Featured Artist Kristen Palana

Kristen Palana presents a symbolic collection of meditative artworks based on sacred geometry. Enjoy her portfolio, and learn more on her website.

 

 

When I was a preschooler, I used to pretend I had magical powers to create my own worlds. I’d start with a character, usually a girl like me, and draw everything she might need to be safe and happy: a house, food, toys, a pet cat, friends, a treehouse, clothes, etc. As I thought of more things she might need, my pages became fuller. I thought if I could draw it, then it would exist.

 

 

Years later, at my first gallery job in Fall River, Massachusetts, at age 18, I read a book called Creative Visualization by Shakti Gawain. That summer, I was back in my hometown after my first year of university as a painting student at Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston. I aimed to overcome my shyness and anxieties about setting off into the world.

 

 

I began writing down all the things I hoped to do in my life. These included far-fetched fantasies such as living abroad, going on an African safari, volunteering in India, making animated movies, having my own family, and flying in outer space. I’m still working on that last one, but thanks to the concept that we create our own reality first with our thoughts, my life changed forever.

 

 

Today I’m wrapping up five years of living and working in Malawi, Southern Africa, and will soon move back to Rome, Italy. I was a tenured Associate Professor of Digital Media and Program Director from 2006-2016 at the American University of Rome. Now I’m a self-employed, location-independent artist, nomad professor/trainer, and design consultant for United Nations organizations.

 

 

It’s been a career walkabout as I’ve learned to be resilient, flexible, and resourceful amidst so much change. This makes it easier for me to help other artists and idealists going through similar upheavals due to moving, a bad economy, or AI changing entire industries.

 

 

After two decades teaching digital media to university students, in 2021, I returned to my fine art roots. I now make “creative visualizations” in the form of mixed media pen, ink, and acrylic drawings. (Thank you, Covid, for the clarity and putting me back on the right path!) I also aim to expand into stained glass and experiment with creating immersive environments that heal, relax, or invigorate using VR, AI, and emerging technologies mixed with old-school art, multi-sensory therapies, and color psychology.

 

 

My most recent drawings are sacred geometry forms that are also healing meditations. The earliest ones started in 2022 were inspired by UN organizations and their development goals for the planet. The more recent ones are more about global unity, healing, and interconnectedness.

 

 

Much like my inner preschooler, I’m once again focusing on making art about the world as I wish to see it. If I can get it down on paper, I feel that in some way it can begin to manifest.

 

Kristen Palana invites you to follow on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X, YouTube and Pinterest.

 

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