Kyra Kendall

Aita e nehenehe e huna i te mana o te ohipa aravihi — na roto e rave rahi mau ravea, e aravihi taa ê to te hoê taata peni hoho'a no te haamaitai i te oraraa o te feia e faaroo ra ia ratou e te ao e haati nei ia ratou. Na roto i te ohipa rima î, e nehenehe ta te hoê taata e faaite i te mau mea i te mau taata o ta ratou i ore i farerei a'enei e i faaaano i te mau iriatai; taui i te feruriraa e te aau matara. Elizabeth Broun, ti'a faatere tahito no te fare manaha no Smithson American Art Museum e te Renwick Gallery i Washington D.C., I te hoê taime ua parau oia e, " e ere te mau mea atoa no ni'a i te mau mea nehenehe, no ni'a râ i to tatou huru, eaha tei tupu i ni'a ia matou, e eaha te huru o to tatou oraraa ". Taata peni pape, Kyra Kendall, o te hoho'a mau ïa o taua mana'o ra.

Te mau peni anaana, Te mau hoho'a mata tuiroo, Te mau tuhaa iti ha'iha'i roa e te hoê ma'i pee, a faaî i to'na mau ahu e te mau varua o te feia e mata'ita'i i te reira. No te taata peni hoho'a râ e hinaaro ra e faatupu i te nehenehe e e faaoaoa i te taata — e ere noa te e'a e manuïa ' i i te mea nehenehe aore ra i te mea oaoa. I nia i to ' na e'a, te vai ra te hoê ma'i mariri ai taata i to ' na apîraa ra e te raveraa i ta ' na mau moemoeâ no te rapaau ia ' na, e tae noa'tu i te faatîtîraa i te oto, te haamâ e te inoino tei tu'ati. I te pae hopea no Kendall, ua faatupu noa te mau tamataraa i te hinaaro i roto i to'na aau ia peni. E riro ta ' na piha ei haapuraa papu no ' na.

E mea papû maitai e, eita o Kendall e ere i te faaururaa i te mau taime atoa, eita atoa to'na aamu e aore râ, ta'na ohipa e faaea i te faauru. Mai roto mai i to'na fare faaearaa i Toronto, Ua iriti o Kyra Kendall i te hoê haamaramarama i roto i to'na faaûruraa, faanahoraa no te poieteraa, hopes, e te mau faaûruraa. Ua faaite atoa oia i hea outou e ite ai ia'na mai te mea e, aita oia e peni i te hoho'a.

Afea to outou haamataraa i te peni i te hoho'a?

E vahine tarai ofa'i to'u metua vahine. No reira, te vai noa ra te hoê piha i roto i to matou fare. Te haamana'o nei au i to'u faati'a-raa-hia ia peni a rave ai to'u metua vahine i te ohipa i roto i te piha. Tera râ, aita vau i haamata i te peni i te pape e tae roa'tu i te 16raa o to'u matahiti. 12 years old. My mom enrolled me in a painting class at a local community center.

Ua ite noa anei outou i te hoê taairaa piri roa i rotopu i te pape e te tahi atu mau taura?

Nope. Ua riro mau â te reira ei ravea au ore mau e rave rahi matahiti te maoro. E mea au ore roa! Tera râ,, te mea e vai ra i roto i te pape i ni'a a'e i te tahi atu mea, oia ho'i, e nehenehe ta outou e ratere ohie noa na muri iho. Oia mau, mea na reira ta ' u opuaraa Instagram i te haamataraa — te ratere ra vau na Paniora, e ua hinaaro vau i te peni i to'u tere. Ua haere au i te hoê fare toa hooraa tauihaa i Barcelone, e tera ïa.

Eaha te mea e faaûru nei i ta outou ohipa?

Te hinaaro ia faatupu i te nehenehe. No te faahanahana i te mea maitai. Te vai noa nei te hinaaro i roto i to'u aau ia peni. Ua faaûruhia vau e te mau rave'a haaparareraa sotiare e te mau hoho'a teata. Te mau hoho'a teata tahito iho â râ. E mea au na'u ia peni i te mau mea e nehenehe ia tatou paatoa ia tuati i ni'a i te.

Eaha te maororaa e titauhia ia outou no te hamani i te hoê api parau?

Auê te aroha e. I te tahi mau taime, mea vitiviti roa — i te tahi atu mau taime. But because I often repaint the same subject many times, each time I am painting it, I am learning, and so it gets faster.

What do you like to do when you’re not painting?

I love to snowboard. My husband bought me fancy gloves so I don’t fall and break my wrist, which he jokingly calls the ‘Cash Register’. I also love riding my bike in the summer through Toronto. In fact my favorite thing to do is to ride my bike to meet my friends for drinks. I also love to travel and paint in new places. That is very, very inspiring to me. I am planning a painting trip through Italy this summer and I am looking forward to it immensely.

Do you remember the first piece that you ever created?

I remember being in Kindergarten and gleefully drawing on the chalkboard. I would take a piece of chalk in each hand and draw mirrored halves of the same image at the same time. I remember being SO HAPPY when I did that.

I also remember going into my moms studio and finding some clay on the floor and just kind of zoning out and sculpting a sneaker. I just walked away and forgot about it. A week later, my mom presented me with my sneaker that she had glazed and fired for me in her kiln. She was really impressed with it. I didn’t think it was anything, but I was kind of awed that she, the sculptor, was impressed.

Do you remember the first piece of work that you ever sold?

When I was sick with cancer I got really into doing these tiny watercolors of roses with fairies inside them. Even thinking about them today makes me feel a little sad. My mom’s friend had me make her a bunch for her house and that was the first work I ever sold. I remember being so happy that I had made money through painting. But I also felt so sad that my life felt so small like the watercolor fairies in the roses. Being sick is hard.

How would you describe yourself in three words?

Eccentric. Generous. Brave.

Who are your biggest influences (in the art world as well as outside of the art world)?

In art my biggest influences are, and in no particular order – Marlene Dumas. I remember seeing a collection of works of hers at the SF MOMA when I was about 23 and I felt crazy with adoration. The way she conveys emotion in her painting is so amazing. Janet Werner is a Canadian painter, and I am in love with her work. There is a painting of hers that hangs by the stairs in a bar I love. Sometimes I excuse myself from my friends and sneak up the stairs to look at it. I also love the painting of Richard Diebenkorn. I think those 3 are my biggest art influences. Also Matisse. But who isn’t blown away by his use of color?

Is there a message or something that you hope to portray or express through your work?

I hope that my work shows the beauty of this world. I hope that in me painting all the time I can inspire others to give it a try. I hope to make people feel a spark of joy.