PAULA CAHILL

Paula Cahill

I attended The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts from 2009 until 2011 when I graduated with the Master of Fine Arts degree. I’m grateful for my time at PAFA as I became part of a rewarding community that has always been a wealth of support and learning. I continue to enjoy friendships and professional relationships with alumni and professors. This is a large and most rewarding part of my life.

   During my time at PAFA, I transitioned from figure painting to large, complex abstract paintings. I have continued this practice and currently create linear abstract compositions composed of catenaries or single luminous lines that meander, change color, and seamlessly connect back to themselves. As I prepare to paint, I mix up to 100 gradients of color derived from my memories of scuba diving among tropical fish on the world’s coral reefs. By repeatedly laying down the colorful gradients one brushstroke at a time, I create radiant, light-filled lines that change color hundreds of times, reflecting a quality reminiscent of the bioluminescence that emanates from sea-life. My work is interactive, inviting the viewer to track a meandering, color-changing path.

   I strive to push the historical conversation with line into the contemporary and elevate the integral role it has played in art, design, and the sciences since its early appearance in rock and cave drawings. Science, personal experience, visual semantics, and art history all inform my work. Catalysts for my most recent paintings include geometry, physics, and ocean tides.