Neighbor Featured Artist #4: Karen Fine

As I’ve pointed out before, the mountain South has a magic that attracts talent from far and wide. In particular, artists with a strong sense of the spiritual find nurture in this region, where the sense of the Creator is always close at hand. Awareness of this presence is of great benefit to artists in the production of their own work, providing inspiration when the creative juices are flowing and comfort when they are not. But the spiritual ambience of Northeast Tennessee is even more essential to artists who teach. Because they nurture the creativity of others, teachers need the renewal and wisdom that is the natural outflow of the Appalachian mountains.
Without having named her, I have nevertheless just described the subject of this column. But artist/teacher is far too tame a description for Karen Fine. She is a unique gem among the transplants to Northeast Tennessee, an individual with a wide array of creative gifts who has allowed her adopted home to shape her talent and artistry. In return, she has not only brought forth works of fine art but helped awaken the talents of Greene County’s children.
Karen was born in upstate New York near Niagara Falls and grew up in Boston. She received her BFA from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, with a concentration in painting and art history. Her studies also included graphic design and her expertise was developed, as she notes with pride, “before computers.” Recognition of her talent came early. “My first show was in Boston City Hall,” she remembers. For most of her career, she has generally focused on art in two dimensions but has recently ventured into the realm of sculpture. “James-Ben, whose gallery represents me, noticed that some of my paintings were also assemblages and suggested that maybe it was time for me to ‘get off the canvas’.” The willingness to experiment with different creative forms has not only benefited Karen’s career but also exemplifies her approach to life in general. “I live in art,” she says. “As a professional artist I call the business ‘MyArt4Me’ but that just means that life and art are inseparable to me. It’s one of the things I teach my students,” she adds.
Teaching, for Karen, is really just another art form. She began sharing her talent and perspective while living on Guam, giving informal instruction to dependents at the military base. “My students ranged from 6 to 80.” Her return to the U.S. led her to a teaching certificate from East Carolina University and to a deep connection to the mountain South. “I love the mountains,” she says. “There can’t be any place better for a creative, spiritual person.” For the past 8 years she has taught art at Tusculum View Elementary School in Greeneville, working with grades K through 5, and instilling her belief in life as an art form. “I’m not trying to train professional artists,” she says. “My classes are very process oriented. I want them to experience art as something that brings them bliss. Talking about art with them is as important as creating specific pieces.” Karen’s life and professional experience are a tremendous asset to Greeneville’s children, introducing them to a more worldly and artistically well versed experience than is usual. In addition to drawing and painting, her students are introduced to batik and weaving. “I suppose I’m more concerned with the ‘inner child’ than many teachers,” she says. “For my kids, technique is less important than the fun and whimsy and spontaneity of creating.” But there is a practicality involved in Karen’s teaching philosophy as well. “Art has a precarious position in public education,” she notes. “I’m always aware that teaching creative thinking will help students in their other subjects as well.”
In keeping with her belief that the journey is more important that the destination, Karen continues to expand her own talents. Greenevillians may be more familiar with her theatrical artistry as the director of such Little Theatre production as “Little Shop of Horrors”, “Jack and the Beanstalk”, and “Amadeus”. “The theater is where I often get to work with kids I taught when they were younger,” she says. “Some of them are nearing graduation now.” She draws support and inspiration from her beautiful canine companion Ginger (“she’s my muse!”) and is already planning her next artistic adventure. “I want to learn glass-blowing. There’s something about the play of light … “
For Karen Fine, it’s all about play … and light … and the journey. Her individual creations are locally available and proudly displayed at James-Ben: Studio & Gallery Art Center.