Kim Cardoso

Using luminous wax and color, Kim Cardoso captures moments of connection. Her inspiration is rooted in the places where we intersect with nature and are curious about the passage of time. She revels in the physicality of her material, relating to her formal training as a metalsmith and decades of work as a midwife.

“I’m an extrovert in a complex world trying to find quiet, so my work is a pursuit of stillness. I savor the craft-like method of encaustic painting: construction, fire, carving, and rebuilding. The movements of painting itself make the work therapeutic, and the texture and smell of the beeswax recall earth and skin, encouraging me to explore that relationship. I know my work is complete when it feels familiar and sensual and evokes connectedness.”

Cardoso holds a BA in art and psychology from McDaniel College and an MS in nursing from UCSF. Originally from Baltimore, Maryland, she lives on an urban farm in Oakland, California, paints at the Norton Factory Studios, and continues to work part-time in community health.