A one-night-only exhibition featuring Kyle Krauskopf at the new Kan Kan Cinema and Brasserie (located at 1258 Windsor St.) Thursday November 4, 6-9 pm.

Dynamic portraiture done in watercolor and mixed drawing media, created all over the place including Indiana, Washington, and the Czech Republic.

Learn more about the artist at kylekrauskopf.com and @kylekrauskopf .

Kyle Krauskopf Artist Statement

Resilience. Work Ethic. Care. Unknowable Universal Actions. This is the recipe for the cocktail that is Kyle Krauskopf- add delusional optimism and superheroes to personal taste.

For as long as I can remember I have felt different, apart from others. As you grow and learn and evolve, your understanding of who you are and what you want clarifies… hopefully. A good friend of mine once gifted me a handmade ceramic ear. Its bigger than you think- about the size of an outstretched adult hand. He told me the reason he gave it to me is because I listen to everyone. I was wholly flattered. I try to listen as I am a hugely empathetic person.

The two things that have clarified for me as I’ve gone through life is that I want to help people and I can not exist without creating. I’ve found myself on a path, or rather forged a path through sheer determination, that marries those two.

I believe art is a compulsion. A reaction to the world, the artists’ feelings about it, how they communicate and walk through it. I know, for myself, I would be utterly lost without it. Art has no restraints, there are no rules, there is no goal post or end- it is boundless, limitless, restricted only by what you can imagine. Having been born into a safe environment in a small Midwestern town, I yearned to explore and conquer and build and learn and experience. Its no wonder I was drawn to the highs, lows, and uncertainty that is being an artist.

I really started to come into my own in 2015. Shortly after I moved to Washington from Indiana I undertook my first year- long, daily, art project. Every day I designed and created a different animal out of wood. It gave me life. Pride. Direction. Motivation. It felt fresh, original, and like something I was destined to do. It’s still one of the best things I’ve made. 365 wooden animals. One a day for the year of 2015.

From there I’ve attempted several other year long projects, some hits, some misses. I stumbled through Europe with my best friend, a backpack full of clothes, and a bunch of art supplies. It was in Nice, France, running along the coast, watching the crystalline, teal water crash against the rocks, that I thought to myself “you’re a better artist than this, make better art.” So I did. At least, it’s in a fashion that I often hear “I’ve never seen anything like this before,” and god damn if that isn’t good enough for me… for now.

However, with every project and accomplishment, including having a vision/ premonition/ manifestation of a now built Contemporary Art Center in Seattle, the thing I really embrace, what really fulfills me and gives me life is listening to others- and acting to help them.

I live to aid others. To encourage them when they’re frustrated or stuck, to bring light to issues that are more common than you may think, to lend a helping hand, to learn and grow and be the best possible version of Kyle I can be.
Art has saved my life and given me direction time and time again. Exploring its boundless potential will take the rest of my life, as will seeking out opportunities to listen to, help, and work with all the people I possibly can.

“Knowing who you are is hard. Eliminate who you are not first, and you’re going to find yourself where you need to be.” These are works and projects completed here in Seattle- in search of who I am, or rather, who I am not.