Karen Kimmel was born in New Jersey and received her MFA/MA from the Tufts University/Museum School of Fine Arts in Boston, and her BA from the University of Vermont. She also studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology, New York and the San Francisco Art Institute. Her work has been exhibited at Mary Goldman, Los Angeles, CA; Sara Meltzer Gallery, New York and Elizabeth Olivera Gallery in Los Angeles, as well as numerous group exhibitions here and abroad.

She has created sculptural installations at The Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, Arizona, the Barbican Gallery, London; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, IL; and Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions. Karen’s work often involves performative collaborative processes. Most recently she was in collaborative residence at Creative Growth in Oakland, CA. In 2008, she designed a handbag for Fendi in honor of the 10th anniversary of the Fendi Baguette.