Meet Katharine Montstream
Katharine Montstream is a Painter at Montstream Studio in Burlington VT, and the founder of the Red Hot Chilly Dippers.
Katharine Montstream has been coloring for a living since 1988. She studied at Green Mountain College and the University of Colorado in Boulder. She’s had multiple exhibits in Vermont and focuses on her favorite subjects, the lake, mountains, snow, woods, swimming holes and Burlington’s iconic Moran Plant. She inspires heaps of people with her creativity, her love for nature, and her gusto for cold-water dipping. Katharine was our first Maker Skirt tester in 2018, she even wrote the year down with marker on the inseam of the skirt…
When I first saw the makers skirt I was like “yaaaaas! A hammer loop!” I do a lot of art installations and hanging paintings in people's homes, and the skirt is perfect for holding hammer, nails, tape, pencil and my little level. But my absolute favorite use of my makers skirt is for painting….every damn day, I wear my makers skirt. When I put it on, it’s almost like my super hero cape, I need to start painting right away. It actually feels a little weird painting without it -if that’s possible!
As the years tick by, my skirt is starting to relax, it's now slightly faded and there’s a little oil paint on it that adds character. The one day I went to the studio and didn’t put it on… I was wearing these beautiful swimming pool turquoise blue corduroys. And, of course, I somehow got alizarin crimson (a fiery pink) oil paint on my pants -I absolutely ground it into the ridges of the fabric. What a silly rabbit to have skipped putting on my skirt that day.
The moment I giggled most wearing my skirt was in the grocery store a few years ago. I forgot my bag and didn’t want to buy one. At the check out, I put Kombucha in one pocket, a pear in another, and Brie and a loaf of French bread was sticking out the back pocket. It was poetry in motion.
Painting has been a big part of my life since I was old enough to color at age 2. Crayons were first, then finger paint, acrylic, and today, watercolors and oils. Remarkably, my mom kept all my early “work” in a dress box and I still have it! Someday, maybe it will be part of my retrospective. I feel beyond lucky to have such wonderful, supportive patrons who continue to fuel my need to paint.
When I'm not painting, chilly dipping has brought me great joy and relief. I love the idea of walking into the freezing lake and letting your head empty as you metaphorically “leave it in the lake” - your stories and narratives swirling around in your brain just drift away. And you come out ready to start over and usually grinning. How can you not feel so proud for submerging yourself in 35 degree water? Your body goes into survival mode- the endorphins, the adrenaline, the serotonin, the vagus nerve engaged…it’s all better than coffee and you feel a incredibly bright eyed and beautifully awake.
Funniest moment with my makers apron: wearing it home from work, walking along to lake. I was unprepared, but decided the lake looked too good to pass up. My makers apron offered the perfect coverage that I needed. When I got out, the train went by and the conductor gave a big wave- so I was extra thankful for my apron.
Kath.
