teri dryden

Teri Dryden says paper is her muse.

“I have worked with everything from detritus to expensive washi papers,” said the Kentucky collage artist whose work is influenced by Japanese aesthetics.

“I love the feel of paper in my hands and glue on my fingertips.”

Artist: Born in Odenton, MD, Dryden went to college in Baltimore at Towson University to study theater.

She left college to travel to every state with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus as a clown for two years. She relocated to Los Angeles, where she spent 35 years. She now lives in Louisville, KY.

Studio: Before 2024, Dryden had a studio in her home. Now she has her own studio and shares gallery space with seven other women artists at St. Matthews Studios & Gallery in Louisville.

“I have high ceilings and tons of flat surfaces for cutting, painting and assembling my collages,” said Dryden. “I have ample storage for various sizes of paper and scraps. I do like to be organized, and everything has its place.”

Starting out: While studying theater at Towson University, Dryden specialized in physical expression and comedic performance.

At the recommendation of a mentor, she auditioned for and secured a position as one of the few female clowns with the circus.

When she left the circus, Dryden moved to Los Angeles and established herself as a stage actress. After the birth of her first child, she transitioned away from the performing arts.

Dryden channeled her creative energy into fabric arts for several years before formally enrolling in studio art classes, which revealed a deep-seated passion and aptitude for drawing and painting. She later turned to paper in her creative practice.

Art & materials: Mixed-media collages using a limited palette of hand-painted papers. Dryden arranges torn fragments and creates stark lines to emphasize the intentional spaces between them. ($350 for an 8” x 8” collage on panel to $3,600 for a 40” x 30” piece).

In her most recent works, she explores the Japanese concept of “Ma,” which celebrates the beauty of negative space.

“These untouched spaces become meaningful pauses where presence and absence meet,” said Dryden. “Inviting viewers to appreciate the subtle spaces that shape our world.”

Themes:

Personal and cultural identity.
Impermanence.
Beauty of things unconventional, using the Japanese concepts of Wabi-Sabi, MA and Yutori.

Favorite tool: An orbital sander.

Inspirations: Artists including:

Hannelore Baron for her deeply intimate collages and assemblages.
Cy Twombly for his poetic space.
Francis Davison for his purism using only unpainted, hand-torn found paper.
Philip Mark Carter for his perfectly balanced compositions using clean, geometric shapes with textured, torn papers.
Anne Ryan for her tactile, poetic arrangements of color and texture.

Awards: Awarded professional development grants from the Great Meadows Foundation for artist residencies in Japan (2018 & 2019), Baltimore (2022), Italy (2023) and New Orleans (2024).

Recent exhibit: KMAC Contemporary Art Museum in downtown Louisville. The show featured 40 of her new collages.

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