Kim VanDerHoek

Orange, CA

2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024

Kim VanDerHoek is an American contemporary fine artist who creates vibrant oil paintings featuring landscape and urban scenes that are imbued with her signature texture. She works out of her studio in Southern California.

Born in California and raised in the mountains of Big Bear City, Kim spent many hours as a child climbing trees, sledding down snow-covered hills, horseback riding and hiking through the woods. Surrounded by the wild beauty of the forest Kim developed an early appreciation for the outdoors and a fascination for urban environments, which she continues to explore today through painting.

After graduating in 1993 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in illustration from the California College of the Arts in Oakland, California, Kim worked as a graphic designer for 11 years. She left the design field to pursue a career as a full-time painter.

She learned to paint by painting en Plein Air because it combined her love of being outside, creating art and studying from life. “I enjoy the challenges Plein Air painting poses. Dealing with the weather, changing light and other hurdles of outdoor painting has forced me to to have a plan for each painting, to paint with commitment and to fearlessly experiment .” Kim feels that through Plein Air painting she has gained a better understanding of the effects of light and atmosphere. She aims to translate those effects into her studio paintings. Currently, she is working on a series of studio paintings featuring aerial views.

“It is my hope that when you view my painting from across the room, the large shapes make a strong visual statement that allow you to easily see what the subject is, then, upon closer inspection, you find yourself lost in the paint texture. I am always striving to elevate the scene I am painting in order to show the viewer the everyday beauty surrounding us. In each painting I aim to accurately represent the subject while allowing the paint to have an equal voice and a strong presence.”

Kim is represented by Principle Gallery in Alexandria, Virginia, Principle Gallery in Charleston, South Carolina and Chemers Gallery in Tustin, California. She is a juried artist member of the California Art Club (CAC), a signature member of the American Impressionist Society (AIS), a Signature Member of the American Women Artists (AWA) and a member of the Oil Painters of America (OPA). She is a Trekell Pro Team Artist as well as a “Member | The Circle of Gamblin Artists + Educators” and a painting instructor who teaches online classes.