Kathleen Gemberling Adkinson
Kathleen Gemberling Adkinson (1917-2010) was the last surviving artist trained under Mark Tobey. She is considered one of the Northwest’s premier female artists. Her work was shown in museums as early as 1960 when the Frye Art Museum (Seattle) staged a solo show of her work. She also had a show at the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture (formerly the Cheney Cowles Memorial Museum, Spokane) in 1973 and 1999. She was among only eight women included in Northwest Art Today at the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair.
Like Jackson Pollock, Adkison worked with her canvas on the floor. However, her focus was based on the natural beauty of rocks, trees, tall grasses, and other images she perceived from her hikes in nature.
“The insistent life-force or energy expressed by nature in its wondrous plenitude of form and color, its mystery, its surprise and growth cycle are what continue to compel my work.” – Kathleen Gemberling Adkinson
