Catherine Masters

Professional artist living and working in Nashville, Tennessee.

Catherine graduated with a BFA in Animation from California's Woodbury University before pursuing her MA in Museum Communications from Philadelphia's esteemed University of the Arts. She has worked as an art consultant and marketing associate for fine arts institutions across the United States, in addition to her work as a multi-faceted freelance artist.

Catherine's creative resume includes such notable (and diverse) projects as the illustration of 2010's NY Time's best-seller, The Day I Shot Cupid by Jennifer Love Hewitt, branding and web design for various celebrity online platforms, body paint and makeup artistry for television, film and print--including multiple seasons of America's Next Top Model, US Vogue, and Glamour Magazine--as well as myriad commissioned paintings, drawings and designs throughout the years.

Most recently, Catherine spent eight years as lead illustrator for the online print and jewelry company, A Family Print Shop. In addition to hand drawing all of the shop's classic silhouette portraits, Catherine marketed her original concept, the Sketched Silhouette™ while working with Essie Griffin, creator and previous owner of AFPS.

Artist Statement

My work is devoted to the language of portraiture—an exploration of presence through both unfinished sketch and silhouette. I am drawn to forms that suggest rather than declare, where the juxtaposition of energy and restraint invite the viewer into a dialogue with the subject.

The sketch, with its immediacy and vulnerability, reveals the act of looking in real time. The silhouette, distilled to line and edge, offers an alternate path: precision through absence, intimacy through reduction. In both approaches, likeness is secondary to resonance. Each portrait becomes less about replication and more about recognition—the fleeting sense that something essential has been seen and held.

While much of my work centers on the human face and figure, I am equally compelled by the broader idea of subject: how identity, memory, and presence manifest in forms beyond the body. Through fine art prints, I seek to preserve these moments of encounter, offering images that function as both record and reflection—artifacts of attention that remain deliberately unfinished, timeless, and alive.

Sketched Silhouette™ Commissions

The Sketched Silhouette™ is my modern and more detailed take on the classic black silhouette portrait of times gone by.

Using your photo as a guide, each Sketched Silhouette™ is created with multiple layers of monochromatic sketching, shading and detail. Every line is preserved in the final composition as a uniquely energetic portrait study.

The heirloom quality print of your custom sketch is carefully made using archival inks and 100% cotton rag fine art paper. Each print has a lightly textured matte finish for the perfect presentation of your original piece.

If you'd like to order a Sketched Silhouette™, let's chat HERE.

Sketched Figure Study Commissions

Catherine Masters began illustrating custom Sketched Figure Studies in 2020, as an extension of the original Sketched Silhouette™. These one-of-a-kind, truly custom pieces are hand-drawn in the same signature styling as the original. Created from photos of your favorite moments or memories, they are beautiful pieces to display alongside your Sketched Silhouette™.

If you'd like to order a Sketched Figure Study, let's chat HERE.

Black Silhouette Portrait Commissions

Catherine Masters worked as the sole illustrator of all classic and sketched custom portraits at A Family Print Shop from 2016-2024.

The company has since changed and, while I am no longer associated with the brand, I am honored to continue drawing your most precious loved ones. I have created thousands of silhouettes through the years, all drawn to meticulous detail, and it has given me so much joy.

The heirloom quality print of your custom silhouette is carefully made using archival inks and 100% cotton rag fine art paper. Each print has a lightly textured matte finish for the perfect presentation of your original piece.

If you'd like a Black Silhouette Portrait updated by me, let's chat HERE.

*Please note that while my artwork is still being used to promote A Family Print Shop, I am not creating new work for the brand and am not responsible for quality of product going out.*