Student Spotlight: Caitlin Wiberg

Painter earning her A.F.A. in Art

Caitlin Wiberg, 24, of Red Wing, Minnesota, exhibited a number of her paintings at the Inver Hills Fine Art Gallery in April 2016. A 2010 graduate of Red Wing High School, Caitlin is earning an Associate of Fine Arts (A.F.A.) in Art at Inver Hills Community College. She’s on track to graduate from Inver in spring 2017 with plans to transfer to Minneapolis College of Art and Design or the University of Minnesota to continue her art studies. Her career goals are centered on becoming a professional digital artist.
Caitlin’s interest in mythology, sci-fi, fantasy and videogames has a strong influence on her artwork. She enjoys painting fantastical beings, including dragons, anthropomorphic entities and surreal animals. Some of her favorite subjects are her own pets, three rescue rats named Screwball, Cora and Dash.
“The subject matter of my art has more of an unrealistic nature,” Caitlin said, “with realism in style and painting thrown in. You can really see what I mean when you look at my rat paintings—the real-looking rats, but unreal colors and morphing background.”
The process of painting is relaxing for Caitlin. “I love how calm painting makes me,” she said. “I just tune into the motion of my brush. I would like to paint more landscapes; I always loved painting clouds and mountains in particular.”
Caitlin resides in Woodbury, Minnesota, with her parents and her brother, Caleb. She also has two other older siblings, Chris and Cari, who have made her an aunt six times over, with three children each. When she’s not painting or studying, Caitlin enjoys playing videogames, including World of Warcraft, Psychonauts, Soma and Lollipop Chainsaw.

“I’ve always wanted to be an artist. Even when I was a little girl, I would get in trouble in class for drawing instead of listening. It’s the act of creating something new that enthralls me. Creating art is like creating a window into a small undiscovered world, just waiting to be explored.” — Caitlin Wiberg
Caitlin Wiberg

You can learn more about Caitlin and her art by visiting her website, Caitlin Wiberg.

Caitlin Wiberg | 21 Answers

  1. Favorite season: Winter
  2. Favorite natural feature (e.g., waterfalls, oceans, mountains, etc.): Clouds
  3. Favorite sport or physical activity: Swimming
  4. Your national bird if you could have one: Hawk
  5. Place you would most like to visit: Ireland
  6. Favorite holiday: Halloween
  7. Your national mammal if you could have one: Rats
  8. Favorite actor or actress: Patrick Stewart
  9. Favorite band or performing artist: Mystery Skulls, daft punk
  10. Your personal motto if you had to have one: Working on one…
  11. Coolest thing in the world: That virtual reality is becoming a thing; VR is something I would like someday
  12. Scariest thing in the world: Playing horror videogames on an Oculus, but also sounds fun; ( I’m a thrill seeker)
  13. Favorite all-time TV show:  Sword Art Online (SAO)
  14. Favorite all-time movie: The Rocky Horror Picture Show
  15. One thing you most want to accomplish in life: Earn my bachelor’s degree
  16. Most precious material possession: My personal computer
  17. First thing you would buy if you won the $1.5 billion Powerball: I would first hire a lawyer, but my first material possession would be a fantastic gaming computer
  18. Dream occupation: Digital painter or illustrator
  19. Person you would most like to meet: Patrick Stewart
  20. Skill you would most like to learn and master: Digital art
  21. Favorite fine artist: Rob Kolomyski (her painting instructor at Inver)
To learn more about the A.F.A. in Art at Inver Hills, contact:

Rob Kolomyski
Art Faculty
651-450-3256
Office: Fine Arts 146

For more information about the Inver Hills Art Gallery, contact:

Joel Starkey
Gallery Curator and Coordinator
651-450-3101

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