We love California. And loving California makes it absurdly easy to fall in love with Kaleen Cameron’s magnificent work.
Image from Kaleen Cameron
A self-taught artist, Kaleen derives inspiration from the sights of this epic state, emulating the mountain ranges, deep canyons and coastlines. Her unique style of blending earth pigment powders into plaster and pulling stretches of landscape out of her canvas has never ceased to amaze us, and we think her striking neutral tone work, at once stark and soft, is the perfect addition to the family of hand crafted globally sourced furniture we’ve lovingly collected at Saffron + Poe.
But let’s talk more about how Kaleen Cameron puts together her eye-catching creations. Kaleen works in the moment, allowing the fast pace of quickly drying plaster to dictate her momentum and creative choices. Once one layer has dried, she decides how she wants to progress before mixing her next batch of plaster and throwing herself back into the work. You can find traces of her tools in her pieces, like the smooth give of plaster against a palette knife.
Image from Kaleen Cameron
The result, in addition to an abstract mirroring of California deserts and shores, is something like an elevated adaptation of Spanish-style stucco finishings, with earthy tone accents and focal points, that can hang on the wall. And it should be no surprise that that architectural association comes to mind, because Kaleen has acknowledged that she is deeply influenced by the Barcelona-based Studio Andrew Trotter, an architecture and interior design firm producing stunning structures balancing smooth and textured surfaces. Each of Kaleen’s pieces can take from four to ten weeks to complete, depending on size.
From the moment Saffron + Poe was conceived we’ve been operating with a goal to always uplift artisan communities, and lately we’ve been especially excited about the opportunity to spread the word (and work) of local talents as best we can. Kaleen Cameron is based in San Francisco, a hop, skip and a Golden Gate Bridge away from our brand new brick and mortar shop in Mill Valley. We’re so honored that she agreed to partner with us, and it’s incredibly rewarding to work with someone who can share our values, both ethically and aesthetically, and to combine those values to create gorgeous spaces.
