Bio:
Ken O’Toole is a self-taught, experimental artist living and creating in Fort Worth, Texas where he was born.
He has captured the attention of numerous curators exhibiting his versatile work across multiple mediums (environmental photography, sculptural paintings and digitally constructed abstractions) in a variety of national shows.
O’Toole’s work appears in both private and public collections including that of his hometown (Ft. Worth Public Art.)
He is currently expressing his interests in quantum entanglement, the interconnectedness of all things as well as common traits humans share in his new series of cloud-like oil abstractions.
In 2013 Ken O’Toole completed a public art project entitled “Dreams at 100 Fathoms” which was commissioned by Fort Worth Public Arts for the Marine Park Family Aquatic Center .
His visionary, “Cultural Ghosts,” series of photographs were the inspiration for the 2011 Sustaining Artists Juried Exhibit in Fort Worth.
Some notable exhibitions which included his work were:
- 2012 Ann Metzger National Juried Exhibit in St. Louis, MO. Curated by Marla Prather: Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art – Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY.
- 2010 “PaperWorks” National Juried Exhibit at the B.J. SPOKE Gallery in Huntington, New York, Curated by Eleonore Hugendubel – curator of painting and sculpture MoMA
- 2010 “Materiality” National Juried Exhibit at the ARC Gallery in Chicago, Il. Curator/Juror: Jeanne N. Long – Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois
To see the full C.V. follow this link here:
His artwork is collected by corporate and private entities across the country, including Findlay Properties Group in Fort Worth, the City of Fort Worth, Texas, and 2Imagine Consulting, Inc. in St. Petersburg, Fl.
Artist’s Statement: Ken O’Toole 3-14-2020
I enjoy myself in the studio, grateful to be able to participate by investigating creation mysteries. I paint, or make something, figure out how to make it better, then maybe I will paint it. I’ll photograph that, then digitally sculpt it again on the computer. When you’re your own source material the possibilities are infinite. Every step serves as an under layer for the next experiment or inquiry.
Sometimes, I lose myself in expressionistic drawing, dark oil paint on white support. Basic cathartic movements imply structure, part dance part design. I follow a path blazed by my own energy. I’m not always certain where it will lead but still stay the course. I’m the assigned investigator.
I retrace my steps to make sure I didn’t miss any clues. I study the structure of the drawing and either soften it with more oil or add light with brighter colors in soft on soft layers. The adventure of discovery makes for a thrilling chase. Seeing what emerges from communion with my counterpart on the other side of the universe proves breathtaking.
The completed painting gives testimony from my case notes. However, abstractions warrant in-depth reading. The hope is that the jury will concur with my conclusions, or in a pursuit of their own stumble across clues I missed. Somewhere between the shadow and the light they may find the familiar, perhaps merely a hint, like the ghost portions of entangled particles, atoms, energy, stardust and the rest.