Karen Silve

Beijing Spring Park

Karen Silve (born 1969, Illinois) is an artist based in Portland, Oregon, who also spends part of her time working in Provence, France. Her practice has evolved from figurative and nature-based painting to abstraction. She studied with Alvin Sella at the University of Alabama and later at the Leo Marchutz School (Institute for American Universities) in Aix-en-Provence, where her approach became grounded in color and a deep connection to nature—elements that continue to shape her work today. Silve’s paintings are held in private, corporate, and public collections, including the U.S. Consulate in Monterrey, Mexico. Her solo exhibitions include venues such as the Portland Performing Arts Center, the Visual Art Center of Northwest Florida, and the upcoming Galerie Domnine in Sisteron, France. She has also participated in international group shows in Doha, Monterrey, Brunei, Venice, and cities across the U.S. and the U.K. She is a grant recipient from the Oregon Arts Commission, the Family Ford Foundation, and the Regional Arts and Culture Council, and has served as an artist-in-residence at Texas A&M University.