In Conversation with Kathy Sirico

Kathy Sirico in her studio, 2025. Courtesy the artist and The Java Project, Brooklyn

Kathy Sirico (b. 1990, Philadelphia) holds an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute and a Bachelor of Science from Skidmore College. She has completed artist residencies at Mass MoCA, Assets for Artists (2020), Vermont Studio Center (2018), the Lucid Art Foundation (2017), and Recology San Francisco (2016). She will attend the Arctic Circle Residency in 2023. Sirico was a 2022 finalist for the Frankenthaler Climate Art Award for her project Floating Chronologies, a body of work that reimagines our relationship with trees in conversation with climate change. Her work has been exhibited throughout the United States and internationally.

SANDRO: Your new paintings draw from research during your Arctic Circle Residency. Can you share how that experience shaped your current thinking around abstraction, and what specific environmental or emotional impressions you brought back into the studio?

KATHY: My experiences in Svalbard, an archipelago close to the North Pole, profoundly changed me. The duality of witnessing extreme polar climate change first-hand while immersed in the most sublime natural beauty I’ve ever encountered was an overwhelmingly emotional experience. In Svalbard, I observed the landscape deeply, watching the ocean, studying rocks and bones, listening to beluga whales, and channeling as much as I could into poetry. Back in the studio, translating my experiences into visual art took time. I learned as much as I could about polar climate science, current challenges within polar ecosystems, wildlife and history, and that, in combination with my poetry, led me to this abstract painting series. I believe that exploring emotional and sensual aspects of climate change in tandem with scientific knowledge can cultivate a radical shift in our relationship with the natural world, which I believe is a crucial part of creating a better climate future for all. 

Kathy Sirico The Great Current, 2024 Acrylic on canvas collage, recycled textile weavings 58 x 61 inches Courtesy the artist and The Java Project, Brooklyn

S: You reference the history of tapestry as a patriarchal medium used to depict morality and power. How do you reframe or subvert this tradition through your own feminist and ecological lens?

K: My process is collaged based, with a focus on transforming the historical 2D plane of painting into a relief-style surface that references tapestry and craft. I think of canvas itself as a fabric, which I paint, manipulate, cut, and reconfigure into layers and patterns alongside handmade weavings. As a contemporary feminist, painting on a flat canvas felt too restrictive and too historically tied to the male gaze. I’ve always been fascinated by the decorative arts and found myself drawn to tapestry and weaving as an alternative reference point for storytelling that I could materially build upon in a contemporary way. Historically, tapestry portrayed religious themes and political events that were considered societally important by patriarchal rulers at the time. My work re-imagines tapestry as an abstract, empathetic language focused on the most crucial matter of our time: climate change. 

Kathy Sirico Midnight Sun, Polar Nights, 2025 Acrylic on canvas collage, vinyl and textile weavings, mirrors 58 x 63 inches Courtesy the artist and The Java Project, Brooklyn

S: Materiality is central to your work, especially your use of recycled textiles and found materials. What role does material sourcing play in the narrative or conceptual integrity of a piece? Are there materials you return to repeatedly for symbolic or structural reasons?

K: Choosing to work with recycled textiles is important for me. The textile industry is a major polluter, and in New York, I’m lucky to have access to reuse facilities (and friends!) that allow me source a variety of fabrics and yarns. I do buy canvas specifically for direct painting, but everything else I try to find. There are specific fabrics I prefer for my circular weavings, but I try to let them come to me, which can be fun and unexpected. Recently, I was looking for a piece of faux leather vinyl and the color that manifested for me is way outside my normal palette. I could not be more excited to find the perfect use for it. 

Kathy Sirico Spiral, 2025 Acrylic on canvas collage, recycled textile weavings 58 x 61 inches Courtesy the artist and The Java Project, Brooklyn

S: You’ve described abstraction as an “act of empathy.” Can you elaborate on what that means for you, especially in the context of ecological grief, resilience, and interconnectivity? 

K: A great metaphor for the type of radical empathy I wish to create in these works is the Overview Effect—astronauts who see Earth from Outer space describe overwhelming feelings of understanding that we exist in a Whole and not in parts, and how interconnected we truly are in our “blue marble.” Earth’s ecosystems operate in the same symbiotic way. When faced with ecological grief, I find it helpful to remember the great love and belonging our planet offers us. I feel quite mystical about it. When I create my artwork, I am constantly combining small parts together in different colors, textures, and materials to create a new surface on which all are equally important. Together, they transcend the physical surface and speak to a greater call for understanding. That kind of transformation is the energetic root of empathy.  

For more information about Kathy’s artwork, please follow her on Instagram. For information about Randi Renate and their two-person show currently on view at The Java Project, please visit here