I am thrilled to finally introduce my latest large oil painting, "A Fire in the Dark".
Now that I look at this photo of me smiling in front of the painting, it feels like a juxtaposition to what story this piece actually tells.
This painting began without a plan (a bold move for such a large surface). It was driven instead by a visceral impulse to throw "heat" onto the canvas through washes of my unusual choice of colors: reds and yellows.
Like embers, perhaps. For me, she embodies a state of absolute defiance. The face of "having had enough."
I painted this to express my deep rage against systemic exploitation and the abuse of power by the institutional elite. At the forefront was the motherly instinct and burning necessity to shield the innocent from those who seek them harm.
Large paintings like this are a full-body experience for me. The large movements: wide brush strokes, bold marks, the uninhibited splashes of paint--this painting became a channel for my fury. I've had many of you say you can feel that energy in her. This is the first painting I've done where I truly let my feelings take the lead and guide the rest.
It’s unlike anything I’ve painted–no tropical elements, no earth tones, no softness. Just her, and challenge in her eyes.
She is defiance manifested.
She is both a warning to the corrupt, and a beacon for the vulnerable. A fire that refuses to extinguish in the midst of darkness.
"A Fire in the Dark" | Oil on Canvas | 48 in by 60 in | Katherine Schiller, 2026
