Artist Spotlight of the Month: "Kirsten Stolle"
Welcome to Dot Editions “Artist Spotlight” series, where we’ll be interviewing one artist a month and sharing a little about them with you. The team of artists at DOT Editions have collaborated to bring you a monthly celebration highlighting local artists we’ve had the pleasure of working with through the studio. By these artists sharing a bit about themselves we hope to inspire the artist community to keep pursuing their dreams.
Name: Kirsten Stolle
Medium: Photo-based collage, drawing, text-based work, installation, visual poetry interventions
Experience: Since 2000
1. Q: Where are you from?
A: Born in Massachusetts, lived and worked in the San Francisco Bay Area for 19 years, relocated to Asheville in 2011.
2. Q: How did you end up in Asheville,NC?
A: Due to the increased cost of living, I could no longer sustain my life in SF. When I’d mention to friends and family about moving from the West Coast, Asheville kept coming up in conversation. In 2010 I visited Asheville on a gorgeous fall weekend, people were super friendly, Moogfest was happening, and I saw a nun on a bike! I felt right at home. I moved 4 months later and I’m so grateful.
3. Q: How many cities have you lived in and how hard or easy was it to get into the local artist community?
A: 7 places. In Asheville, I found meeting other artists fairly easy. I attended a bunch of open studios, introduced myself as a recent transplant, and started having engaging conversations. Ironically, I’m a fairly introverted person, yet I really love reaching out (even cold-calling!) to make connections with fellow creatives.
4. Q: What do you like to listen to when creating? Do you have any suggestions/playlists to share with us?
A: Tons of podcasts! Sometimes music and if I really have to focus, silence is golden.
For artist interviews:
My weekly listens:
The Sporkful, Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso, Code Switch, The Slowdown, Smartless, and Death Sex and Money
On the music end, I have in rotation PJ Harvey, Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, and Philip Glass.
5. Q: Do you have any kind of routines that help get your creative juices going and ready to create? Please share.
A: Generally the night before, I work out if it will be a studio day (creative), an administration or writing day. I always start my day with a coffee (cortado) and some type of exercise. After a quick shower I head down to the studio and often pick up where I left off the day before but if I’m starting a new project, I’ll arrange a clean area in the studio where I can begin without distraction.
6. Q: What’s your best advice on how to not procrastinate and get rid of creative blocks ?
A: I’m not a big fan of the word procrastinate, as I think it removes the importance of unfocused time as a valuable way to generate new ideas and connections. I like the idea of allowing for distraction, boredom, and unplanned time to give my brain a chance to reset. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve come up with an idea or solved a problem during a run or simply staring out at the trees!
7. Q: What does your creative space currently look like? Show us a photo! Tell us what you're working on, if you’d like to share.
A: My studio looks fairly boring at the moment! I’m just coming off working on 13 projects over 3 years for my solo show Only You Can Prevent A Forest at The Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art. Dot Editions was super helpful in producing two of the projects for the show. My focus for the past 12 years has been on the global influence of agrochemical companies on our food supply, and I thought I’d take a break from that inquiry but I’ve just gone down the rabbit hole looking into the field of Precision Agriculture.
8. Q: What is one thing that most people don't know about you?
A: When I move to a new city, one of the first things I do is to register to vote and get a local library card.
9. Q: What advice can you give to the artists that are just starting their creative careers? What can they do to help get their work out there?
A: From a practical standpoint, it’s helpful to figure out what environment works best for you. Do you like to block out an entire weekend or work every day in the studio? Do you have a day job and are only able to work in the studio at night? Each studio practice is a very focused, individualized ecosystem, one that is tailored to the specific needs of the artist. From a connection standpoint, I think it’s important to start with artists and galleries in your community. Reach out to artists who’ve been making work for some time, visit artist studios, go to exhibition openings, artist talks and follow artists who you admire on social media. I’ve found many artists are very generous with their time and are happy to share ideas and experiences.
10. Q: Did you go to art school or are you self-taught? If you went to school, where? If you didn’t, how did you start and what has helped?
A: I went to Framingham State University (MA), and Richmond College (London).
Kirsten will be having a solo show this Spring(Feb.24 - April 8, 2023) at Tracey Morgan Gallery in Asheville, NC featuring many of the pieces from her latest exhibition at the Halsey Institute including PPop.
If you’d like to check out what she’s up to, click on the links below.
See you next month for our next featured artist!
Thank you for reading, we really appreciate your support.
Website: www.kirstenstolle.com
Instagram: @kirstenstolle