Roland Kulla

Chicago-based Roland Kulla’s primary inspiration are bridges found in major cities, such as Chicago, New York, and Pittsburgh. His cropped yet spacious compositions expose the details of these massive structures, revealing harmonious patterns in the seemingly random arrangement of bolts and rivets. His realistic acrylic paintings, pencil drawings, and woodcuts offer an idealized version of reality, inviting the viewer to appreciate the monumentality of these bridges and celebrate the talent and labor of those who designed and constructed them.

“My creative path to a career in fine art has not been a direct one.” Says Kulla, “After ten years in seminary, I made a lateral career move into social work. Artistic pursuits were a constant theme during this period. Sketching and drawing led to watercolors in college. Acrylics were added to the mix and since 2004 I have begun to explore print media, such as woodcuts, lithography, and dry point etchings.”

"I am fascinated by the built environment. I reflect on what the structures tell about their builders as well as their interaction with nature and the results of time. I have focused on the engineering ingenuity that created Chicago's many bridges. Structural elements are abstracted from their context and painted with a hard-edged realism on a scale that highlights the monumentality of the forms and the creativity necessary for their existence. Art is essentially about communicating, which means sharing my visions with others."