.png)
Marquee:
Golden Day, 2024, oil and gold leaf on wood panel
Overview
Katherine B. Young, MD, MFA fell in love with the ocean when she was a small child. She spent a lot of time on the water before going to medical school to train in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
After working for 10 years as a plastic surgeon in San Francisco, she fulfilled her dream of becoming a full time artist. She specializes in drawing and painting vast spaces of ocean and sky. Her work has won numerous awards and has been exhibited and collected throughout the United States.
She is currently creating an exhibition for the Triton Museum of Art in Santa Clara, CA which addresses the ocean plastic pollution problem.
The following galleries represent her artwork: HANG ART in San Francisco, Claire Carino Contemporary in Boston, and The Gallery at Tree’s Place in Cape Cod. She maintains a studio at 1890 Bryant Street in San Francisco, and lives in the city with her husband and daughter.
Her artwork and creative process are featured in creativity expert Tina Seelig’s book, Insight Out.
About the Artist
My connection to the ocean and art-making began in childhood, growing up in the Tidewater region of Virginia near the Atlantic. Though I initially pursued science—studying engineering and medicine at Duke University and training as a plastic and reconstructive surgeon at Stanford—I ultimately returned to my artistic roots. After a decade of surgical practice in San Francisco, I earned an MFA and committed to a full-time career as an artist.
The ocean is both majestic and meditative, a force of awe and tranquility. My paintings and drawings capture its vastness, immersing viewers in its beauty. However, my relationship with the ocean was profoundly altered when I learned about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch—an immense collection of plastic waste polluting the waters I love. This realization compelled me to confront this crisis through my art.
'What Do You Treasure?" emerged from my reflections on our paradoxical relationship with nature. We revere the ocean and its life, yet contribute to its degradation through rampant plastic consumption. This exhibition invites you to examine this contradiction and reconsider the choices we make daily.
The paintings and drawings lining the walls evoke the ocean’s sublime power. Many incorporate genuine gold, referencing early Renaissance religious icons and illuminated manuscripts—symbols of reverence and contemplation. The sculptures interspersed throughout the space, however, disrupt this serenity. Cast from discarded plastic and gilded in gold, they serve as objects of reflection, mimicking sacred artifacts yet exposing the false idol of consumerism. These pieces also nod to the economic forces that sustain our dependence on plastic, making change feel daunting but necessary.
As you move through the exhibition, allow yourself to experience the ocean’s grandeur, then confront the unsettling reality embedded in the sculptures.
What do you treasure most—nature or convenience?
The answer to this question carries weight beyond this space. If you choose nature, let that commitment extend into action. Even small steps—reducing plastic use, supporting sustainable initiatives, advocating for systemic change—can have a profound impact.
This exhibition is not just a reflection; it is a call to action. The choice is yours.