Kathy Daywalt is an award winning and prolific working artist with more than 40 years of successful experience in a variety of media. Her works have been included in numerous juried exhibitions and one-person shows. These works are in private collections from New York to California.  In 2012 Daywalt began to revisit her original art interest - watercolor. She has been studying the effects of the medium on YUPO, polypropylene plastic, originally used for permanent outdoor signs.  Her interest in figures and beautifully patterned compositions is evident in these new works. More importantly, her long experience with linocut printmaking has carried over to this new endeavor as she employs artist-made linocut stamps as well as found objects to create her richly textured, patterned paintings.

In 2014, Kathy worked with the Linda Jones Enterprises in celebration of the 75th Anniversary Edition of the digitally re-mastered and 3-D version of Warner Brothers “The Wizard of Oz”. A selection of her paintings was featured at the premier of the film at TCL Chinese Theater (formerly Grauman’s Chinese) and traveled to the three Chuck Jones Galleries as part of the celebration.

Kathy began following her calling as a child.  Working full time while being a wife and mother, she continued to make time for art.  Daywalt graduated Suma Cum Laude from Anne Arundel Community College with an AA Degree in Fine Art in 1995 and has continued in serious study with a variety of successful, professional artists. She is a Master Signature Member as well as a former Board Member of the Baltimore Watercolor Society, and a member of Maryland Federation of Art and Baltimore Creative Alliance. She is represented at Gallery C, Raleigh, NC; McBride Gallery, Annapolis, MD; Benfield Gallery, Severna Park, MD; Studio 2 Saint Michaels, MD; The Maggie Gallery, Floyd, VA. Her works are listed with Artspan.com, a search site for art collectors.  

Demos and teaching are new to Kathy in the last couple of years.  She has grown to enjoy this process, sharing with local arts organiations like Easton Art League, St. Michaels Art League, Annapolis Watercolor Club, Columbia Art Center and Chesapeake Fine Art Studio.  Contact for more information on upcoming events. 

Mermaids

Looking back, I realized that I first started making mermaids when my husband (Warren Daywalt – 1951-2024) started saying he wanted his ashes scattered at sea. I began by making linocut block prints and soon realized that the process of linocut printmaking helped me in my search for solace following his death. Linocuts require a good bit of repetitive actions - cutting, rolling ink, pulling the prints – almost meditative. It got me out of my head and helped get me through the worst of my grief. Currently, the collaged mermaids I’ve been making have a similar feel. After working out the composition, gelli plate papers – a print making process – are created with interesting patterns and a range of colors. They are then cut into pieces that fit the composition. This process has been equally engaging with other subject matter.

Watercolors

Watercolor was my first art love. Beautiful fluidity and transparency keep me interested. Recently, the substrate of YUPO has been riveting for me. YUPO is polypropylene plastic, a by-product of oil refining, originally invented for use in outdoor signage. Artists quickly took to this paper for its extraordinary characteristics. Unlike on absorbent watercolor paper, watercolor sits on the surface of the YUPO. This has allowed me to explore my love of pattern and texture in a way not found with regular papers. My printmaking background came to the fore. I made stamps and stencils that add rich pattern to my compositions. A blend of several water media, along with other techniques have brought unique features to my work.

Collage

An artist friend showed me some beautiful mono prints she was making with gelli plates, using acrylic paint and paper. I immediately saw the possibility of using this process to add pattern to my acrylic paintings. These patterned papers are sometimes used as collage elements in my compositions. More often, it is used almost like applique. I always appreciate learning new things and it is very gratifying to have a new tool in my arsenal.

Figurative

I find figures to be continually interesting and beautiful. For me, nothing conveys emotion and meaning more readily than the human face and figure. It is where we see ourselves, I see myself, reflected and communicated. A viewer can even sometimes feel seen by looking at art that features the experiences of humans.