"I have known since grade school that I would be an artist. How fortunate I was, therefore, to have Charles Breed as a mentor. He has encouraged and challenged me since middle school when I was in his art classes.

My sculpture also combines dissimilar found objects combined to form a cohesive whole. My previous work consisted of strange, humorous "people" constructed of wood, metal and plastic and joined with screws, rivets or solder. My recent work has moved toward the abstract but still utilizes found materials and cold joining techniques.

I can't remember a time in my life when I haven't been creating art. An artist's creativity changes as life changes but the creative process has provided focus for my more than fifty years of artistic experimentation. The creative process challenges my ability to problem solve; it is completely engaging and it gives me great pleasure and pain.

My main focus through graduate school and the 1980's was jewelry and metalsmithing. As I developed as an artist, my curiosity led me to explore a wide range of media including: printmaking, watercolor, acrylic, blacksmithing, basket making, paper making, wood working, plastics (receiving a Michigan Council for the Arts apprenticeship Grant to study with Charles Breed), found object sculpture, mixed media and collage. These explorations have provided me with a variety of useful tools and skills to apply to current and future work.

For the past several years, I have been creating collages and mixed media artwork. I love working with my collection of found objects, discovering relationships for incongruent materials and images. For me, the thrill is in the process of creating, of working with my hands and engaging my whole self in the process.

My collage pieces have ranged from improbable realism to pure abstraction all the while working with texture, line and color. I work intuitively, beginning each piece without a preconceived plan. The process is both compelling and intense. Each collage takes days to create, undergoing many transformations before completion; the end product bears little resemblance to the first incarnation."

Karen Gallup, 2012

Karen Gallup's work has been shown at Lawrence Street Gallery Flatlander Gallery, the Hudson Gallery, the Washington Street Gallery, the Ann Arbor Art Center, the Chelsea Art Center, the Midland Center for the Arts, Holland Arts Council, Art Center of Battle Creek and several venues with the Ann Arbor Women Artists.

Gallup has a BFA from Michigan State University and an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Metalsmithing. She taught Art Education at Delta College (University Center, MI), was a Professor of Jewelry and Metalsmithing at the College for Creative Studies (Detroit, MI), and an adjunct at Eastern Michigan University in Jewelry and Metalsmithing (Ypsilanti, MI). Over the years, she has studied papermaking, wood turning, basket making, jewelry, and metalwork at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Maine, and explored blacksmithing, welding, wood block printing, and paper lithography in other venues.

She is a member of the Michigan Silversmiths Guild, and the Ann Arbor Women Artists.

Born in Midland, Michigan, she lives in Ann Arbor with her husband, cat and dog.

EDUCATION:
-Michigan State University, BFA 1963
-Cranbrook Academy of Art, MFA 1967
-Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, 1966, 1967, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2009

EMPLOYMENT:
-College for Creative Studies, Detroit, Michigan: Professor and Section Chair, Jewelry & Metalsmithing, 1974 –1992
-Eastern Michigan University: Continuing Education Instructor, 1993-1995

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS:
-“Ann Arbor Women Artists at the Library”, November 2012
-“Small Works”, Riverside Arts Center, October 2012
-“From Our Perspective: National Women's Art Exhibition”, Oakland Community College, October 2012
-“Ann Arbor Art Center All Media Exhibition”, September 2012
-“AAWA Summer Show at the Riverside Art Center”, July 2012,”Award: First Place
-“Karen Gallup: Retrospective”, Riverside Art Center, Ypsilanti, MI,  June 2012
-“Michigan Fine Arts Competition,”BBAC May 2012
-“Gifts of Art, U of M,”University of Michigan, May 2012
-“Treasures, Textures and Objects”, U of M Rackham Graduate School,
September-December 2011
-“Great Lakes Small Works Exhibit”, Riverside Arts Center, October, 2011
-“AAWA Annual Summer Exhibit At Riverside Art Center, July, 2011, Award: Third Place (collage)
-“2011 Michigan Fine Arts Competition, Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center, April 2011
-“AAWA Spring Exhibit at the Library, April 2011
-“"The Green Show", The Janet Charach Gallery, West Bloomfield, MI, Sept. 2010
-“Water.Water.Everywhere”, AAWA at the Chelsea River Gallery, May 2010 Award: Second Place
-"Karen Gallup at the Lawrence Street Gallery", Ferndale, May 2010
-Ann Arbor Women Artists at the Library, March 2010
-"Will Build to Suit", Invitational, Riverside Arts Center. March 2010
-12th Annual Livonia Exhibition of Fine Arts, October. 2009
-Art Is Local Gallery, Group show, October. 2009
-"Disrupted Particulars", an exhibition by Karen Gallup and Benjamin Duke, Macomb College Art Gallery,October 2009
-"By All Means", Buckham Gallery, Flint, September 2009
-"The 2009 Annual All Media Exhibition", Ann Arbor Art Center, August 2009, Award: Second Place (sculpture)
-"Tiger in the Library - Collage by Karen Gallup", Mallets Creek Library, Ann Arbor, MI, June 2009
-"Objects", Michigan Silversmiths Guild, Ann Arbor, MI, May 2009
-AAWA Spring Exhibit, Ann Arbor District Library, March 2009
-AAWA Winter Exhibition, Michigan League, Ann Arbor, MI, January 2009, Award, Honorable Mention
-"Laughing Stock", Luke and Eloy Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA, November 2008
"11th Annual Livonia Exhibition of Fine Arts", Livonia, MI, September 2008
"The 2008 Annual All Media Exhibition", Ann Arbor Art Center, August 2008
-"Art at the Library - Karen Gallup and Joe Trzcinski", Brighton, MI, August 2008
-AAWA at Riverside Arts Center, Ypsilanti, MI, June 2008, Award: First Place
-AAWA Juried Spring Show, March 2008
-"People & Places", four person exhibit, Chelsea Center for the Arts, Nov. 2007
-AAWA Board at The Flint Institute of Art, January 2008
-AAWA at Gifts of Art, January 2008, Award: Second Place
-"The 44th Juried Fine Art Competition", Holland Art Center, Holland, MI, September 2007
-"27th Annual Michigan Artists Competition", Battle Creek, MI, June 2007. Award: Best 3-D Work
-AAWA at Riverside Arts Center, Ypsilanti, MI, June 2007
-"Karen Gallup", Flatlander Gallery, Blissfield, MI, May 2007
-Michigan Silversmiths Guild, "Jewelry + Objects", April 2007
-Ann Arbor Art Center "Members Only", juried exhibition, April 2007
-Ann Arbor Women Artists " Spring Juried Exhibit", March 2007
-"75th Anniversary All Media Exhibition", Detroit Artists Market, January 2007
-Recycled Friends: Found Object Assemblage Sculpture of Karen Gallup, Gifts of Art Ann Arbor, MI, October 2006
-"A Motley Affair", group show - invitational, Space 237, Toledo, Ohio, October 2006
-"46th Annual Greater Michigan Art Exhibition" Alden B. Dow Museum of Science and Art, September 2006
-"Paintings and People'' Bill Allen, Karen Gallup and Marcia Hales, Belstone Gallery, Traverse City, MI, Sept. 2006
-"Karen Gallup Sculpture" Little Gallery, Firelands College Bowling Green State University, August 2006
-"12 + 12", Washington Street Gallery, Ann Arbor, MI, June 2006
-"Art at the Library" Brighton, MI, Karen Gallup and John Mazurkiewicz, June 2006
-AAWA Summer Show at Eaglecrest, Ypsilanti, MI, July 2006
-"Transformations" invitational, Ann Arbor Art Center, June 2006
-AAWA Board at The Ann Arbor Art Center, March 2006
-AAWA Spring Juried Show, Ann Arbor District Library, March 2006
-AAWA Fall Juried Show. Gifts of Art, U of M Hospital, October 2005, Award: Second place
-"Face Value" Associated Artists of Winston-Salem, NC: October 2005
-"Our Town" Community House, Birmingham, MI: October 2005
-"2005 Greater Michigan Art Exhibition", Midland, MI: October 2005
-First Frontier Collage Society Annual Open Exhibition, Austin, Texas: September 2005
-"Gallup – Wolff – Eldean – Barkey", Ann Arbor Art Center Exhibition Gallery: July 2005
-AAWA at Ella Sharp Museum, Jackson, MI: June 2005
-"Lure of the Local", River Gallery, Chelsea, MI: June 2005
-AAWA Spring Juried Exhibit, Ann Arbor, MI: March 2005, Award: Honorable Mention
-"Wings, Tails, Hooves & Scales", OVMA, Columbus, Ohio: February 2005
-AAWA Autumn Exhibition 2004, Ann Arbor, MI: November Award: First Place
-"Greater Michigan Art Exhibition", Midland, MI: July 2004
-AAWA at Eaglecrest, Ypsilanti, MI: January 2004
-"2003 Greater Michigan Art Exhibition", Midland, MI: September 2003
-"CCAD-Artists Helping Artists", exhibition Ann Arbor Library: 2003
-"Ann Arbor Women Artists Fall Exhibition 2002", Gifts of Art, U of M Hospital
-"Jewelry and Objects", Michigan Silversmiths Guild at the Ann Arbor Art Center: May 2003
-"Views", invitational, Michigan Guild Gallery, Ann Arbor, MI: Dec. 2002
-" A Room of Your Own", Michigan Guild Gallery, Ann Arbor, MI: August 2002
-"A 2": Ann Arbor Art Center Invitational: July 2002
-"Metalworks", Gifts of Art, U of M Hospital: April - June 2002
-"New Gallery", Invitational, Ann Arbor Art Center: October 2001
-"WTC: Reactions", Michigan Guild Gallery, Ann Arbor: October 2001
-"Holiday Show", Washington Street Gallery, Ann Arbor: November 2000
-Menorah Invitational, Jewish Federation of Detroit: November 2000


SIGNIFICANT COMMISSIONS:
-Memorial Windows, First United Methodist Church, Midland, Michigan. 1966 to 2001, 166 windows

PROFESSIONAL:
-Co-chair Programs, Ann Arbor Women Artists: 2006 - 2010
-Co-chair Social Committee, Ann Arbor Women Artists: 2003 to 2006
-Vice President and Program Chair, Michigan Silversmiths Guild: 1991 to 2001

PUBLICATIONS:
-"Gallup Retrospective Runs the Gamut"Ann Arbor.com

WORK FEATURED IN:
-"Art Showcase" magazine May/June 2006
-"Windows to the Soul", book on the memorial windows of the First United Methodist Church, Midland Michigan, published by the Church, January 2005