Bio

Katie O'Keefe is a Baltimore based Figurative Fiber Artist. From the age of 14 Katie has been dealing with Chronic Lyme and her experience with this illness has had a great impact on her creative work. Throughout her teenage years she studied drawing and painting at The Art Effect (previously known as the Mill Street Loft) in Poughkeepsie NY. When the Lyme temporarily limited her dexterity she shifted her practice to adapt; discovering the joys and sensuality of working with thread. She received her BFA in Fiber Arts from the Maryland Institute College of Art and studied textiles abroad in Turkey. While in New York she interned at Dieu Donné Papermill, where she learned the intricate processes of hand made paper. She is currently a resident artist of the City Arts live/work spaces in Station North, Baltimore, Maryland. Between 2020 and 2021 Katie was awarded the opportunity to study multiple small scale metal smithing techniques at the Baltimore Jewelry Center and in the Summer of 2023 she became their 1 Month Emerging Artist in Residence. During which, she focused on interconnecting the skilled crafts of Metal and Embroidery. In 2023 Katie was a Baker Artist Portfolio Semifinalist. Katie is a 2025 Outwin Finalist and has her work is currently displayed at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C.