dearkimlow.com

Artwork and letters by hand, documenting simple pleasures, elusive moods, and humble stories.

Works

2024

A field of green paper stretches under a dust-colored sky with a green-and-blue hued industrial sprawl on the horizon. A rust-colored train sits on a pair of railroad tracks. A wooden frame surrounds the artwork against a white wall.
(07.27.2024)

Central Coast No. 2

We traveled though a vast field of wild mustard and cow-parsnip, until signs of human enterprise flew into view.

A field of deep goldenrod stretches towards hills on the horizon, skirting past an old barn, shrubs of pale green, and a tall windbreak of deep green eucalyptus. The artwork rests on a wooden shelf next to a couple of books.
(07.06.2024)

Central Coast No. 1

I fancied myself going back in time to the turn of the twentieth century.

All four pieces from the Clouds series are arranged around a small sketchbook on a wood table.
(05.20.2024)

Clouds (no. 1–4)

Clouds express the movement and energy of invisible atmospheric forces.

A paper tree stands stately within a ring of rocks and short wooden poles. The artwork is held in front of a blurred city street.
(03.24.2024)

Monterey Pine /  Lone Tree

Someone must tend to this handsome tree with love.

A blue paper scene of rocks, water, and distant hills is punctuated by red paper knobs of driftwood and thin paper clouds.
(03.09.2024)

The Fort by the Bay

A wistful soul could reminisce over bygone days when this path was a summer escape.

White paper houses with orange and red windows and roofs, sitting among green shrubs and trees, are perched on the slopes of blue hills. White clouds float above them and threads of power lines crisscross before them. The entire artwork rests in a sketchbook lying open on a wood table.
(03.01.2024)

A Memory of the Outerlands

Once a week, I walk up a grassy hillside overlooking the Outer Sunset.

A mended wooden fence is overrun by yellow flowers, iceplants, and other green ground cover. This paper fence obscures an orange paper house but offers a peek at the ocean and blue skies beyond. The artwork floats in a shaft of dappled sunlight.
(02.19.2024)

Sutro Heights No. 2

Here and there, I could see a glimmer of the ocean beyond.

A narrow marble fireplace mantel is adorned by a white paper house, a tiny earthy mug, and a dried philodendron leaf.
(2024)

Experiments No. 3

I yearned to think more creatively and make new things.

2023

A yellow hill against a pale yellow sky is punctuated by washes of green grasses and sprigs of red flowers. Logs and fenceposts create layers in the paper landscape.
(08.11.2023)

Sutro Heights No. 1

My feet make their way out of my building and begin the trip out west.

A paper train runs through the golden grasses of the Sacramento Valley under a warm pink sky. It sits in a wooden frame on a window, with a blurred view of buildings behind it.
(06.27.2023)

Sacramento Delta

When I close my eyes, what I remember most is the unceasing wind.

White blooms of salvia cistus are layered on top of red buds, green leaves, and silvery gray stems on a field of light teal. The artwork is made from hand cut paper. Blurred in the background is a wood floor and some real plants.
(06.06.2023)

Cistus Salviifolius

Supposedly, each flower lasts only a single day.

Pink blossoming trees of paper tower over a rundown wooden building in a field of green. The artwork sits in a metal and glass frame next to wood and a vine.
(05.05.2023)

Superbloom

If only the California coast had blossoming trees such as these…

Layers of red, orange, green, and blue paper create a scene of apartment blocks against the green tree tops of Golden Gate Park. Power lines are in the foreground and the Conservatory of Flowers sits in the background against a pale yellow sky with blue clouds. The artwork sits on a rust red rug.
(02.18.2023)

After the Storm /  South to Golden Gate Park

The world was warm again, in more ways than one.

A creamy-colored clam shell and a rusty-colored bulb of kelp, both made of colored paper, sit on a background made of bright teal paper.
(02.12.2023)

Sea Treasures

I came across these two sea treasures on a beach near Santa Barbara.

Green paper is cut roughly into the shape of trees with a few leaves scattered around it. Leaf details and canopy shadows are added with colored pencil and ink. The green paper sits on a white background in front of some notebooks and pottery on a desk.
(2023)

Experiments No. 2

What if sketches took a leading role? What if threads added texture?

2022

A small piece of cut paper artwork depicts San Francisco’s iconic downtown skyline with surrounded by pink fog and dark blue hills under a light blue sky.
(08.29.2022)

Views of San Francisco

Sometimes when I’m away from my city, I’ll sketch the views from memory.

Colorful cut paper depicts two orange-leaf trees on the banks of a creek bed, where glimmers of the creek catch the blue of the sky.
(08.06.2022)

Summer Creek /  Union City, Calif.

During my childhood, my family often walked along these banks and trails.

Layers of cut paper depict a red house against a warm yellow sky, behind a grove of magnolia blossoms and other trees. It sits in a white mat, with some of the trees and plants spilling out of the mat opening.
(07.22.2022)

The Magnolia Forest

Peeking shyly behind the blooms was someone’s house.

A red schoolhouse with a gray-roofed turret perches on a hill at the edge of a forest. Hills in varying shades of green expand from its walls under a bright white sky.
(06.01.2022)

A Utopia for the World’s Children

I wish I could give all of the children in the world a paradise.

The trunks of two large evergreens part to reveal a small gray paper house at the foot of a hill. The artwork is shown against an amber cloth backdrop.
(05.18.2022)

The Stillness of Dusk

Evening sunlight during the early summer is a magical thing.

Colorful paper trees, mountains, and a sky full of clouds, framed in light wood, sit on a dark wood table. The colors are reminiscent of autumn leaves under a crisp, chilly sky. The artwork stands on a wood table.
(04.23.2022)

Mammoth Lakes /  Autumn

An experiment: translating looser brushstrokes into paper.

An orange two-story house of paper stands surrounded by palm trees and colorful ground cover underneath a blue paper sky with wispy white clouds.The artwork stands framed on an old wooden floor against a backdrop of plants and dark wood furniture.
(02.14.2022)

The Marshland Estate

Late last year, I was in Sacramento for a birding trip.

Three orange circles with intricate pink ornamentation vaguely represent the patterns on top of mooncakes. The three pieces float above a light pink paper.
(2022)

Experiments No. 1

Throughout the year, I made some small paper sketches.

2021

A large gray paper stockpot nestles in an abundance of paper seafood, include crab, lobster, prawns, various fish, clams, mussels, and seaweed. Lemons lay scattered on top. The full artwork is surrounded by a dark wood frame against a lighter but worn wood background.
(09.26.2021)

The Bountiful Harvest No. 2: The Sea

A gift for my father, inspired by childhood memories of fishing on the beach.

A bounty of paper produce tumbles off the page, including kale, chard, sweet peas, various tomatoes, beets, and kumquats. The greens, reds, and oranges are offset by a blue paper cast shadow. The full artwork is surrounded by a dark wood frame against a lighter but worn wood background.
(07.06.2021)

The Bountiful Harvest No. 1: The Garden

A gift for my mother, inspired by the abundance from my parents’ garden.

The artwork is framed in a light wood frame against light blue and sand-colored fabrics. Strong sunlight gives the artwork a feeling of late spring.
(04.10.2021)

The Gardener’s Cottage

On beautiful spring days, I dream about living in a cottage by the ocean.

In a winter scene, one orange tree and one red tree jut out from arches of blue snow. Leaves swirl from the ends of their branches in front of golden clouds and rays of light. The artwork is matted, framed, and displayed against a brick fireplace with various objects like rocks, pinecones, and candles.
(02.13.2021)

Hope

Riding on the winds of change, Hope is bold and undaunted.

2020

Four bunches of paper flowers sit on arched paper backgrounds of various colors against a field of light gray.
(2020)

Resilience Flowers (No. 1–4)

These California natives thrive despite the odds—just like our communities.

A row of yellow, pale blue, and orange paper houses line the bottom of the artwork. Beyond treelines, puffy blue clouds stretch across the sky, with an explosion of white blossoms flowing over the right side of the piece.
(2020)

Pandemic Postcards

I spent March and April making weekly postcards of places I visited and yearned for.

Amidst yellow paper sand dunes and green paper grasses, manmade structures frame the transition from road to nature.
(07.26.2020)

Beach Days

I lost myself in more pleasant summer days, like this one in Santa Cruz.

Within a wood frame, paper triangles of orange, pink, and red form abstract hills where small houses and the Golden Gate Bridge peek into view. A large brown rectangle on the right edge forms a towering tree trunk with green leaves. The artwork sits on a field of dark green, while the entire frame sits against strips of wood.
(02.28.2020)

Window View

I abandoned my usual meticulous methods to loosen up my process.

Floating in a light wood frame, sections of organic orange and pink paper shapes are carved with grass-like textures. In the distance, a red paper barn sits on a shore by a blue lake, where hazy pink hills are visible on the horizon. The scene is punctuated by layers of green brush and strands of blue grasses. The entire piece sits against a white fur, which accentuates the movements of the grasses in the artwork.
(02.22.2020)

Coastal Hills /  Santa Cruz

Inspired by a day trip from almost one year ago.

Dozens of red paper flowers are clustered around blue rock-like formations, each textured with water-like patterns. They float against a light teal background, where abstracted shapes are cut out like clouds.
(02.02.2020)

Sea Flowers

What started as a blossoming tree took on a life of its own.

Weaving blue waveforms are echoed by sinuous clouds that draw the eye past brown cliffs, small trees, a tiny fishing boat, and the silhouettes of birds. The elements float on a tall piece of newsprint with torn edges.
(01.18.2020)

The Shores of Memory

Dedicated to the Pacific Coast that I’ve lived my entire life next to.

White cloud-like shapes float across a field of golden yellow. Little gold accents are sprinkled across the page. The artwork sits on a wood surface under rays of sunlight.
(01.11.2020)

Full Moon at Sunrise with Fireflies

A quick little experiment inspired by yesterday’s wolf moon.