the Where
Sept. 4 - Sept. 27
Shift Gallery
Artist talk: Saturday September 27th, 2pm

"Karey Kessler is part of a broad international art movement based on fantasy maps and abstracted topography. The new paintings at the artist-run Shift Gallery continue her exploration of imaginary sites and their geopolitical and historic ramifications. She says the new works “convey the unmappable, intangible essence existing beneath the more familiar structures of the visible world.” Kessler has drawn the attention of curators across the US. She was praised in the New York Times in 2010 and has won numerous awards, including public art commissions".
-Matthew Kangas, Preview Magazine Sept.-Oct. 2025

"An artist interested in maps, Karey Kessler is bringing new work to Shift Gallery this September. According to the show notes, the title, the Where, “literally means ‘a physical place’ but also embody a place mysterious and beyond the known.” Kessler’s complex pieces, consisting of paint, overlaid map imagery, and text, evoke the chaos, emotion, and anxiety of modern life, while also suggesting a findable route through the trenches of the everyday." Rachel Gallaher, Seatle Magazine September 16, 2025