When Kassi Renee talks about painting, her voice softens into a reverent rhythm, almost like she’s describing a sacred ritual. For her, poured acrylics aren’t just pigments flowing across a canvas, they’re an outpouring of self, of struggle, of healing. “Whenever I create, I’m better,” she says, simply. “I’m more productive, I see things differently. It’s become my outlet.”
Kassi has always had creative tendencies – dabbling in pottery, crafts, and projects like refinishing an antique dining table – but the path to her current body of work began in an unexpected way. After a period of personal upheaval, she turned to energy healing, sound baths, and meditation as part of her search for clarity.
During one of those sessions, she received what she describes as a message: to create at least once a week. At first, she wasn’t sure what that meant. Then, in December, she picked up paint and poured her first fifteen canvases. She gave them away to friends and family. “I had no idea what the heck I was even doing,” she admits with a laugh. But something clicked. The ritual stuck.
What began as a directive became a lifeline. “As much as the breakup was the beginning, I’ve also been diving into my past traumas, from my childhood to everything I’ve gone through. Painting became a healthy outlet. At first it was just healing, but now it’s part of who I am.”
Unlike many artists who plan, sketch, or outline, Kassi approaches her work intuitively. She enters a meditative state, often guided by music, and allows emotion to steer the colors. “When I’m really struggling, I’ll put on affirmations or spiritual music. If I’m sad, I turn on a playlist, pour the paint, and those feelings start to move through me.”
Each piece is timestamped in her memory. She journals about the day, later naming the canvas after her emotional state or insights from that entry. One of her most significant works, Disharmony, emerged during a time of deep conflict. “That one was when I was torn between what to do. The name came straight from my journal.”
The paintings, layered and fluid, change with light and perspective. For Kassi, that’s the point. “Depending on the light, you see something different. That’s life. It changes. My art is literally me poured out – it shifts just like emotions do.”
Since that first burst of inspiration, Kassi has completed more than sixty paintings. She admits that in the past she was someone who would start projects and let them fizzle. This time is different. “I never thought I’d consider myself an artist,” she reflects. “But this, this is me becoming my authentic self.”
The work is raw, personal, and cathartic. It’s also a mirror of resilience. She speaks candidly about surviving abuse, raising her son as a single mother, and losing herself in the cycle of caregiving and people-pleasing. Art became the vehicle through which she reclaimed her identity. “The hardest part was finally saying, ‘you know what, I need to change.’ Now, this is magical.”
At a recent Art All Night show in Pittsburgh, Kassi submitted her first public piece. She brought her grandmother, now 97 years old, to see it. The venue turned out to be inside what was once her grandmother’s godfather’s grocery store. “It was a full-circle moment,” Kassi says. “Meant to be.”
Legacy weighs heavily on her mind these days. She wants her son, now a teenager, to see that commitment matters more than perfection – that showing up for something you love is enough. She wants her grandmother to feel proud. And she wants to inspire others who might feel stuck or unseen.
“I hope my story can help people. Maybe one day I’ll turn my art and journals into a book. I want others to know that it’s okay to not be okay, but then you’ve got to pick yourself up off the floor and do something about it. That’s what this art is for me.”
Kassi is preparing to launch a website, build her Instagram presence, and explore collaborations. She’s open to commissions, though she admits they feel different: “When I’m painting for someone else, it’s not the same outlet. I need to be in my own headspace. But I’m open to opportunities – whatever door opens, I’ll walk through.”
“I never imagined this would be my life,” she says, smiling. “But when I paint, I don’t judge myself. I’m just doing. And that is the best feeling of all.”
Follow Kassi on Instagram
@kassireneekreations
