Photos: Lane Peterson & Terri Purcell Birnbaum
Artist Katherine Victoria’s TV show explores spaces and the process behind custom artwork.
For artist and host Katherine Victoria, the act of creation is more than what ends up on the wall. Her upcoming series Art Meets Home—which airs on KTSC 45—allows viewers to see her creative process behind turning personal stories into artwork. Over the course of the TV show, she works with homeowners, local businesses and other creatives throughout the series, highlighting Minnesota’s creative community in the Lake Minnetonka area and beyond.
Prior to its premiere at 6:30 a.m. September 3 and subsequent Saturday morning run until the finale on Thanksgiving, we sat down with Victoria to learn more.
Was there something you felt was missing from other shows about art, design or homes that you wanted to bring to this series?
Absolutely! I love art and home/design television, but I kept thinking there was this whole part of the story we weren’t seeing: How does a piece of original artwork actually become part of someone’s home? With Art Meets Home, you don’t just see me standing in a studio making something. I walk into someone’s home, get to know them, hear their stories, look at the space and figure out what belongs there. Then viewers come along for everything that happens between that first conversation and the final reveal—including the moments when I have absolutely no idea whether what I’m trying is going to work. The artwork isn’t an accessory added at the end. It’s the story.
Can you share details about one featured client in Art Meets Home?
The Lake Minnetonka home project is especially meaningful to me because the family and I already had a connection. I taught their children art in a private school, so walking into their home all these years later—this time as a professional artist creating work for their family—felt very full circle. We talked about their home, what they were drawn to visually and what they wanted the artwork to feel like in the space. For this project, I created two large abstract pieces designed specifically for their spaces. Viewers get to see me experiment with texture, layering and different materials as I work toward the finished pieces. What I love about this episode is that the artwork isn’t the only story. There is also this reunion happening between a former teacher and her students and their family.
How does the client’s personal space and stories influence the art you create for them?
When I walk into someone’s home, I’m looking at the obvious things—architecture, scale, color, lighting—but I’m also paying attention to what people talk about. What objects do they point out? What stories make them light up? What’s important enough that they’ve carried it from house to house? Sometimes, the inspiration comes from something you would never expect. That’s one reason I don’t want clients simply sending me a paint swatch and asking me to make something that coordinates. My job is to listen closely enough to figure out which pieces of that story belong on the canvas. And sometimes, the client gives me an idea that sends me down a creative rabbit hole I absolutely did not anticipate. Those often end up being my favorite projects.
The series features artists, homeowners, local businesses, musicians and other creatives. How did the idea for the show grow into something that highlights so many different parts of Minnesota’s creative community?
That part grew very organically. Once I started developing Art Meets Home, I realized that telling the story of art meant telling the story of the people, places and businesses surrounding it too. Creativity doesn’t happen in isolation. So throughout the series, viewers meet homeowners, artists, musicians, craftspeople and local businesses. We visit places connected to the materials and processes I’m using, and we meet other creatives whose work intersects with the story of an episode. Minnesota has an incredible creative community, and I wanted the show to feel rooted here.
How do you hope the series changes the way people view the process going on behind the art you create?
I hope people finish an episode and never look at a piece of original art quite the same way again. When you see a finished piece hanging on a wall, you don’t see the sketches that didn’t work, the materials that were tested, the layers underneath it, the decisions that changed halfway through or the occasional moment when the artist wondered what on earth she had gotten herself into! The biggest thing I hope viewers take away is that art can be personal without being intimidating. Your home is already telling your story. Art is another way to tell it.
Art Meets Home
Facebook: Art Meets Home Show
