Kate MccGwire

When making her wall pieces, Kate rhythmically arranges the feathers by hand in concentric and linear patterns, inspired by the movement of water surrounding her studio barge. She highlights their intricately nuanced and magnetic colours, alongside the aesthetic and sculptural possibilities inherent in the material. Kate uses a variety of bird species, some more psychologically appealing than others – pheasant and magpie to pigeon and crow. The artist’s work, however, encourages us to find beauty in the very elements that we find unsettling. // Since graduating from the Royal College of Art in 2004, Kate’s work has been exhibited in international exhibitions and museums, including at the Saatchi Gallery, UK; the Museum of Arts and Design, USA; the Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature, France; Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, France; the Gewerbemuseum Winterthur, Switzerland; Kunstmuseum Bochum, Germany; Museum Ulm, Germany; Boca Raton Museum of Art, USA; and the Berman Museum of Art, USA. The UK’s Harewood House held a major solo show of her work in 2020 and she had a significant retrospective exhibition at The Harley Gallery, UK, in 2018.