My work is rooted in seminal moments. I bridge fragmented thoughts and information, merge process with materials, and seek to cultivate connections. Individual marks are placed in relationship to one another, units accumulate to realize a work, and ethereal shadows are cast from their stitched or woven counterparts. Drawing is central to my practice. There is a basic instinct in drawing, a way of relating to, reflecting on, and contemplating the environment around me. It is a slowing down, a meditative process, essential to how I create and communicate.


Karen Gustafson is a 2025 Creative Individuals and a 2017 & 2012 recipient of an Artist Initiative Grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board and a 2024 & 2014 recipient of the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council (MRAC) Next Step Grant funded by The McKnight Foundation.

Gustafson has exhibited widely in the United States and abroad at prestigious institutes including GV Art (London, England), Plains Art Museum (ND), Lexington Art League (KY), Pence Gallery, (CA), San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles (CA), and Burnet Gallery (MN).

Artist Residencies include Vermont Studio Center, VT (2022), Kingsbrae International Residency for the Arts (KIRA), St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada (2019)


Photo credit: Cords Photography