Meet Missy Kaye | Abstract Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Missy Kaye and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Missy, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
There is a lot of confusion surrounding abstract art. In abstraction, there is no subject sitting in front of the artist. The artist is allowing energy to flow through them to determine what is put on the canvas. The artist’s skills such as color sense, shape, and composition are the building blocks in the toolbox of the artist that are used in their expression. You might feel the energy in the painting as you take the time to enter the work and explore it. If we can teach people to look into a work and FEEL, then we are getting somewhere. I believe art is here to open that place inside someone that may not be able to open in any other way. Have you ever cried listening to opera, Yo-Yo Ma playing Bach, or standing in front of a Rothko or a Joan Mitchell? This beauty, this opening, I believe it can change the world.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My hope is to open a place within you and allow you to deeply see through the use of color and movement. Observing color in nature has been a lot of my inspiration from growing up in Boulder. As a child, I spent hours looking at clouds, water, and trees. I am fascinated by the way color and color relationships change with light. My story is also about resilience. I spent my childhood trying not to be too expressive and was supposed to follow another path. Inside, I knew this wasn’t the right fit for my expressive soul who yearned to create. It took a great deal of time, but I did return. I had made over 700 works that were consumed by the Marshall Fire. Again, I was tested. Again the work chose me. Art is not a choice for me. Painting calls to me in a way I cannot deny. Rebuilding my business after the fire is taking time, and emotional strength. It is only because of this amazing community that we have been able to survive the toil of this disaster. We have been gifted everything under the sun, including paint, easels, brushes, and beautiful art! More than that, we have been held by this community and encouraged to persist. I am thrilled to be painting again. In an effort to make lemonade out of this situation, I created a line of cards from my paintings lost in the fire, called “The Lost Works.” I am looking forward to sharing more and more of these pieces that were never shown. My hope it to continue to use all of my life experiences, including the fire, to fuel my painting. Life sure can be surprising, and sometimes comes with unexpected silver linings.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I am a Boulder native, and our tradition when people come to town is to drive them up to NCAR, and take it the impressive architecture of I.M. Pei. From there, we can point out some of the local landmarks prior to visiting them. Let’s head down to Jax for a fun happy hour!

The next day we would have some yummy breakfast crepes at home and then head to Chautauqua before the crowds. A nice hike up to the Royal Arch is satisfying to visitors and not too strenuous. From there we could head down to the farmer’s market for some shopping and bites. Relaxing at Eldo Pool is a must and full of great Boulder history. Dinner at Alberico (Locale) and music at Chautauqua auditorium would be fun.

The next day we could take a drive up to Jamestown and do the surreal hike along Ceran St. Vrain with it’s impressive groves of trees. Packing in a lunch makes this a true Colorado feel. Heading down to Pearl Street for some shopping at Peppercorn and Boulder Bookstore, with an afternoon chai at the Trident, before eating dinner at Brasserie would be fun.

Denver day is next with early tickets to a show at the DAM, and lunch downtown at Rioja. Feeling ultra spoiled, we would then pop in to the impressive Clyfford Still Museum, and on to the shops and galleries on South Broadway. Dinner at Cuba Cuba is a must.

This day would be a great one to chill at Scott Carpenter Pool with friends, and to order in lunch from Le French Cafe. My girls will insist on us playing some tennis and from there we would head to Santo for dinner. A show at Boulder Theater would be a fun way to end the day.

An early morning hike at Sanitas followed by treats at Spruce Confections is a must. From there we would visit The New Local, Two Hands Paperie, and Classic Facets then head to the Museum of Boulder to take in some art. Lunch at Hapa and more shopping sound fun, with a visit to Gelato Boy of course.

Our last day together in Boulder! Today let’s have breakfast at Lucile’s and then go tour the Boulderado. More shopping and lunch with friends at Rosetta Hall sounds fun before heading off to a show at Red Rocks. I hope you enjoyed a small tour of Boulder gems!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My art story begins at age 4 when I decided that my bedroom wall was the grandest canvas I had laid eyes on. I took to it with vigor, and stood back to admire my masterpiece, my first abstract painting. My mother, a repressed artist herself, was unimpressed and my beautiful work had vanished by the next day. My father was very inventive in the mechanical engineering world and it was because of him that I was quietly encouraged to follow some of my creative pursuits. Before I had fully recognized how critical art was to me, I studied Italian portraiture with sculptor Theresa Brownback, aerial dance with Nancy Smith, and designed clothing and styled my close friends. While traveling in Norway with my mom we would go to galleries and museums. A chronic migraine sufferer, I noticed my headaches would disappear while taking in works by Picasso, Miro, and Munch. It would be some time before I could realize my innate drive to paint. A decade later, I frequently visited the Denver Art Museum. It became a normal occurrence that I would walk into an exhibit or gallery and be so overcome with emotion that I would start crying. At the Fritz Scholder exhibit at the DAM, I was so touched by his work that I knew I had to explore this part of myself in greater depth. I yearned to paint but did not know where to begin. I had looked at the DAM’s offering of courses but the schedule didn’t work with my job. I decided to call the instructor directly, and am so fortunate that Chuck Ceraso took me under his wing as a private student. He taught me first to see, then to draw, and said I must paint. Chuck is a talented and unique instructor who learned color seeing from Henry Hensche, an American painter who was taught color seeing by Charles Hawthorne who was influenced directly by Claude Monet. Chuck taught me to see color and color relationships in this tradition, and continues to mentor me on this path. It was at the Women of Abstract Expressionism show at the DAM that abstraction chose me. The abstract paintings touched something deep inside of me and I felt their aliveness. I would look at the paintings for hours, returning at least 8 times to take them in, being shuffled out at the very last minute of the last day of the exhibit, in tears. When I told my father I was painting, he exclaimed “You’ve always been an artist!” My husband Matt and my girls have been endlessly patient as I insist on going to shows and galleries anywhere we visit and listen to my excitement about painting. Shoutout to Matt, who endlessly supports me in my art, Chuck, my father, and my friends and family who have all led the charge to encourage my painting.

Website: missykaye.com

Instagram: bouldermissy