Karen Kiefer, 39, of Kailua likes to use her art to shake things up.

In her series "Cabaret at Play," for example, she contrasts the romantic ideals of love with the perils of drug and alcohol addiction. She portrays Mother Mary as a drag queen and paints an otherwise elegant Madonna dropping a baby.

"My work pushes the edge of what's acceptable to society," said the artist and student of anthropology and psychology.

Her work is now on view in downtown Honolulu (details, below) and at www.karenkiefer.com.

We visited Kiefer in her Kailua studio to learn what’s behind her works.

KAREN KIEFER

Age: 39.

Neighborhood: Kailua.

Are you a full-time artist or do you have a supplemental job? "I teach art and do art for a living."

Where do you find inspiration? "I find my thoughts floating in the worlds of cultural anthropology, psychology, world events and where my personal experience fits in. I often think about pressing questions at play in my life, and what metaphors might be useful for exploration. Then I ponder how the work is just for me, and how the work might touch other people's experience of being alive. When I find a topic that feels fertile in both worlds, I get really excited about it."

What is your current medium? "I've been painting with oils as if they were watercolors, so that every layer of my process is visible, nothing hidden. It's very vulnerable and alive feeling, like surfing, in the moment."

What is your perception of the "job" of an artist? "I feel that my job is to pay attention to both my internal and external landscapes. I am truly committed to joy, not happiness. I like the idea of joy having the capacity to incorporate sorrow, whereas happiness is such a bucolic word that seems to be based on the abolition of things we don't like. As if the universe works that way! A plant that grows in stillness will not have a strong trunk. So you might say that I find my inspiration in the things that most people try to avoid."

What is it about your studio surroundings that inspires you to produce art? "I actually keep my studio tidy, organized, and devoid of any permanent interest as each work of art requires its own space to breathe. I don't want to predispose habits or patterns. The walls are white but the windows are huge, so that my beautiful garden and its shock of life keeps me company. ... And my dog Gerta, I love having her snoozing nearby."

What's your favorite hobby? "Open-ocean surf ski adventures. It's kind of a fringe sport, like the one-man canoe but without the training wheel. This has been a huge part of my life. I competed for years but now consider myself retired. Being able to get to know myself in the context of the power of the ocean has been very rewarding and humbling. I go out now with just a few like-minded friends to surf and stay in shape. Of course the best part is whale watching."

What is your favorite procrastination technique? "Housecleaning often is my way of clearing my mind before starting."

What medium do you see yourself using 10 years from now? "I wish that I could say that I haven't a clue, but my love affair with oil is so strong it's hard to imagine being with someone else."

Reach Paula Rath at paularath@aol.com.