CATE WEST ZAHL

“A painter can say all he wants to say with fruit or flowers or even clouds.” — Édouard Manet

Working from arrangements of flora set against the light of her studio window, Zahl brings the outside into the studio, exploring the interplay between subject and space. Hydrangea cuttings, magnolia branches, birds’ nests, and found animal skulls appear within layered compositions where gestural charcoal lines meet broad passages of oil paint. Zahl is particularly drawn to the negative spaces that emerge around her subjects, allowing them to shape the structure and rhythm of each painting.

Evidence of the artist’s process remains visible throughout the work. Layers of revision, pentimento, and mark-making reveal the evolving dialogue between observation and abstraction. The resulting paintings offer viewers a glimpse into the unfolding of each composition as it develops.

In Nature Studies, the act of recording nature becomes a contemplative practice. Through attentive looking and intuitive mark-making, Zahl creates paintings that invite moments of stillness and reflection—quiet counterpoints to the complexity and pace of contemporary life.

Zahl uses abstraction to expand upon the technical study of life, a foundation developed during her BA in Fine Arts from Hamilton College. Influenced by artists such as Richard Diebenkorn, her work explores contemporary approaches to abstraction rooted in observational practice. Zahl lives and works in Charlottesville with her husband and three sons.