Acton Coffee House
Acton Coffee House 978.263.3700 actoncoffeehouse@verizon.net
Copyright William Ray 2013
Jonathan Smith and Cynthia Katz
Acton Coffee House is proud to present an art exhibit featuring the work of Jonathan Smith and Cynthia Katz, January 23-March 23, 2013. Their work is displayed at the coffee house during the normal coffee shop hours.
Smith is currently a teacher of Painting, Printmaking and Figure Drawing at Concord Academy. Katz was the Visual Arts Department Head for 10 years and teaches Photography at Concord Academy. Both have had their work featured at a number of exhibits.
“My work explores the fragility of life, and fleetingness of time beneath the surface of commonplace objects and experiences,” said Katz. “I pay particular attention to layers, textures, patterns and light, and the imprint they leave. My interest is in transition as I attempt to uncover constancy in a moment of simplicity. The new color work exhibited here is from an ongoing series entitled “Occupied”. These images look at the way humans intersect with the landscape, and the environment is shaped both by human interaction, and the resurgence of the natural world.”
“I have been enamored with maps, atlases, and Landsat photography since my childhood; the bulging basket of road, walking, cycling, and National Geographic maps in my studio is Exhibit A of this fascination,” said Smith. “The most recent series, The Look of Our Land, began several years ago when a friend gave me an out-of-print book of that name. It consists of numerous photomontage images of farmland in the Midwest United States. I scour these images, often with a magnifying glass, to find interesting compositions. Once these compositions make it to the painting surface, they are then layered with another composition from a different map source. As the work proceeds connections are made between the two (sometimes three) layered images. I work mostly with thin, transparent layers of color (glazes) to create a glass or jewel-like effect. Diagonals and curves cut through the patchwork of color as the foundation for the overall composition.”
“We are very excited to showcase the work of both of these artists,” said Hanka Ray, owner. "We hope that people who visit our coffee shop will find their art as thought provoking and engaging as we do."
