Kristy working fervorously on "Ghost of James Dean", listening to her hands as she paints.

WHY PAINT WITH MY HANDS?

Hands have always been important to me. They tell a lot about a person...they are how we touch each other, how we lift each other up, how we connect. This connection is what means the most to me.

I paint with my hands because it connects me deeply with my work. I feel it more than I see it—the smooth wet paint against the roughness of my canvas, the cool, gooey sensation of the paint between my fingers. And as I work, I feel the texture of the dry paint already laid. 

I work in a sort of focused frenzy, allowing music to fill my mind while my hands work, not always knowing where we will up. If I try to see where I’m going, I can get lost–but when I listen, and feel my paint, it guides me.

I haven’t used a paint brush in over 20 years!

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