POSTER AND MERCHANDISE LINE TO BE UNVEILED IN JANUARY
December 12, 2024. Louisville, KY. – A Louisville artist who describes her paintings as a love letter to her home state will play a creative and colorful role in the 2025 Kentucky Derby Festival! Kim Perry has been selected as the Festival’s Official Poster Artist for the 2025 season. Perry’s design will be spotlighted on the Festival’s 2025 Official Merchandise Line, featuring everything from clothing and accessories to glassware, mugs and more. The Poster will be unveiled in January.
“Kim’s genuine love for Kentucky inspired us and we know she’ll be a great ambassador of the Kentucky Derby Festival as the Official Poster Artist,” said Matt Gibson, Kentucky Derby Festival President & CEO. “The Festival’s Official Poster Series is a tradition that has commemorated the fun and excitement of the Derby season for more than four decades. We look forward to sharing the 2025 collector’s piece with fans soon.”
A life-long Kentuckian, Perry didn’t pick up her first paintbrush until 2018. It was during a visit to a gallery in Kinsale, Ireland, that a painting by Irish artist, Roisin O’Farrell, caught her eye and sparked her passion for painting. After that trip, she spent two years taking online courses with Roisin and honing her technique. Now, nearly seven years later, she’s an impressionistic realism painter working primarily with oils and using a palette knife to add her own unique touch to her pieces.
“My paintings are a love letter to Kentucky – friendly, confident and inviting,” Perry said. “It is an incredible honor to be named the Poster Artist for the 2025 Derby Festival. This opportunity allows me to contribute to such a cherished event in a meaningful and lasting way. I love every aspect of the Derby Festival and getting to leave my lasting touch on it is so special to me.”
Perry is known for her original Kentucky-inspired pieces that showcase her enthusiasm for her home state, including bourbon, horse racing, landscapes and more. She has done live paintings at Buffalo Trace Distillery and is a juried member of Oil Painters of America and the Louisville Artisans Guild. For more information about Perry, visit KimPerryStuido.com.
Over the years, the Derby Festival’s Official Poster Series has become a unique symbol of the community. Peter Max’s expressionistic “Bluegrass Pegasus” launched the series in 1981, and a stylistic and geographical mix of artists have been showcased over the years. Fans can still purchase most of the previous artwork at KDF.org.
