Unfinished Business

You could call Kori Ashton a preacher’s daughter, an accomplished musician, a talented mixed media artist and a website designer, but that’s just the beginning.

Trying to encapsulate who Kori Ashton is may not be unlike her canvases: expansive, multifaceted and seemingly in a state of ethereal flux.

Yet as the former professional musician will admit, that is far from easy to do in the best of circumstances. Fortunately the public has a couple of careers, capped by numerous works of art, to document the process.

From attending Bible college to a decade traveling as a successful member of a Christian quintet to finally coming out as a lesbian, Ashton’s art is more than individual canvases. It is the story of a perfectionist learning the beauty of disorder as it is about coming to terms with being at odds with a faith she cherishes. It is that depth that has precipitated an exhibit in May at the Jewish Community Center.

“[Our band] started opening for many Christian artists and playing bigger shows and we ended up traveling for like 10 years across the country,” said Ashton. “Eventually I struggled personally with my sexual orientation while I was in the world of Christian music so those didn’t mix very well. Through all of that, you’ll see that in my lyrics and flow into my art as well.”

Her return to Texas was the new start that launched another successful career as a professional artist. Under the tutelage of Ita Borger-Boglin, an accomplished artist, art professor and Ashton’s would-be mentor at San Antonio College, a chance invitation to an art installation was the revelation Ashton needed to create her first piece. My World, an 8 foot by 4 foot painting which still hangs in her living room, kicked off a prolific six year period where she has sold over 200 works.

While it may be easy to be in understandable and warranted awe of such a feat, that is not on what Ashton chooses to place her focus.

“I had never been to anything like the art installation before. I really became intrigued with the concept of abstract art. I enjoy when someone loves a piece. The joy of someone falling in love with my art is amazing to me,” admitted the native Texan.

The irony of Ashton’s commercial success in light of separation anxiety from her original works is not lost on her. Yet thanks to a very special patron, the San Antonio College graduate was reminded the universal language of beauty transcends even physical disabilities.

The First Friday fixture is no stranger to viewers’ propensities to touch her work. Sight is just one of the ways the visceral nature of the finished product can be appreciated. In this instance, it was not the only way.

“One of the coolest things to happen to me was when a visually impaired woman came to my booth at a farmer’s market and her husband tried to explain my work to her,” recounted Ashton. “He tried in his limited vocabulary to describe it so I told her to touch it. She asked if she really could. As she began to run her fingers over the painting, she began to describe it. It was such a cool thing to see her ‘see’ my art.”

These days, parting with her growing collection is only getting harder. But that is far from the dilemma she would be in if she did not create them in the first place. To hear the young artist speak about her creative process is to delve into the mind of a natural with uncommonly mature talent. What is more impressive is Ashton’s willingness to admit being a work in progress.

Unfinished business can take many forms, whether it is an individual realizing an inherent truth about their sexuality, an artist tapping into a reservoir of talent or a singer learning three simple guitar chords and becoming a musical mainstay. For Kori Ashton, it’s all of these things plus more still under development.

“[Without art], I would be bottled up and more broken than I am now. Art to me is a way to connect to my creative side. I don’t know where I would be if I hadn’t gone to that art installation,” concluded Ashton.

For more information on Kori Ashton, visit www.koriashton.com.