“UNTITLED (OFF SOAP CREEK)” by Martin Kahnle, 2024, oil on canvas, 48×60.
ABOUT THE PIECE
“My childhood backyard in Marietta, Georgia, was bordered by Sope Creek as it wound toward the Chattahoochee River. The creek had once formed part of the borderland between the Cherokee and Creek peoples, and later became the site where Sherman’s Union forces first crossed the river during the Atlanta Campaign. We spent our summers combing its banks, sometimes finding arrowheads and old Civil War musket balls buried in the red Georgia clay.
“But that grand history was simply the backdrop to a boy’s free time and imagination. It was where I skipped stones, caught frogs, smoked cigarettes and, step by step, grew up. ‘Untitled (Off Soap Creek)’ is not a literal depiction of one particular place. It is a return to the feeling of that landscape, and to the peace, mystery, freedom and nostalgia I still associate with those woods and waters.”
ARTIST BIO
Martin Kahnle is a contemporary Southern painter raised in Marietta, Georgia. He earned a bachelor of science in fine arts from Berry College and spent many years working in advertising, media and marketing before returning more fully to his painting practice.
Kahnle’s work has been exhibited at galleries and institutions including Houska Gallery in St. Louis, James May Gallery in Milwaukee and High Point University. He is represented by TEW Galleries in Atlanta, Modfellows Art Gallery in Nashville and, most recently, Boswell Mourot Fine Art in Little Rock. He is grateful to join Boswell Mourot’s community of artists and share his work with Arkansas audiences. He lives and works outside Atlanta, where he and his wife raised their family.
ARTIST STATEMENT
“The landscapes of the Blue Ridge Mountains and Appalachia are at the heart of my work. I am drawn to the movement and energy of the Southern landscape, from rivers and trees to winding roads and changing light.
“My paintings are inspired by Tennessee, the Carolinas and north Georgia, and influenced by David Hockney, Alex Katz and other regional landscape painters. I also draw from the bold, playful look of classic Warner Bros., Hanna-Barbera and Disney animation, which brings a sense of nostalgia and whimsy to the work.
“Using vivid color, graphic brushwork and simplified forms, I turn familiar places into something both recognizable and imagined. I hope the paintings offer a sense of peace, joy and connection to nature, memory and nostalgia.”
Find this piece and Kahnle’s work locally at Boswell Mourot Fine Art, at martinkahnle.com and on Instagram at @martinkahnle.