"So Simple Yet The Sponge" Painting

Seascapes Collection "So Simple Yet The Sponge"

Title:  "So Simple Yet the Sponge"

Size:  30"x30" Acrylic Mixed Media on Thick Canvas

Artist:  Kimberly J. Franklin

About "So Simple Yet The Sponge"

The sponge is the most simple of all animals in the animal kingdom.  Known by its Phylum name, Porifera, each sponge is a community of the simplest cells which work together to form one organism.  We often mistake the simple things in life as mundane.  But when we take a closer look, the simple is actually quite complex and extraordinary.  Used as a metaphore, the elements in this painting remind us that simplicity is beautiful.

Created by sketches in charcoal on canvas, acrylic paint is then laid down to create form.  Kimberly uses bright colors to seduce, but also incorporates the element of design by adding textural elements in cloth and paper.  Once this is done, paint is again added and blended to unify the painting.  You will find the shapes and colors of this painting both soothing and interesting to the eye, and you will love it in any space you put it in. 

Artist's Statement

In a world where dreams and water merge and flow, where reality and the surreal morph into one, “Water Dreams” is metaphor for life.  Continuously shifting and evolving with the tide, the soul too is transformed on its journey to the summit.  Often times, the path is not clear, but rocky, murky, dark and unknown.  We encounter experiences that can leave us fragile and spinning to find the direction of the light.  Yet, if we can find stillness, the element that connects us to the Divine, we find ourselves floating in the tranquility of the present.  By simply, “letting go,” it is in this space that we discover peace and are free.

Artist's Biography

Kimberly Tracy (Franklin) was always mesmerized by color and creativity since her early childhood, and she was always creating something whether it be costumes to handmade books and drawings, as expression was her first language.  

During college in New Mexico, Kimberly's studies of Biology and Chemistry fascinated her as she became particularly enamored with the intricate, pattern-filled cellular structures under a microscope, all throughout nature, and forms within the human body.  The lovely surroundings of the dry yet colorful deserts of the area also captivated her, as did the work of artists from the region like Georgia O' Keeffe.  She feel in love with Georgia's folded flowers, sumptuous undulating landscapes, bending hills, and splendid color and light.  After taking several art courses, Kimberly's love of art inspirations and the patterns and forms from Biology began to be articulated in her artwork.

Flowing, colorful, decorative and ethereal, Kim Franklin's work conveys a sensation of life.  The ebb and flow of life from landscape to ocean has shaped her artistic language and vision.  In her own worlds, "these rich experiences and relics have found their way into my dreams and onto my canvases."   

"May these paintings transform you as much as they have transformed me."

Kimberly J. Franklin