About

Carly Kurka (b.1989) is a contemporary artist based in St. Louis, Missouri. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting, Drawing, and Printmaking from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She also received a minor in Art History and Archeology. Carly’s background also includes working as a collaborative printmaker at Pele Prints, a print-publishing studio, for five years. In addition to her studio practice, Carly works as an art consultant with ARCH Design based in St. Louis. She creates custom design plans for clients in healthcare, hospitality, and commercial industries. Working directly with her clients, Carly sources and procures artwork for their specific projects. This suits Carly's collaborative nature as she enjoys working with other artists and her colleagues to develop and accomplish these ventures. 

Carly’s current work includes multi-colored flats of color that are gridded out to form a shape. With a concentration in geology and various forms of nature, she abstracts natural and organic forms into her composition. She considers her shape of choice as a “diamond grenade," and her palette choices are often an almost monochrome set of a hue with a pop of color. The pop can usually be recognized by the overlaying palette’s complementary color. She is interested in playing with implied perspective and various interacting planes on a single flat surface. The form’s implied 3D surfaces are caused by strategically planned hues. Multiple surfaces of the blocks in her work are sometimes collaged as well. Carly further integrates her nature background by using handmade paper in sections of her collaged monoprints. As there is no true outline to the shape, tinted and shaded colors act as one with negative space serving as implied lines. Minimalism and simplicity are important to Carly as her main focus includes color theory and shape. Carly’s work includes all three elements of painting, drawing, and printmaking.

CV

2019

Winter Group Show, Houska Gallery, St. Louis, MO

2018

Ink Art Fair, South Miami Beach, FL
My Life as an Atom, Houska Gallery, St. Louis, MO
Pele Prints, Silpe Gallery, Hartford Art School, Hartford, CT
Contemporary Prints, Houska Gallery, St. Louis, MO

2017

Ink Art Fair, South Miami Beach, FL
Works on Paper, Beco Flowers, Kansas City, MO
3rd Annual Hand Pulled Prints, Site:Brooklyn, Brooklyn NY
Art on Paper, New York, NY
Master Graphics, Haw Contemporary, Kansas City, MO

2016
Aqua Art Miami, South Miami Beach, FL

Collections

Corporate collections include Estee Lauder NYC, BMO Harris Chicago, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line,
Cornerstone Research Consulting NYC, and Sun City Kobe Japan
Featured in private collections nationally

Publications

St. Louis At Home Magazine “A Day in the Life: Art to Live With” January/February 2017
SGC International “Graphic Impressions” Summer 2017
The Hand Magazine Issue 17 2017