Karena Massengill: REVERBERATIONS

May 1 – July 2, 2026

Opening Reception: June 6, 6-9 pm

My work usually begins with a drawing I create while attempting to engage my subconscious, accessing visceral, instinctive and emotional ideas. I often salute specific people and accomplishments, abstractly presenting them from a vocabulary of lines in steel.

From a drawing on watercolor paper, I “draw” in steel using the drawing as a pattern upon which I subsequently weld the sculpture, and witness the controlled destruction of the image, using a spray bottle to prevent too much burn damage!

The burned drawing becomes a reverberant reincarnation of the steel to use as a painting canvas to further explore the concept in color or monochromatically. When shown together they tell a story of evolution, spiritual discovery and self-reflection.

The culture and landscape in different countries often give me ideas to revisit. The architecture of Japan and their love and respect for nature, and spending time with the Maasai, Kikuyu, and Samburu tribes, and wild animals in their natural habitat in Africa led me to create works derived from those experiences.

The people least responsible for climate change are suffering the most with their lifestyle and culture forced to change in order to survive. Some of my works are meant to give accolades and respect to their unique and very special relationships with nature, presenting them from a vocabulary of lines in steel.

KARENA MASSENGILL