Dates: April 4, 2024 – May 3, 2024

Location: 195 Chrystie Street, NYC 10002
Contact: | 917.292.6921

 
Voltz Clarke Gallery is pleased to present Constellations, a solo show, by Karen Tompkins.

Khalilah Birdsong

With glittering points of light and pulsing rays shooting across the canvas, Karen Tompkins’ new series, Constellations, evokes the grandeur of the stars and the mysterious depths of the night sky.

As an artist who engages with the topic of astronomy and the constellations, Tompkins immediately situates herself within a long lineage of creative predecessors, such as Vincent Van Gogh, most recognized for capturing the drama of a starry night. However, the constellations have captured man’s imagination for millennia, beginning with cave artists in France and Germany. As Tompkins depicts the vastness of outer space with her art, the constellations continue to offer endless generative possibilities for her to explore.

Inspired by celestial objects and phenomena, Tompkins’ art continues to delve into the mysteries of the universe, from subatomic particles to distant galaxies. Career highlights include an artist in residency at the American Academy in Rome where the mixed media artist focused on astrology and Galileo’s discoveries of sunspots and Jovian moons.

Tompkins grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma and studied painting and drawing at the Academy of Fine Art in Rome, Italy before continuing her education at the Pratt Institute Graduate School in Brooklyn, NY. Karen Tompkins lives and works in London.