Bio & Artist Statement
“
MY WORK IS ABOUT
ESCAPE.
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BIOGRAPHY:
STATEMENT:
Kathryn Coers Rossman (insta: @kathryncoersrossman) is a conceptual photographer and creative director in Bloomington, IN, USA. She studied modernism, literature and urbanism in graduate school at New York University and design and the visual arts via the New York Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) academic program. Kathryn's project "National Anthem: Punk Patriotism!" (2023) was published in Polyester magazine and was featured on Visura. "The Majorette" (2022) was included in Cerulean: A Winter Photography Exhibit by Pattern magazine. Kathryn is a contributor at Bloom magazine. She was the official event photographer for the 2021 Indiana Hot Air Balloon Festival, a featured artist at the 2021 Indy Rama home design show, and was the first Emerging Artist Grant recipient named by the City of Bloomington Arts Commission.
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Kathryn is happily married and is the proud mother of a five-year-old son. A Hoosier, she left her home state for twenty years, working in Silicon Valley, New York City's East Village and South Florida, before returning to Indiana. Her cousin, photojournalist Michael Coers (deceased), won the Pulitzer Prize documenting school integration for the Louisville Courier Journal in 1975.
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Known for images showcasing fantastic beauty and sweeping neglect, the allure Kathryn displays may hide an insidious evil. Emphasizing theatricality and absorption, bordering on fantasy and surrealism, her work is less about identity, politics and individualism than collective escape. She problematically offers nostalgia as a distraction from unpleasant realities and enjoys mixing tangible objects both hard and soft with thematic elements that are cozy and challenging, highbrow and kitsch. The self-described "Lisa Frank" of photo editing, she creates cinematic compositions and utilizes vivid colors that pop!
Her portraits occur within perfectly manicured sets with curated vintage clothing, props and backdrops built around her subjects like oversized dollhouses. She learned photography as an eBay reseller during The Great Recession, selling thrifted jewelry to Courtney Love at Chateau Marmont and frequently landing on Etsy's front page. She was self-employed as a product photographer for a decade before compiling her fine art and editorial portfolio.
LENSCRATCH
The Favorite Photograph You Took in 2023 LENSCRATCH Exhibition
Online Only - January 1, 2024
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FAR Photo Review Exhibition
FAR Center for Contemporary Arts
505 West 4th Street
Bloomington, IN 47404
November 28 - December 1, 2023
Closing Reception: Friday, December 1 from 5-8 PM during Gallery Walk
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2023 Juried Exhibition
Bloomington Photography Club
John Waldron Art Center
122 South Walnut Street
Bloomington, IN 47404
​​September - October 2023
Opening Reception: Friday, September 1, and also Friday, October 6 starting at 5 PM during Gallery Walk
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Indiana State Fair
Indiana State Fairgrounds & Event Center
Indianapolis, IN
July 28 - August 20, 2023
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Monroe County Fair
Monroe County Fairgrounds
Bloomington, IN
July 3 - 9, 2023
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Lineages of Birth
An university-community collaboration between the Kinsey Institute Library & Special Collections, the former Bloomington Area Birth Services, and Tandem, with the sponsorship of The Mellon Foundation.
Monroe County Public Library
303 E Kirkwood Avenue
Bloomington, IN 47408
May 2023
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Visual Arts Exhibition
Constellation Stage and Screen
Ted Jones Playhouse
107 W 9th Street
Bloomington, IN 47404
January - July, 2023
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​Illuminate: Emerging Bloomington Artists​Constellation Stage and Screen & Bloomington Arts Commission
John Waldron Art Center
January 6 - February 24, 2023
Art Talk on February 17, 2023
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Seven Deadly Sins
Accrete Art Collective & Backspace Gallery
Bloomington, IN
January 6 - 28, 2023
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Something Figurative, This Way Comes
Accrete Art Collective & Backspace Gallery
Bloomington, IN
​November 4 - 26, 2022
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2022 Juried Exhibition
Bloomington Photography Club
John Waldron Art Center
Bloomington, IN
​​October 13 - December 15, 2022
12-IN. UNDER
Accrete Art Collective & Arts Alliance of Greater Bloomington
Arts Alliance Center in the College Mall
Bloomington, IN
September 3 - 25, 2022
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Pop-Up Exhibit
Bloomington Photography Club
Monroe County Convention Center
Bloomington, IN
August 1 - 31, 2022
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Indiana State Fair
Indiana State Fairgrounds & Event Center
Indianapolis, IN
July 29 - August 21, 2022
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Fluffy & Airy
Accrete Art Collective & Arts Alliance of Greater Bloomington
Arts Alliance Center in the College Mall
Bloomington, IN
​July 8 - August 6, 2022
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Monroe County Fair
Monroe County Fairgrounds
Bloomington, IN
June 27 - July 3, 2022
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Intertwined: Art & Tech
High Frequency Arts
Hub & Spoke Design Center
Indianapolis, IN
April 1 - June 30, 2022
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Cerulean: A Winter Photography Exhibit
Pattern Magazine
317 Paradox
Indianapolis, IN
January 21 - February 28, 2022
Everything is Cyclical
Accrete Art Collective
Opie Taylor's Gallery
Bloomington, IN
January 14 - 28, 2022
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Celebration of Nature
Eagle Creek Park Foundation
Earth Discovery Center
Indianapolis, IN
December 4 - 19, 2021
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Holiday Pop-Up Shop
Accrete Art Collective
Opie Taylor's Gallery
Bloomington, IN
November 26 - December 18, 2021
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Indy Rama Home Tour
Builders Association of Greater Indianapolis
Indianapolis, IN
October 29 - 31 + November 5 - 7, 2021
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Images of Nature Exhibition
Eagle Creek Park Foundation
Earth Discovery Center
Indianapolis, IN
September 18 - October 3, 2021
Emerging Artist Grant Recipient
City of Bloomington Arts Commission
Bloomington, IN - 2023
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Emerging Artist Grant Recipient
City of Bloomington Arts Commission
Bloomington, IN - 2021
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Beyond the Camera Class Champion
Black & White Class Reserve Champion
Black & White Salon Class Honors
Monroe County Fair
Bloomington, IN - 2023
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Color Class Champion
Color Salon Class Reserve Champion
Monroe County Fair
Bloomington, IN - 2022
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Professional Portrait Class Honorable Mention
Indiana State Fair
Indianapolis, IN - 2022
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Arts Fair on the Square Juror
Constellation Stage & Screen & John Waldron Art Center
Bloomington, IN - 2023
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Speaker/Guest Critique
Rivera Camera Club
Indianapolis, IN - 2023
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Grant Reader
City of Bloomington Arts Commission
Bloomington, IN - 2022
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Member of the Bloomington Photography Club
in Bloomington, Indiana
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Member of the FAR Center for Contemporary Arts Photo Review
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Kathryn receives monthly mentorship from Ione Gamble and Gina Tonic
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PhotoPhlo Photographer/Editor Collaboration Workshop with Elinor Carucci and Esquire Visual Director Justin O'Neill - 2023
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PhotoPhlo Portfolio Review with Matthew Baum - 2023
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Women Photographers International Archive (WOPHA) Portfolio Review with Vanessa Charlot, Maggie Steber
and Laura Novoa - 2022
COPYRIGHT
All Images © 2009-2023 Kathryn Coers Rossman All Rights Reserved. Please do not save, share or distribute without permission.