Kat Reilly Paper Artist

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San Francisco, CA
Kat Reilly Paper Artist

I’m a paper artist using ordinary materials to tell powerful stories.

02/04/2026

No poem yet for this one. But I love it too much to not share. Maybe the name speaks for itself.

——
“Violent Hope” - 2025 - Acrylic and collage on wood panel

01/20/2026

I see her in the mirror staring,
and I respond by sternly glaring.
Then I ask us both,
“Where did I go?”

——

“Where did I go?” (2025) acrylic & collage on birch panel

——

This is the start of a new era of work I’m creating to explore my lifelong experience with chronic anxiety and burnout. While this particular piece is not for sale, I will be sharing more that are available for purchase. If you’d like to be the first to know about these, DM me.

12/26/2025

There’s been a LOT of activity in my lil’ studio lately. It’s been worth pushing through all the false starts and uncertainty.

12/15/2025

I feel like I’ve been hiding away here, waiting until I feel I’ve made something “good enough” to share with you all. But here’s the thing: I’m actively exploring and experimenting in a newer realm. That means making a lot of weird things that have hints of awesome in them. Each one of these leads to the next weird thing. This makes it a really exciting time for the mad scientist in me. The perfectionist with performance anxiety though?? Eh, she’s having a tougher time these days. But let’s try to show her it’s safe to share the weird things that don’t go where you imagine. 😊

Also, cheers and gratitude for my amazing partner, Omid, for capturing this video for me. ❤️❤️

11/17/2025

Bring calm to the chaos, grounding to the whirlwind, clarity to the wisps of ideas and musings. That’s what this new era of my art is feeling like. And it’s really a new era for me. I don’t know where it’s going. But I’m going to trust the process. And that means I have to trust myself, believe in myself. That’s a hard lesson but I know it’ll be worthwhile.

11/11/2025

Art supplies haul from . Some acrylic inks, markers, concertina-style sketchbook, a brayer for plate, and mediums for collaging. Plus, a special appearance by Theodore the cat, who, like his mama, can’t resist a new cardboard box. 😻

01/04/2025

Why are some projects so difficult to finish?

I struggle with this all the time: I get super pumped about an idea, I work voraciously on it, and then, when there’s one or two things left to do, I put it on the side and start something else.

Perfectionism and fear are the usual suspects here. I tend to hold onto things because I don’t have the “right” solution to a problem or just think there’s more I can do to make it feel “finished.” In the case of this piece, it was finding the right hardware to frame it (I upcycled the frame and hit a few snags in the process).

Waiting for the little details to all line up impedes progress. I’m going to try letting “good enough” be good enough.

We’ll see how it goes 😊

—————
ROADSIDE POPPIES, 2024
Acrylic, junk mail, cardstock, cardboard
© Kat Reilly

12/31/2024

Most of this year felt like an artistic drought. The well felt dry and lots of other things needed my focus. One of those things was me. I felt a strong pull to find myself outside of art and work, leading me to pursue other hobbies, interests and, honestly, let go of a lot of pressure I was putting on myself.

I did keep journaling, though. Almost daily. In my writings I struggled with the loss of inspiration, motivation, and the identity as an artist. But gradually, those worries became curiosities: questions about why I feel such a strong pull to create, how it makes me feel and why I think it’s important for myself and the larger world. In these questions I realized I hadn’t lost myself, I had lost my “why.”

And I still haven’t found it yet. Still writing. Still asking. But I have begun drawing again. And that’s led me to do some more painting. And that led me to dusting off an old project this week that I’d considered abandoning.

So here’s my point: sometimes what feels like a drought can be leading you somewhere new. Keep the faith, cut yourself some slack, and continue to work at it. Keep tilling the soil even though it hasn’t rained in a while. They call it a practice for a reason. 😊

09/10/2024

Another unfiltered photo with another favorite shirt. 😊 “You can still be kind and say no.” Kindness and boundary setting. One thing I practice easily and one thing I’m working on. The shirt is very cozy too!

If you’ve been hanging with me for a bit you’ve probably noticed I often talk about mental health a lot. It’s become a passion of mine, something I’ll read about in my off time or talk about with friends and family. It’s become such an important part of my life that I’m now intentionally addressing it in my art. For me, making art is still where I feel most authentically me. And what I want to know is…why? What is it about art that simultaneously awakens and calms me? Not sure of the answer yet, but I’m excited to find out. Feel free to follow along, my hope is that what I discover might be helpful or inspiring to you too 😊❤️

08/22/2024

Back with a little freeform piece I’ve been tinkering with to reflect, meditate and regulate my fickle lil’ nervous system.

Still in progress. Any titles come to mind? 😊

07/01/2024

Another door. Also green. But something’s off here. This time the door’s shuttered, you’re unable to see inside. Perhaps something sinister or unworldly is happening behind it? (🎵dah-doo🎵)

06/30/2024

Taking a selfie is really hard with a cardboard diorama. All good though. I’m just happy to be dusting off this piece from last year and continue the story within it.

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San Francisco, CA

Website

http://katreilly.art/links

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