Meet Catherine Colangelo in North/Shepherd Park Plaza

Today we’d like to introduce you to Catherine Colangelo.

Catherine, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve always liked making things, starting when I was a little kid. I took classes at Glassell as a child and had several influential art teachers at Kinkaid, especially Michelle Barnes, who is the founder of the Community Artists’ Collective here in Houston, and Pat Foley, who was a sculptor who worked mainly in bronze.

When I was in high school, I started taking Life Drawing classes on Saturdays with Michael Collins, who is a well-known, Houston-based painter. I went on to become his studio assistant and actually met my husband in his classes. I went on to earn a BFA in Painting from Cooper Union in New York City. While there, I worked as a studio assistant for Miriam Schapiro, who was a seminal feminist artist and founder of the Pattern and Decoration movement. I also was fortunate to have several other influential feminist teachers at Cooper, including Joyce Kozloff, Faith Wilding, and Ellen Lanyon. Another favorite was Jack Whitten, who recently passed away.

After graduating from Cooper, I returned to Houston to start my art practice. After being in New York, I really appreciated the diverse and supportive art community we have in Houston and also the fact that my husband and I were able to afford to have a big studio right when we got out of college. I have shown my work consistently ever since graduating, mostly in Houston, including at McMurtrey Gallery and now at Cindy Lisica Gallery in the 4411 Montrose building.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I made a decision early on that it made the most sense for me to have a day job in order not to put financial pressure on my art practice. I wanted to be able to selfishly preserve my creative juices for myself and was worried that if I did something creative all day long, I might not get any painting done for myself.

I stumbled into working for advertising agencies and learned on the job to handle the bookkeeping and business management. I worked at ad agencies for 21 years and recently made the switch to being the bookkeeper/business manager at an architecture firm, English + Associates Architects. Both industries have been great to work in, as I am surrounded by creative people.

Having a dependable source of income has been a source of stability for me. It has enabled me to make sound financial decisions, including buying a house, saving for college for my child and saving for retirement. On the other hand, I have not always taken the risks that some artists have, and have perhaps limited my success because of that. On the whole, though, I have been very happy with the path I have chosen.

The main struggles I have had involve trying to juggle parenting, working a day job and being an artist. I currently work four days a week and paint for about three hours every night in my home studio, usually six or seven days a week. Being an artist today requires a lot of social networking, and I am an introvert who loves to be at home. Trying to force myself to get out into the world is always a challenge. Painting in my studio is where I am happiest.

Please tell us about Catherine Colangelo.
I specialize in painting, using gouache (an opaque watercolor paint) and graphite on muslin which is stretched over wood panels.

My work has influences as varied as illuminated manuscripts, Indian and Islamic miniatures, textiles and visionary art. I’m especially drawn to the beautiful patterning used in these traditions.

In my latest body of work, I created a series of painted shields, which function as talismans. As a parent of a teenager, I’m interested in the everyday sorcery that being a mother involves and how my role as his protector has changed over time.

I am currently preparing for a show opening in mid-November at Cindy Lisica Gallery. The work in the show continues to explore themes from my day-to-day life, and includes imagery as varied as protective figures, flowers, mazes, kites, estuaries, and many all-seeing eyes.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Besides painting, there are many other creative careers that I might have enjoyed and been successful at. Unfortunately, I did not have much guidance, at school or at home, to expose me to alternate paths. I liked painting, therefore, I became a painter. Sadly, not many artists can actually make a living solely off their artwork!

In light of my love of textiles and patterns, I think I would have been quite happy as a textile designer, and it could have been a fulfilling career.

Recently, when I participated in a Career Day at my child’s school, I took a long list of “creative careers” to hand out to the art kids who came to talk to me, just to give them some ideas of jobs they might like to explore.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.catherinecolangelo.com
• Email: cathcol@cathcol.com
• Instagram: CatherineColangeloArt
• Facebook: @ColangeloVisualArt

Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.