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Arts / Galleries

Small Art Gets a Big Platform In The Woodlands — The Tiny Creations Of Katie Steck Highlight Strong Women

Ardest Gallery Makes Art Personal

BY // 02.03.25

Imagine creating art half the size of a credit card. A Houstonian since 2020, artist Katie Steck does just that with her newest collection, “The Strong Women,” which will be featured at Ardest Gallery in The Woodlands starting this Friday, February 7.  Each watercolor painting measures just two inches by two inches, and is painted with the naked eye.

A piece Steck entered in the Watercolor Art Society‘s 2024 show was the springboard for this mini collection.

“In line with wanting to see more strong and active women portrayed in art, I painted ‘Courage,’ which depicts a Greek-inspired figure confronting a tempest,” Steck tells PaperCity The Woodlands. “Although I love the soft and thoughtful depictions of women which are abundantly present in classical works, I’ve always wished to see greater representation of the more active and dynamic qualities women possess in abundant quantities — but are rarely painted. Such as strength, initiation of action and heroism.”

‘Courage’  won first place at the Watercolor Art Society of Houston’s April show and sold immediately. Ardest Gallery owner Julie Verville suggested Steck develop a small collection with this theme, and the “Strong Women” mini collection was born.

Ardest Strong Women Katie Steck
Although not part of the “Strong Women” collection, this piece won first place in the Watercolor Art Society’s April 2024 show, and sold immediately.

“As I thought more deeply about what strength means to me and how it shows up in the context of everyday women, I thought about extraordinary women throughout history who inspire me by their strength and courage,” Steck says. “A few themes surfaced as I reflected on these women, which became the foundation for each of the pieces in this mini collection.

“I am inspired by strong women who take the path less traveled (Trail Blazer), courageously rise to an urgent call (Responder), become fierce defenders of what they hold dear (Protector), tenaciously guide others in spite of barriers (Leader), and face their battles with skill and fortitude (Fighter).”

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Katie Steck’s Tiny Art Challenges

According to Katie Steck, many people think painting at a small size would be easier than a large piece since mistakes would be smaller and less noticeable. Perhaps surprisingly, the opposite is true.

“Imagine you are standing in front of a huge mural of a face that takes up the size of an entire wall,” Steck says. “If the artist painted one of the eyes just one centimeter off, you likely wouldn’t notice one bit. However, in a painting where the face is only one centimeter big, an eye that is even just one millimeter off is enough to turn the piece into a Picasso instead.

“So when working at this scale — especially when it comes to painting faces where the brain is excellent at noticing proportions — the tiniest missed brushstroke can have huge consequences that can be extremely challenging to correct.”

Steck’s foray into tiny art was the result of her desire to test her limits in painting.  The skill set it requires is very different that what she developed with larger paintings. Steck believes learning to face paint when she was 15 was the single biggest contributor to improving her painting skills. Surprisingly, face painting was a consistent teacher in color theory, water control, brush control and creative thinking.

In 2020, Steck, started dabbling in watercolor to learn additional techniques that would carry over into face painting techniques.

Steck doesn’t use any extra tools in the creation of her tiny art.

“Many people ask if I use a magnifying glass or other tool to help with the scale,” she says. “These were all done with the naked eye, as I’ve found that I don’t like the distortions created by the magnifying lens and how it generally gets in the way of my brushes.

“Luckily, I have good eyesight and have a relatively steady hand, likely due to working as a professional face painter before the pandemic. When your canvas is very wiggly (as kids tend to be), it teaches you to improve your aim.”

Another way Steck’s fine hand movements have been perfected is in her work in neuroscience. 

“I’ve also worked part time in neuroscience research as a technician and lab supervisor,” she notes. “In one of the research labs, I did fine dissections under a microscope and this gave me additional practice in very tiny hand movements I could then apply to painting on a tiny scale.”

The Power Of a Small Brush

How small does your brush have to be if your painting is four square inches?

“Brush dynamics are something many people don’t initially consider about tiny paintings,” Steck says. “Once you get to a fine enough brush point of a few hairs to paint with, often the watercolor will dry very quickly on those few bristles, so the water control can be challenging. If you get too much water on the bristles to prevent rapid drying, it can very easily bleed out into other areas of the painting

“The shape of the bristle ends also become very important in the tiny details as they dictate the stroke, and as the brush wears out you have to adapt much more readily to the changing shape of the brush than you would if that same brush were wearing out in a large painting.”

Ardest Strong Women Katie Steck
“Fighter” was initially inspired by a woman of incredible courage mentioned in an autobiographyncalled Dreams of Trespass by Fatima Mernissi, and is part of the Strong Women collection at Ardest Gallery. (Photo courtesy of Katie Steck)

Mixing watercolor paint is a delicate dance too.

“A relatively small drop of another color can vastly change the color ratios within the smaller mixes, so you have to approach color mixing with relative precision and intention,” Steck says. “Luckily, a small mix goes a very long way and it’s easy to mix enough paint for the coverage you need for the entire piece.”

A limited edition puzzle release of one of her pieces is in the works, with proceeds benefitting a local organization in The Woodlands area.

Curious about Katie Steck’s technique? Stop by Ardest Galllery this Saturday, February 8 from noon to 2 pm when Steck will demonstrate her unique skill and answers questions about her work.

Ardest Gallery is located at 25200 Grogan’s Park Drive in The Woodlands. Its regular hours are Wednesdays through Saturdays from 10 am to 2 pm.

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