Assemblage
Kathy Kemp
kathy kemp
Address: 406 River Road, Westminster VT (may come up as Putney on GPS)
CONTACT kathy
Phone: 339-368-0349
Email: kkemp367@gmail.com
Website: kathykemp.onfabrik.com
Facebook: kathy.kemp.54
Instagram: kkemp367
HOW TO PURCHASE MY WORK
You may purchase my work in person, or by contacting me through my website or the contact info on this page.
Medium and Inspiration
I love scavenging for “experienced” objects—those that have lived a life before finding their way into my hands. I see them not for their original function, but for their shape, form, and the stories they carry.
The curve of a spindle, the patina of chipped paint, the grain of weathered wood, or the gleam of an old latch—these details spark my imagination. My materials are chosen not for their rarity, but for their resonance. Each fragment I collect has a past, and in the right light, a new potential.
Artistic Approach
As an assemblage artist, I transform found objects and reclaimed materials into layered compositions that bridge past and present.
Worn wood, rusted metal, and faded papers speak to me as artifacts with stories to tell.
The elegant curves of antique furniture contrast with the rawness of industrial remnants, creating a dialogue between energy and stillness, chaos and order.
I work by intuition, arranging parts until they feel as though they’ve always belonged together—quietly rewriting the purpose they once served.
Assemblage allows me to reimagine what’s been discarded and offer it another chance to speak.
Precision & Patina
Vestige
It’s not about “where” to look for objects,
it’s about “how.”
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borders
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circle 2
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fragile remains
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king fisher
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Lintel 7
Left of the Mark
Tone
There is an unexpected whimsy in how these elements come together—a playfulness that invites curiosity. I like when a piece feels slightly off-kilter, like a machine that almost works or a language just out of reach.
The humor is quiet, found in the tension between materials or a misfit alignment that resolves itself through the viewer’s imagination.
Philosophy and Values
My work is about seeing beauty in the imperfect, the weathered, the overlooked. It’s about giving discarded relics a second life and a new meaning. Each piece is a reminder that there is grace in transformation and value in the forgotten.
I’m drawn to textures that time has marked—things that have been handled, worn, patched. These are my pigments.
Assemblage allows me to not just preserve the past, but reimagine it.
I recently moved to Vermont, embracing a new chapter in my life. While I loved my past work in geriatric healthcare, I’m now finding purpose and joy in my art, working with found objects, and uncovering new stories in the forgotten.
My husband and I now call Westminster home.
My work is rooted in this landscape of transition—personal, material, and environmental. I carry forward what matters, letting the rest fall away.