Kathy Fincher

As a painter of children, artist Kathryn Andrews Fincher strives to awaken in adults their sense of wonder and encourages them to experience the unbridled hope and trust like that found in the spirit of childhood. Whether painting her own daughters, relatives, neighbors, or friends, the light in Kathy's paintings radiates as a reminder that all children are precious gifts from God. Her goal is to avoid painting the obvious. It is the expressions on children's faces when they are on the brink of experiencing something new that she strives to capture. Although a student of art since her teens, Kathy was in her early thirties before painting replaced professional water skiing as her career. (Kathy was actually the 2nd ranked trick water skier in the country during her heyday and a National Women’s Water Ski Champion). Kathy's mother, a portrait artist, continually encouraged her daughter to develop her artistic talents by painting portraits. When Kathy eventually turned to painting full-time, her initial focus was on wildlife and landscapes; however, after painting her first child's face in an image titled “First Look,” Kathy had found her niche. “Children, with their many discoveries and expressions, and their constant developmental changes in the very early years, are a wealth of visual stories,” says Kathy. “I am not interested in painting unrealistic, perfect children sitting up straight with their knees together,” she adds, “but rather that moment when a child is consumed with studying something or on the brink of a new discovery.” Kathy lives near Atlanta with her husband and their two children. ©Kathy Fincher