Karrie Fox

When I first saw Karrie Fox's paintings of Koi, the first thing that struck me was the way she had portrayed not the Koi, nor its surrounding pond, but the interaction of the two. Her representations are full of life and movement in a way I wouldn't have thought possible in a two-dimensional image. The vivid colours and swirling patterns illustrate perfectly the way Koi play with the water, and the way the water plays with the light. Whether she has shown the surface turbulence of a darting subject or the gentle grace of a more sedate fish, she captures the moment spectacularly.

Karrie is now a full-time professional artist specialising in Koi, but that wasn't always the case. What was always there was the part that water has played in Karrie's life, perhaps one of the reasons that she so eloquently capture its subtleties now. Born in Eastbourne, Karrie spent the first four years of her life in Brighton - 'Not as trendy as it is now' her website assures us. At four she moved west to Cornwall, staying under the sea's influence, with her Grandparents. She eventually became best friends with her persecutor.

Her childhood was one of moving around Cornwall including Bude, Week St Mary, Tregoss, Roche and finally St Austell where she started at the local Grammar School. At eighteen Karrie left school and joined Barclays Bank, and was married three years later. Her affinity with the water at this stage was fed by a love of scuba diving - a daring hobby at the time. Perhaps it was this interest that allowed Karrie to develop her artistic grasp of the visual characteristics of water above and below! Karrie had two children, Lisa and Nathan who she describes as 'Two of the most precious achievements in my life'. Her divorce in 1984 left her 'shocked and distraught'.

Not one to hang around if she sees a good thing, Karrie had met and married her new man the following year. But if Karrie was distraught in 1984, she was elated in 1987 when she gave birth to her third child, Joshua. Her fourth and final bundle of joy was Zac who came along in 1990 to complete the family, Karrie's ' two other amazing achievements'. Karrie loved every minute of bringing up the children and enjoyed time sailing the 'Carrick Roads' with them ( there's the water again!). By the time Zac was in school, Karrie knew that she wanted to go back to school herself - art school. However, without a portfolio this seemed out of her reach.

Karrie's next step was to take an A-level in Art and Design, which she achieved in just one year. But more important than the A- level was the portfolio that it allowed her top put together. This, in turn, allowed Karrie to go to Falmouth College of Art and undertake a BTEC Foundation in Art and Design which, and this should come as no surprise, she passed with a distinction.

Not one to let the grass grow under her, Karrie enrolled on the prestigious BA (Hons) Illustration course, headed by renowned natural history illustrator Alan Male, at the Falmouth College of Art. This course, unlike her previous ones, was full time but with Zac in full time education Karrie knew she could handle the commitment. Karrie loved being a student and was very much at home in the creative environment and embraced the challenges of a demanding course. But within her first month disaster struck. Karrie suffered a suberachnoid haemorrhage, a serious condition involving a bleed on the brain, which can lead to disability or even death. It was a scary time for Karrie and her family.

During her degree Karrie specialised in illustrating children's books. One of these projects required her to paint seals, inspiring her husband to point out that if she could paint seals she could paint Koi - a bizarre but insightful assumption. She painted a Koi for her husband to thank him for his support. Karrie loved painting it and her husband loved the finished piece. He hung it in his dental surgery where his patients enjoyed it as much as he did. One patient loved it so much in fact, they bought it!

She was assured that there was no intellectual damage done by her condition in her first year when, four years later, she graduated and achieved a first class grade for her dissertation. By way of a celebration , the family took their small motorboat, 'The Jazalion'on a trip complete with a bottle of champagne. They lost steering and hit August Rock, 'The Jazalion' sinking complete with unopened champagne. The Falmouth Coastguard safely rescued them all but this was one acquatic that Karrie and her family could probably have done without.
Karrie continued painting Koi for enjoyment until a friend saw them and put Karrie in touch with a gallery that snatched them up. Three years on and Karrie is still enjoying painting Koi while 'the seal book' lies unmolested on her bookshelf. The children's book industry's loss is the Koi world's gain! Karrie says her favourite painting is always the last one she does and proud owners of her works stretch as far as Cyprus and Dubai.

As you may have already learned, Karrie is one of those people who can't stop rising to challenges and five months after losing their boat, Karrie ran the New York Marathon in 41/2 hours. This also drew a line under any doubts she had that the haemorrhage may have left her with any physical impairment. Obviously this challenge wasn't quite enough because the following year Karrie was a contestant in 'The Mole', a television show in which she faced her fears and a myriad of arduous trials.

Awards

I have been granted a Full Membership to the National Acrylic Painters Association NAPA. This allows me to submit to their National and International exhibitions which I have done with some success as my paintings have won

Fine Art Trade Guild Award ( November 2002) Consistent High Standard
Kay Greenway casey Award ( April 2004 ) Highly Commended

(One of the) "UK's Leading Contemporary Women Artists"
Society of Women Artists

"Consistent High Standard"
National Acrylic Painters Association

"Astonishingly Beautiful Koi Paintings"
Lee Green, Koivision

Recent Exhibitions

NAPA International Exhibition, Mariner's Gallery, St. Ives, Nov 2004
On The Wall, Olympia, London, September 2004
Summer Light, Falmouth Arts Centre, August 2004
NAPA International Exhibition, Wirral, March 2004
NAPA International Exhibition, St.Ives, Nov 2003
Summer Light, Falmouth Arts Centre, August 2003
Solo Exhibition, Falmouth Arts Centre, June 2003
Three Spires , Falmouth Art Centre, April 2003
S.W.A. 142nd Annual, The Westminster Gallery, March 2003
Chalk Gallery, St.Ives, Cornwall....to date
Atishoo, Charlestown, Cornwall....to date
Fisherton Mills, Salisbury....to date
Trelissick Gallery, Truro....to date
Chase Art, Wadebridge, North Cornwall....to date
17th N.A.P.A. Exhibition, Mariner's Gallery St.Ives 2002
Spring Fair, NEC Birmingham 2002

Previous Shows Include...

Mid Cornwall Galleries, St. Blazey Gate
Innocent Art Gallery, Clifton, Bristol
The White Rose Gallery, Halifax
Falmouth College of Art Graduate Show 2000
Village Works, Tresillian, Truro 1999
The Three Spires, Truro 1997 (Blue Riband Award)
The Three Spires, Truro 1996
Falmouth College of Art, Foundation Studies Show, 1995
Falmouth Art Centre Summer Show 1994

Tel: 07968 019674 email: studio@karriefox.co.uk

All artwork is copyright of Karrie Fox. © KarrieFox 2003