftwood, all gathered on walks near her home along the North Branch of the Winooski River.