Biography

Paula Keyth grew up in New York City. She also lived and studied art in the United Kingdom, San Francisco, Rome, and Portland, Oregon. She attended the San Francisco Art Institute and the Pacific Northwest College of Art, where she earned a B.F.A. degree. She currently works as a Peer Support Specialist and Recovery Mentor in the community of Sandy, Oregon. Drawing on her multifaceted experiences, including recovery, music, and her work as a Peer Support Specialist, she aims to heal through the act of art-making.

Artist's Statement

My creative process involves a combination of painting, drawing, and collage. I start with scissors, cutting shapes and images from magazines, and assembling them onto the canvas. I apply washes of paint, and then draw over the top, creating layers and depth. This physical act of collaging, painting, and drawing represents a dance between memory, dreams, and myth. Through this mixed media process, I am creating liminal spaces; my own mythos, where you can find hybrids, giants, animal spirits, and chimeras.

I draw inspiration from fairy tales and mythology, as well as snippets I've collected from my reading, traveling, researching, and healing over the years. I present these stories through the perspective of the goddess spirit.

For me, art-making is a means of processing grief and loss, as well as discovering my own inner mythology.