Kat Williamson

Painting has always been a way for me to stay connected to animals and the natural world. Some of my earliest memories are of sitting at the table drawing with my mum, who is also an artist and a lifelong animal enthusiast. We spent hours sketching together, her teaching me how to capture their expressions, and the small details that made them feel alive. That way of looking has stayed with me.
Since moving to British Columbia eight years ago, I’ve been deeply influenced by the landscape and the wildlife of this place. My current work is inspired by the mountains and valleys of the Kootenays, where I live and practise, the traditional territories of the Sinixt, the Syilx, and the Ktunaxa peoples.
I’m deeply interested in how we relate - human to human, animal to animal, across species, and within ourselves. I’m drawn to the way we read expression, posture, and energy, and to the rich inner lives that exist beneath what’s visible on the surface. In my work as a counsellor and art therapist, I’m invited into very tender parts of people’s lives, sitting with them through profound grief and through moments of deep joy and connection. Spending so much time close to these raw, shared emotional states has sharpened my attention to what we have in common as living beings.
My paintings aren’t about realism so much as relationship. I’m interested in presence, energy, and the feeling of encountering another being - human or animal. I tend to work with bold, intuitive brushstrokes and focus less on fine detail and more on what it feels like to be in connection, to notice, and to respond.
Through both my art and my therapeutic practice, I’ve come to see our connection with other animals and the natural world as central to our wellbeing. I feel the loss that comes when we drift too far from that relationship. My paintings are a way of staying close, of remembering the familiarity that exists between us and the wild world, and inviting others to feel it too.