Kim Dorland (b. 1974) is a contemporary Canadian painter based in Toronto. He is best known for his depictions of densely forested landscapes, trailer parks, raucous parties, and zombies.

 

Dorland was born in Wainwright, Alberta and grew up in Red Deer, Alberta. He received his B.F.A from Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design in 1998 and completed his Master's of Fine Art at York University in 2003.

 

Dorland first gained attention with his paintings of suburbia which drew heavily on nostalgia from his days as a teen growing up in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada. These paintings of bush parties, fist fights and wooded areas on the edges of suburbia were characterized by fluorescent under-paintings and thick passages of impasto.

Dorland became known for the thickness of his paint, particularly in his dense portraits (primarily of his wife, Lori) where the paint is piled on so thick in places that he often had to use screws to secure it. He is also known for using multiple materials (traditional and non-traditional) on one surface, including oil paint, acrylic paint, spray paint, ink, phosphorescence, inkjet printing, screws, fur and paper.