Bernhardt Chroma

In *Bernhardt Chroma*, Katherine orchestrates a poised encounter between structure and saturation, using color as both subject and atmosphere. The composition suggests an architectural clarity—clean divisions, calibrated intervals—yet it remains emotionally charged through luminous, layered hues that appear to vibrate against one another.

Subtle shifts in tone and edge quality reveal a disciplined technique, where transparency and density are carefully balanced to create depth without illusionism. The work’s title nods to design history while reaffirming a contemporary painterly intelligence: a meditation on how modern life is coded through color, rhythm, and refined restraint.

Katherine Bernhardt (born 1975; Clayton, Missouri) is an American artist based in St. Louis, Missouri.

Work and career

Bernhardt received her MFA from the School of Visual Arts, New York, and her Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois.

Bernhardt is known for painting consumer symbols, tropical animals, and every day objects over bright flat fields of color in an expressionistic and almost abstract style. Previous bodies of work include Moroccan rug-inspired paintings and collages made in collaborations with her (now ex)husband Youssef Jdia, as …