Uncommitted relationships

The purpose of these illustrations is to convey the power of both emotional and physical absence in relationships. How one’s presence is vital to another, and what it symbolises to be void in those moments. To only exist, without ever getting to really feel, is no way to live.

The line work is an intrinsic part of the piece. I feel like to be open and seen is to be vulnerable, so I wanted to make the visible person complicatedly beautiful in such a tangled way. Contrastingly, the male counterpart is simply blocked out, showing not just the void but how easy it is to not commit. These two opposing drawing styles hopefully convey how it’s simpler to just not take that risk and how complicated and daunting it is to do the opposite.

I went through a string of relationships where commitment was hard for me. Looking back over this it taught me a lot about the importance of putting in as much effort as your counterpart, or even just communicating when you’re not able to do so. It is utterly unfair to exist in a relationship where you are not truly involved, all whilst your counterpart has no idea of this.

The reception and relation of my audience to this artwork has been amazing to me. There are almost two equally divided camps; those who relate to the void side, and those who relate to the other. They share with me how it makes them feel and how they’ve been affected either to not be able to give someone what they want, or the pain of not receiving this. The society we live in and the amount of options we have at the touch of a button only exacerbates these kind of scenarios, but I hope this piece either gives people some kind of comfort or gives them some food for thought about their own life experiences.

I’m a London based illustrative artist. I have been making art professionally for the past 12 years but really, I think my life as an artist started on the playground. I’d exchange drawings for sweets, pennies and Pokémon cards, and give sketches to girls on the playground to show not only my interest in her, but also my uncanny talent at drawing Sonic the Hedgehog.

I’ve worked in the artistic field in a range of positions but my priority is not just making a livelihood, but expressing who and what I am. All my art revolves around my inner feelings and I am constantly trying to explore themes and styles that exhibit my deepest emotions. My work is a combination of both physical and digital creations. A big part of my process is drawing everything I do on paper first and then scanning the artwork in and working over it. It sometimes feels like a contradiction to make digital art feel as handmade as possible, but I really enjoy this process.

In the present, my focus has been pointing out racial imbalance. I use my art to uplift underrepresented people of colour, standing in solidarity with the black lives matter movement. On a personal note, I am a queer-identifying first-generation American woman (immigration from Australia on my father’s side) in a monogamous relationship with a straight identifying Mexican man, and mother to a special needs white-passing Hispanic son. Categorically I understand and have been victim to prejudice and know the damage it causes. I am personally invested in helping to change the way the system operates and what the public tolerates.

Kathleen Day is an internationally published multidisciplinary contemporary artist, author and the mother of a special needs child, ten-year-old autistic artist Aiden Gamez. Art has been a part of her daily life since childhood. She began her professional freelance art career directly after graduating high school in 2000. Having lived in and traveled to various places throughout the world, San Antonio, Texas is now home-base.

Kat is the primary founder and head of The Courrier nonprofit international mail art project.

“Along with my fiancé and my 10 year old autistic son, we founded the project as a way to keep people globally connected through art as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our main objectives are helping ease the loneliness, depression and anxiety resulting from isolation through engaging the global community to make art and get creative together. Whether they are adults fighting boredom and just beginning to find their artistic voice, professionals seeking to make impactful contributions or children and caretakers looking for a way to bond and a healthy outlet, The Courrier was designed to be inclusive for everyone. Find her @artist.kday on Instagram and her full series of work on our website.