Sloss Furnace Holiday PourKARA
THEART
Parallel Play Performance for Hugh Patterson
Gallery Vox Rust Never Sleeps
Shoot with Moe at MakeBHM Studio
Internship at Sculpture Trails Outdoor Museum
Kara Theart (b. 11/06/2003) is a young artist in Birmingham, Alabama. A 2022 Visual Art graduate from the Alabama School of Fine Arts, Theart continues her art education with a BFA at the University of Alabama at Birmingham with a focus on Sculpture, meanwhile assisting Sculpture Studio Tech, Page Burch. Outside of school, she practices metal fabrication and casting at Sloss Furnaces, as well as working under International Muralist, Emma Gilbert. With an interest for public work, Theart observes the relationship between the body and the landscape, as well as maternal themes revolving around empathy for another through oneself.
“My work demonstrates relationships between the human figure and the landscape, showcasing the cyclical state of being and atomized uniformity of all that is physical, as well as exhibiting the parental and juvenile duality of sentience.
Whether forming from the exchange of more literal imagery, or translation through texture, medium, and compositional experimentation, my range of processes and materials serve in both conceptual and visual exploration.Through the expression of this relationship, and my developments of maternal themes, I explore the abundance of empathy for both the earth and the human with displays of maximalistic textures such as linework, hair, the body disassembled, and geological forms, imbuing respect to the micro through their seemingly infinite or structural grandiosity.
This exchange in scale and attention invites the viewer’s understanding of their own physicality into the conversation, and how sympathy for their monotony belongs to a shared experience of time itself, creating a monumental connection. In this context, I hope to push for a better understanding of the simultaneous complexity of life for each individual, creature, and the earth itself.
With this attraction of witnessing the state of being through my work, I still find myself deep in experimentation with different media types. My largest body of work consists of inkpen drawings. I developed this labor intensive and monotonous process in an attempt to include the meditative expression of time. My interest in sculpture and performance work has come out of both the curiosity of making, and the application of the body itself. More specifically, addressing the weight to my own body when growing to understand the diverse complex nature of the mental and physical worlds in their entirety. This naivety comes into reference within my current developing work, where I introduce themes of motherhood.”
- Kara Theart
Exhibitions
Recognition
Activities
“My work demonstrates relationships between the human figure and the landscape, showcasing the cyclical state of being and atomized uniformity of all that is physical, as well as exhibiting the parental and juvenile duality of sentience.
Whether forming from the exchange of more literal imagery, or translation through texture, medium, and compositional experimentation, my range of processes and materials serve in both conceptual and visual exploration.Through the expression of this relationship, and my developments of maternal themes, I explore the abundance of empathy for both the earth and the human with displays of maximalistic textures such as linework, hair, the body disassembled, and geological forms, imbuing respect to the micro through their seemingly infinite or structural grandiosity.
This exchange in scale and attention invites the viewer’s understanding of their own physicality into the conversation, and how sympathy for their monotony belongs to a shared experience of time itself, creating a monumental connection. In this context, I hope to push for a better understanding of the simultaneous complexity of life for each individual, creature, and the earth itself.
With this attraction of witnessing the state of being through my work, I still find myself deep in experimentation with different media types. My largest body of work consists of inkpen drawings. I developed this labor intensive and monotonous process in an attempt to include the meditative expression of time. My interest in sculpture and performance work has come out of both the curiosity of making, and the application of the body itself. More specifically, addressing the weight to my own body when growing to understand the diverse complex nature of the mental and physical worlds in their entirety. This naivety comes into reference within my current developing work, where I introduce themes of motherhood.”
- Kara Theart
Exhibitions
- AEIVA 50th Juried Student Annual 2026, Group Show, Jan-March 2026, Birmingham, AL
- 501 Exhibition, Group Show, Oct 2025, Birmingham, AL
- Sculpture Trails Outdoor Museum, 2 year Installation, July 2025-July 2027, Solsberry, IN
- Paint Memphis, 10x11’ Mural, Oct 2024-present, Memphis, TN
- Red225, ‘Intimacism’, Group Show, June 1st-July-25th, 2024, Nashville, TN
- Ground Floor Gallery, Sanctum, Group Show, Birmingham, AL, April 6th-20th, 2024
- A Basic Shop, Solo Showcase, Birmingham, AL, Mar 21st-July, 2024
- Birmingham Public Library, Group Show, Birmingham, AL, April 6th-30th, 2024
- Gadsden Muesum of Art, StofART Group Exhibition, Feb 2nd-Mar 28th, 2024
- AIEVA, 48th Annual Juried Student Exhibition, Birmingham, AL, Jan 12th-Mar 15th, 2024
- Gallery at Bloch Hall, ‘Interconnections’ Group Show, Montevallo, AL, Jan 11th-Feb 2nd, 2024
- MakeBHM, 10 Years Salon Show, Birmingham, AL, December 10th-15th, 2023
- Filter, ‘Scale’ Group Show, Birmingham, AL, Nov 10th-23rd, 2023
- Wavelength Space, ‘Earth is a Time Machine’ Group Show, Chattanooga, TN, Oct 14th-Nov12th 2023
- Galley Vox, ‘Rust Never Sleeps’ Group Show, Tarrant, AL, August 31st
- MakeBHM Relate Exhibition, AL Apr 21st - Apr 30th
- 2023 Tennessee Collegiate Art Competition, Todd Art Gallery, TN Feb 18th - Mar 15th
- Foundations Exhibit, Art Lab, Birmingham, AL Feb 15th - Feb 22nd
- 2023 Robin Nance Metz Art Competition Shelby County Arts Council, AL Jan 19th-Mar 9th
- Brush Strokes Exhibit Mentone, AL Dec 8th 2022 - Dec 20th 2023
- MakeBHM Cultural Shifts Exhibition Nov 4th-11th
- ArtPrize showcase Grand Rapids, MI, Sept 15th-Oct 2nd
- Sloss Furnace Youth Metal Arts Exhibition August 5th-20th, 2022
- Senior Showcase Vulcan Materials Gallery April 7th-22nd, 2022
Recognition
- AEIVA 50th Juried Student Annual 2026 Award of Distinction
- The Kluge and Langley Scholarship 2024-2025
- Aura Review Spring 2023 Magazine
- Drawing Honorable Mention 2023 Robin Nance Metz Art Competition
- Fierce Award for Sloss
Metal Arts Summer Youth
Apprenticeship 2022 - 2 Regional Scholastic
Gold Keys for Art 2022 - Regional Scholastic Silver
Keys for Art 2019, 2022 - Regional Scholastic
Honorable Mention for
Art 2022
Activities
- Sculpture Trails (July 2025) Metal Arts Internship for Sculpture Trails in Solsberry, IN
- NCCCIAP (April 2023, April 2025) National Conference on Contemporary Cast Iron Art and Practices; Part of Sloss Furnace pour crew and social media
- F.I.R.E. Conference (May 2024, May 2025, May 2026) Metal Arts Conference at the Metal Museum in Memphis, TN; participated in Aluminum, Bronze, and Iron casting and fabrication
- Kentuck Art Festival (Oct 2022, 2024, 2025) 3 Day Iron Pour with Sloss Furnaces, Tuscaloosa, AL at Kentuck Festival for the Arts
- Paint Memphis (Oct 2024) Mural Conference in Memphis, TN; Personally designed and painted a 10x11’ wall
- Art Basel (Dec 2024) Attended in Miami, FL
- Temporary Gallery Assistant for AEIVA (Feb 2025) Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts
- Imagination Festival for Magic City Art Connection (April 2024) Art Class Provider
- Magic City Art Connection (April 2023) Art Booth in Birmingham, Alabama
- Art Prize (2022) Art Festival Booth Grand Rapids, Michigan