The most immediate element of Karen Chesterman's recent work is vibrant color. Color which seems both vaporous and dense, color that is layered and that suggests movement and directions, color that occasionally even suggests bits of images or iconography. As the viewer approaches, more textures and suggestions of shapes become apparent. As the viewer withdraws, color again assumes the dominating role. Chesterman, however, describes different, more complex motives and processes in her current paintings: "I think of them as accumulations of thought and decision-making. I leave traces of what is underneath either by sanding or scraping the layers of paint . . . What is visible on the surface is not always the most important aspect of the art." Always involved in art, Chesterman earned her Bachelor of Science degree in education from Morningside College and then a Bachelor of Arts degree in art from Briar Cliff College. Chesterman took her Master of Fine Arts in painting from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, and has many exhibitions to her credit. Although working full-time in her studio, she also enjoys giving occasional lectures about art history, art theory, and specific artists to college art classes. Chesterman holds "Best in Show" awards, purchase prizes, and several "Special Recognition in Painting" awards. Her works hang in midwestern galleries, private collections, and institutional collections in banks, hospitals, and corporate offices, including that of American Republic Insurance in Des Moines.