Bio
Carolyn Misterek (b.1985) was always an art kid. That is, until she graduated with a BFA from the University of Minnesota in 2007 and promptly stopped painting.
Instead, Carolyn spent the following 12 years building a career as a copywriter, content strategist and UX designer; completing her MA in art history; and building product-based businesses of her own—most recently a handbag label called MATINE.
But in 2019 Carolyn had one of those straight-out-of-a-movie lightning strike epiphanies to discontinue her handbag label in order to return to her studio art practice full time.
In the short years since, she has enjoyed quite a quickly growing audience, which now includes collectors in more than 30 countries.
She lives and works in Maryland with her husband, two daughters and one very neurotic dog.
Artist Statement
My painting practice is an exploration of the delicate interplay between memory, place, and identity. I strive to capture the emotional landscapes of human experience, drawing inspiration from the beauty and complexity of both the natural and material worlds of my daily life. I have a particular interest in the concept of transience—how the briefest moments and memories can deeply shape our understanding of self.
Negative space plays a vital role in my paintings as well, mimicking the pauses and reflections found in both nature and my experience of motherhood—moments where clarity, though fleeting, often emerges from chaos. In many of my works, the dialogue between the organic and the constructed serves as a reminder of how our perceptions can blur the lines between reality and imagination. My hope is that each piece sparks conversations about the stories we carry within us, the landscapes we navigate, and the beauty available to us where we choose to notice it.
Recently and Upcoming:
2025
Chateau Orquevaux Residency and Denis Diderot Grant, Orquevaux, France
2024
“SQFT”, Group Show, Washington, DC
2023
Meadow Gallery, Mylo Art Summer Show, Stockbridge UK - Inquire Here
The American Scholar, Portrait of the Artist
2022
“Other People’s Flowers,” Solo Show, Homme Gallery, Washington, DC
“Everyday Occurrences” Solo Show, Salon Studio, Washington, DC
2021
”Still/Life” Group Show, Monochrome Collective, Washington, DC
“Women in The Arts” Group Show, Latela Curatorial, Washington, DC
“Fun Size” Juried Group Show, Jen Tough Gallery, Sante Fe, NM
The Rulebreaker Podcast, Episode #39
Friend of the Artist, Studio Project
“Her Weight in Gold” Group Show, Visionary Arts Collective
2020
“Into Nature” Juried Group Show, WBCA, Minnesota