Karolina Karlsson creates minimalist yet playful paintings inspired by women and the climate around her. Her work blends bold colors, simple forms, and island-life influences from St. Barths to express mood, identity, and everyday moments with spontaneity and warmth.
I am a Swedish-American artist based between New York and St. Barths. I began painting in 2020 during the first lockdown — after a few tentative attempts at banana bread, my roommates and I bought a painting kit, and “Artist Mode” was activated.
My paintings are inspired by women and weather. All my works revolve around women in some way, and the climate where I paint them inevitably shapes and reflects the mood of each piece.
Much of my creative work is rooted in my experiences on St. Barths. The island’s atmosphere — its relaxed pace, vivid light, sea and landscape, and everyday life — deeply influences my palette, compositions, and themes. I draw on elements like human figures, food, and minimalist patterns — exploring proportion, color, and form to build visually striking compositions that strike a balance between playful imagery and a refined, understated tone.
Series such as “Deconstructed Bodies” — born on the island — use animated figures, organic forms, and sometimes fruits (notably eggplants), rendered in bold colors. These works emerged from simple, ordinary afternoons: sketching by the sea while watching people pass by, surrounded by the energy of island life, often with a cocktail or acai bowl in hand.
I aim to capture moments shaped by both subject and environment: the human form against the backdrop of climate and locale, the interplay between identity, place, mood, and memory. Through my art I express a feeling — relaxed yet lively, whimsical yet grounded — reflecting my personal journey and the duality of living between New York and the Caribbean.
Karolina Karlsson is a Swedish-American artist based between St. Barths and New York. Her work has been exhibited at Saatchi Gallery (Focus Art Fair London), Miami Art Week, Artists of St. Barth, and her Manhattan studio.
Spending much of her time painting in St. Barths, Karolina draws inspiration from the island’s relaxed atmosphere, capturing the human form, food, and minimalist patterns. She explores proportion and color to create visually striking compositions that balance playful imagery with a refined, understated tone.
Her Deconstructed Bodies and Cuddle Puddle series share a common language of animated figures, bold colors, and organic forms—reflecting the island’s influence on her creative process. Additionally, her Islander series, an offshoot of Two-Face, reimagines the island’s shape as the cheek, incorporating local staples like the Mini Moke, Pilatus, and regatta boats within the head of each piece. Each work embodies a moment shaped by both the subject and the environment in which it was created.
