Kim Hall-Testone is a contemporary acrylic still life and trompe l’oeil painter whose work focuses on happy and colorful dessert foods that evoke a sense of nostalgia. Her unique painting style combines her formal education with many years of self-taught technique.
In her newest work, Kim bakes and decorates whimsical real-life cookie and frosting models and then paints trompe l’oeil paintings of them. It is a very time-consuming process that results in a great deal of happy magic and illusion for the viewer.
“I’ve always loved art that makes someone stop, do a double-take, laugh or smile, and remember what it’s like to be a kid again, when things were new and surprising.
“It takes that moment of knowing that we don’t know everything and are still capable of being surprised and filled with delight to help us see the possibilities all around us. I think the world needs that right now.”
Kim holds a Bachelor’s degree in Studio Art with a concentration in Drawing from the University of Central Florida and a Master’s degree in Arts Administration from Savannah College of Art and Design. She is a former art magazine editor, as well as a former theme park caricature and silhouette artist. Today, her original paintings are represented by Hidell Brooks Gallery in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her fourth solo show, featuring large-scale ice cream cones and sundaes in October 2023, sold out. Her fifth solo show, which will feature the new trompe l’oeil Cookie Landscape paintings, will take place at Hidell Brooks in March 2026.
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