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About Karen Sperling

Karen Sperling at the opening reception for the gallery show of her art at Monkdogz Urban Art in New York's Chelsea art district.

I grew up on New York's Long Island, went to college in Ithaca New York, lived in Manhattan for many years and moved to Los Angeles in 1995.

My mother was an artist and my father enjoyed photography, so I've been drawing, painting and taking photos for as long as I can remember.

I love pursuing all three and enjoy creating portraits, landscapes and abstracts with either traditional media like pastels and oils or with digital tools, specifically Corel Painter, for which I wrote the original manuals when the program debuted 20 years ago in addition to several published books.

I see art and photography as a visual conversation between the artist/photographer and the viewer. As an artist/photographer I can express my thoughts and feelings about the subject and as the viewer you can see the work based on your thoughts and feelings. You may either get exactly what I was trying to say, or you may read something into the work that I didn't even realize or intend to put there. I think that's the fascinating part about art and photography, that it evokes strong feelings and reactions that touch the artist/photographer and the viewer, regardless of whether it's in the same way. For commissioned work, the dialog between photographer/artist and viewer starts much earlier in the process of creating the art/photograph. The viewer participates early on because of course I want the work to have meaning for you, and that comes about with communication throughout the journey of creation. With photos and art that stem more from my vision, I can only create what's in my heart and if it resonates for others, one way or the other and not necessarily in the way I intended, then that's an exciting result.

What I'm trying to say with my art and photos continues to evolve, and I look forward to your participation in the dialog!

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