Kat Reilly Paper Artist

Kat Reilly Paper Artist I’m a paper artist using ordinary materials to tell powerful stories.

Now showing at the Society of Western Artists’ Annual Exhibition. Honored to be among the insanely talented artists in t...
07/04/2026

Now showing at the Society of Western Artists’ Annual Exhibition. Honored to be among the insanely talented artists in this show.

Come see the show at the SWA gallery in downtown San Bruno now through August.

“Violent Hope” (18x24”, acrylic & collage on wood panel). DM to inquire about this piece and others that are available for sale.

07/02/2026

Sometimes you can’t get a solid block of time to create, just little pockets throughout the day. The beauty of collage is the ease in which you can flow in and out of these pockets: tear a bit, find its home, glue it on, walk away.

This helps my process become more and more synonymous with what my work is increasingly about: cultivating creative and spontaneous moments in a world that keeps us weighed down with decision paralysis, overwhelm and a growing list of “shoulds.”

Finding play in my day, despite the list of “shoulds” internally screaming at me, through the act of creation with the most unexpected materials, is my quiet act of rebellion.

Work in progress - thinking of calling this one “Are you mad at me?”
07/01/2026

Work in progress - thinking of calling this one “Are you mad at me?”

07/01/2026

Scraping, tearing, chiseling: a short soundscape of my more physical mark making techniques.

06/29/2026

Sometimes you get so into the flow, you forget to clean up…a bunch. And you’re left with a messy studio that gives even the most laid back people you know anxiety.

BUT I will stand firm on the ground that sometimes disorganization and seemingly chaotic “piles” of things strewn all over actually bring about creativity! If everything was too organized, I wouldn’t make connections between two random things.

What we think of as a “mess” can often spark the most surprising ideas.

And sure, if you start to trip on things you maaaaay want to consider tidying up. But everything in good measure, right?! 😆

06/25/2026

A lil tour of all the materials in my latest piece: grocery bags, election mailers, old holiday cards…OH MY!

Friendly reminder that anything can be made to make art, especially the things that you see around you every day. 🤙🙌

06/24/2026

…and being a complete goofball. 😆

Finger painting, scratching, large gestural cursive brain dumpy words. All of this is becoming part of a new, more authe...
06/14/2026

Finger painting, scratching, large gestural cursive brain dumpy words. All of this is becoming part of a new, more authentic visual language that’s starting to form my artwork. And all of this before I even bring collage and paper into the mix. Sometimes you need to start with you before anything external. More vulnerable and also more freeing. 🤘

06/10/2026

I began scratching into my work as a necessity. Something about the marks looking like the way my nervous system feels on its spikiest days. But I also found the act of disrupting the softness of thick paint and brushstrokes creates a contrast that feels right in my work and the way I’m using it to understand my self and mental health challenges. We have to embrace both softness and jaggedness, understanding that their contrast is exactly what makes life meaningful and something we constantly learn from.

Also the sound (for me) is so. dang. satisfying.

06/03/2026

Lately, when I’ve started new pieces, I begin with words. The words that flood my brain: positive and negative, encouraging and critical, energizing and paralyzing. Instead of a concrete idea, I begin with channeling the soundtrack of my life: the inner monologue riddled with anxiety and insecurity that has been my close companion for 39 years. Therapy, journaling, & art making have all pushed me towards the kind of reflection that makes me confront a question I’m still seeking an answer for: why? Why are these anxious thoughts so automatic? Why have I let them steer my life and self-perception for so long? Why have I let them become embedded in my identify and sense of self? Why do I continue to encourage them?

To me, art making is the place I go to stop thinking and connect with myself. It’s the safest place for me to ask these questions and, little by little, a safe place for me to see and wrestle with the answers.

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San Francisco, CA

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