Katie Hickey

This collection of oil paintings explores the quiet shift in atmosphere that occurs when a once-lived-in space begins to lose its sense of presence. Imagery of domestic interiors and vacant outdoor settings reflects environments that once held warmth and connection but now remain as traces, shadows, and memories of the lives they once contained.

Within the work, home operates as a site of emotional residue. Time and memory linger within surfaces, objects, and walls, where subtle shifts and overlooked details hold quiet tension. Shadows appear not as fixed figures, but as acknowledgements of self within the space, reflecting a relationship to home that feels both familiar and estranged.

These spaces exist within an in-between state, where past presence is implied rather than seen. The aim of these paintings is not to depict absence, but rather to explore the stillness within spaces that feel paused — suspended in a state of longing, waiting for home to feel whole once more.