Kathleen ryan

New York-based artist Kathleen Ryan harvests inspiration for her oversized sculptures from natural sources: cherry orchards, vineyards, and mineral mines below the earth’s crust. She’s known for her fruit pieces that appear to be covered in mold, whether in the form of a deflated bunch of grapes or a pair of cherries spotted with fungi. Ryan portrays the moldy substances through precious and semi-precious gemstones like amethyst, quartz, and marble. The materials’ durability and longevity…

“Beauty in decay 🍋✨ Kathleen Ryan @katieryankatieryan reimagines moldy fruit with a twist—using dazzling gemstones to create monumental sculptures that challenge our perceptions of beauty and imperfection. #ContemporaryArt #KathleenRyan #SculptureArt #GemstoneSculpture #ArtInDecay #ModernArt #LosAngelesArtist #FineArtSculpture”

Colorful, lustrous patterns made of precious and semi-precious stones coat a new series of oversized fruit sculptures by Kathleen Ryan. A bright rind peeks through layers of mold on a halved lemon, white and green Penicillium spoils a basket of cherries, and multicolored fungi crawls out of a grinning Jack-o-lantern. Continuing her practice of portraying the grotesque through traditionally beautiful materials, the New York-based artist (previously) ironically questions notions of value…

Kathleen Ryan. American. 2018.

FRANÇOIS GHEBALY GALLERY presents a solo exhibition of kathleen ryan's work, showcasing a suite of new sculptures depicting bejeweled 'rotting' fruits.

Kathleen Ryan - Bad Melon (2024) #artbasel

Lost Found Art on Instagram: "I’m a huge fan of the work of Kathleen Ryan. It is such a new and fresh approach. She uses semi precious stones like onyx, smokey quartz, lapis and garnets attached with stainless steel pins to a polystyrene and wood form. On average a 30” wide lemon can take two months and have 10,000 beads. #fruitsalad #fruitsalads #spoiled #rotted #contemporaryart #modernart #modernartists #modernsculpture #modernartist #fruitlover"

Josh Lilley on Instagram: “🥁🍋🍇🍒💎🥁 For Art Basel Miami Beach 2019, Josh Lilley presents the first monumental version of KATHLEEN RYAN’s @katieryankatieryan celebrated…”

Who could have thought that moldy, rotten fruit could be beautiful? As it turns out, anything is possible at the hands of talented artist, Kathleen Ryan. Ryan has perfected the art of turning fruit sculptures into mesmerizing, moldy-looking works of art. To make all types of fruits, she uses a polystyrene base measuring up to 28 inches in width. The artist then proceeds to paint the patterns of the mold and tops it off by individually placing dozens of precious and semi-precious gemstones to…