Local Artist Responds To Tough Times

Normally, artist Krysia D creates exuberant, large-scale paintings that are as dynamic and colorful as her personality. But in this new economic environment, Krysia D (otherwise known as Krysia Woods, Maplewood mother of two) is offering her big, bold style in concentrated form.

Earlier this month, clients and art collectors were invited to an open house at Krysia’s studio on Walton Road to preview a collection of high-quality reproductions ranging in sizes of 14” x 16”, 17” x 20” and 22” x 26” and in prices of, respectively, $240, $330 and $435 (frames included). More typically, Krysia D creates acrylic paintings several feet high and wide and ranging in price from $1,000 to $5,000.

Her work has been exhibited in the U.S. and Australia and is part of many private, public and corporate collections on four continents. Additionally, her paintings have been featured in numerous publications, including New Jersey Monthly and Matters Magazine.

Krysia D’s paintings include still-lifes, portraits and street scenes. Her style is expressive but representational, not abstract. The colors burst from the canvas—blue skies, yellow lemons, red breasts—in clear, decisive lines. Visiting her home and studio on a gray, rainy day was a bit like escaping to Gauguin’s Tahiti.

“I love the process of painting. It’s like meditation and I do suffer withdrawal when I haven’t painted for a while,” said Krysia, “but the reality is that so much is marketing.” Krysia created this lower-priced collection to be mindful of people’s constrained finances.

“I chose these pieces because they are uplifting and beautiful.” She related the story of one patron from Millburn: “She tells me that, when she is having a difficult day, she will walk past my paintings and spend a few minutes in front of them and then she feels better.”

This is a large part of the reason why Krysia, at least in New Jersey, sells her art directly from her own studio in her home and not through a gallery. “I love the joy of knowing and working with the owner.” For higher priced pieces, Woods sometimes works on commission and visits clients’ home to “create for them, for their spaces.”

In her non-art life (although there really seems to be little separation), Krysia Woods is a Queensland, Australia, native who has lived in Maplewood with her husband Ross and her two sons (Harry, age 11, and Jack, age 7) for the past six years. One would think that a sunny blond like Woods would be homesick for Oz, but no. She loves Maplewood and even waxed poetic about the dreary weather. “In Australia when it rains, we run outside with champagne. Rain means growth, wealth, food.” She also finds rain conducive to creating. “When it rains, I love painting in my studio. I don’t feel guilty—that I should be outside, running after a ball.”

To schedule an appointment, contact Krysia D at krysiadart@aol.com or 973-313-1137.