Today we’d like to introduce you to Kristin Kunc.
Hi Kristin, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I came to painting the way some people gravitate to sports—slowly at first, then all at once. I grew up in suburban East Brunswick, New Jersey, watching and making things, always noticing the theater of ordinary life: the way afternoon light rests on a table, how a person stands when lost in thought, the quiet choreography of people moving through rooms that hold their histories. Those observations led me to charcoal drawing and painting, and eventually to the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, where I studied painting and sculpture and learned to trust oil paint—its ability to hold both beauty and tension in a single surface.
After PAFA I moved to New York to continue training at Water Street Atelierwhere I lived and worked for twenty years, building a career centered on painting and portraiture. My work settled into what is often called contemporary realism, though it has always felt more like a form of listening. I paint domestic interiors, still lifes, and figures paused between tasks—spaces that appear calm but are quietly charged. I’m drawn to the personal objects of home and to moments that consider how we live inside inherited roles and how individuality exists within family life. For me, even the most familiar subject can carry the weight of a larger cultural story.
Through my work painting portraits I connected with clients across the country, and my work has been featured in Artist Daily, Fine Art Connoisseur, Craftsy, The Figurative Artist’s Handbook, and on Madam Secretary. My paintings are included in the Bennett Collection and many private collections, while the studio has remained the center of my practice—a place for sustained observation and craft.
Alongside my own work, I have been committed to supporting the broader arts community, curating exhibitions at Gowanus Ballroom and the National Arts Club and managing public sculpture projects at Serett Metalworks. I continue that involvement through my role on the board of New York Artists Equity Gallery in NYC. During Covid I returned to Monmouth County, New Jersey to raise our family, and I have since opened a studio in Red Bank where I create commissioned paintings and teach classes, helping students of all ages develop both technical skill and a personal voice.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It hasn’t always been a smooth road. Balancing motherhood with a studio practice, working without the security of a traditional job or employer provided health insurance, and searching for the right studio—especially one with true north light—have all been real life challenges. On a personal level, my husband’s near-fatal aortic aneurysm profoundly shifted my perspective and priorities. Those experiences ultimately strengthened my commitment to the work and to building something lasting. Opening my studio in Red Bank and growing a community around Art and classes has been an exciting new chapter—proof that resilience and creativity can turn difficult seasons into meaningful momentum.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a contemporary realist painter specializing in portraiture, domestic interiors, and still life. My work centers on the quiet, everyday spaces of family life—rooms, objects, and figures that feel familiar but carry emotional complexity beneath the surface. I’m known for paintings that balance beauty with tension: calm light, carefully observed detail, and moments where a person or place seems paused between roles. I’m especially drawn to the feminine perspective and to how identity is shaped inside the architecture of home.
Alongside my studio practice, I work extensively on commission and teach classes in my Red Bank studio, including a focused teen portfolio program that helps young artists build strong technical foundations and prepare competitive work for art school applications. I’ve also been deeply involved in the arts community—curating exhibitions, supporting public sculpture projects, and serving on the board of New York Artists Equity Gallery—because I believe an artist’s life is strongest when it connects to other artists.
What I’m most proud of is sustaining a meaningful creative life through many seasons—twenty years working in New York City, returning to New Jersey to raise a family, and building a studio that now supports both my work and a growing community of students and collectors. I’m proud that my paintings live in private collections and the Bennett Collection, and that they’ve reached audiences through publications and unexpected places like television.
What sets me apart is how deeply I enjoy working with people. I’m personable and collaborative by nature, and whether I’m painting a commissioned portrait or guiding a student through their first oil painting, I value the relationships at the heart of the process. My goal is to make clients and students feel seen, comfortable, and part of the creative journey, so the finished work reflects not just technical skill but a genuine human connection.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
I’m very optimistic about the next 5–10 years, especially at the local level. While AI and digital tools will keep evolving, I see a strong return to in-person experiences—people want to meet artists, take classes, and invest in work that’s made by hand in their own community. Studios like mine in Red Bank are becoming creative hubs where commissions, teaching, and exhibitions come together, and that direct relationship between artist and client is more important than ever. I think the future will belong to artists and small businesses that pair new technology with real craftsmanship and genuine human connection.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kristinkuncstudio.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristinkunc/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kristin.kunc
