Katrina Revenaugh
The Verdant Hours
April 4 - June 27, 2025
Opie Gallery
Created in the solitude of the early morning, The Verdant Hours is a collection of contemporary mixed media works that explore the intersection of nature and urban expression. Each piece is a fusion of raw graffiti energy and the delicate beauty of botanical forms—where the resilience of nature meets the grit of the streets.
Built in layers, these works combine acrylic, pigment inks, oil sticks, pastel and hand-cut Japanese KOZO paper to create richly textured surfaces. Using an alternative printmaking process, pigment inks and the artist’s own photography are burnished into the surface by hand, embedding imagery into the composition like a memory pressed into time. This tactile process allows each layer to reveal something new—subtle remnants of previous marks, traces of botanical forms, and echoes of urban landscapes.
Through abstract interpretations and floral shapes, The Verdant Hours reimagines the essence of botanicals, capturing their forms in unexpected ways. The rhythmic layering of materials reflects the harmony and tension between the organic and the industrial, the ephemeral and the enduring.
This exhibition celebrates the coexistence of two seemingly opposing forces—urban culture and the natural world—revealing the beauty that emerges from their convergence. The Verdant Hours invites viewers to pause, look closer, and to find wonder in the places where nature persists, even in the most unlikely environments.
Artist Statement:
My work is a fusion of photography, printmaking, and painting—an ongoing exploration of the unexpected relationship between street art and nature. At first glance, graffiti and botanicals seem like opposites, but both are acts of mark-making, subject to time, decay, and renewal.
Graffiti layers over itself as new artists leave their mark, much like a garden where plants grow, fade, and regenerate. Both evolve, transforming walls and landscapes into living, ever-changing compositions.
I am inspired by graffiti’s raw energy and the ephemeral beauty of botanicals. A single gesture—a faded tag, a bold stroke of color, a vine creeping over a wall—feeds my creative process.
Using an alternative printmaking technique, I merge elements from photographs of graffiti, botanicals, and insects, burnishing pigment inks onto layered surfaces of paint and mixed media. Through this tactile process, the vibrancy of street art intertwines with the organic flow of nature, creating immersive, dreamlike compositions.
I see my work ever changing—where the urban and the organic coexist, fade, and begin anew.
Artist Bio:
Katrina Revenaugh is a photographer, printmaker and painter. She combines those disciplines to transform the grit and chaos of street art into her own visual language.
Over the years, she has traveled to 24 cities across 11 countries to photograph graffiti in the world’s most dynamic street art environments. She sees graffiti as the purest form of “mark making”—a raw, expressive connection between artist and city, a visual language that tells the story of a place and people.
Drawing from her travels, she fuses the energy of urban art with the delicate beauty of nature. Using an alternative printmaking process, she layers her own photographs of graffiti, botanicals, and insects, burnishing pigment inks onto painted surfaces.
Gestures intertwine with flowers, vines, and textures, combining the organic and the industrial in unexpected ways. Each piece is a layered narrative, a fusion of marks and memories that blur the lines between past and present, nature and city.
Originally from the Midwest, Katrina spent her teen years in rural Southern Illinois, where her love for nature and flowers grew. Later, living near Venice Beach and attending Otis College of Art & Design, she developed a fascination with graffiti and street art. This dual passion fuels her ever-growing archive of images, gathered from alleys and gardens alike, forming the foundation of her work. She currently resides in Kansas City.
Donald M. Jahn
I am deeply fortunate to have spent the last half of my life working with and learning from some of the finest ceramic artists of our time. My journey in ceramics began at the age of forty under the mentorship of John Kudlacek at Emporia State University. This path led me to study with exceptional artists like Jim Estes, Stephen Hill, Victor Babu, George Timock, and Ken Ferguson, each of whom profoundly shaped my artistic vision and technical approach.
In the later years of my career, I had the privilege of collaborating with Jim Leedy, an opportunity made possible by our mutual friend, John O'Brien. Our partnership was one of creative synergy: I threw the forms, and Jim assembled them, resulting in works that embody both of our artistic voices. These years spent in Jim's studio were among the most fulfilling of my life, filled with camaraderie and inspiration. Every Thursday night, the studio transformed into a vibrant gathering of friends, artists, and musicians—a place where ideas, experiences, and creativity flourished.
Since retiring in 2003, I’ve dedicated myself to my practice, building a wood-fired train kiln on my property in the Missouri Ozarks. My current work focuses on mid-range and high-fired ceramics, blending traditional techniques with personal exploration. Each piece is a testament to the relationships, collaborations, and creative energy that have shaped my life and practice.
Artist Bio
Donald M. Jahn began his journey in ceramics at the age of forty, studying under his first mentor, John Kudlacek, at Emporia State University. He further honed his skills with Jim Estes at Missouri Western and was fortunate to learn from renowned ceramicists such as Stephen Hill, Victor Babu, George Timock, and Ken Ferguson during his time at the Kansas City Art Institute. In the later years of Jim Leedy's life, Jahn had the privilege of working alongside him in his studio, an experience that profoundly shaped his artistic practice.
After retiring in 2003, Jahn built a wood-fired train kiln on his property in the Missouri Ozarks. This kiln has become a cornerstone of his creative process, producing mid-range and high-fired ceramics that showcase the unique effects of wood firing and occasional salt glazing. Beyond a tool, the kiln has also fostered a vibrant community of artists and friends who gather to participate in its firings, sharing meals and camaraderie.
Jahn's work embodies a dedication to craftsmanship and exploration, reflecting both the technical mastery and the serendipitous beauty that define the ceramic arts.