Mad Art Gallery proudly presents Four Layers, work by Beth Jatcko, Nick Lang, Eric Nichols, and Curt von Diest. This show opens on Friday, June 18, 2010, from 7:00 p.m. until 11:00 p.m. and continues through July 26, 2010.
Beth Jatcko melds intense color and contrasting elements to form topographic landscapes that can be interpreted as either an inspection under the microscopic or a satellite view. The work explores life's minutia and our ability to step back and rediscover the aerial view. Beth's process starts with natural fibers that are hand-painted, then sewn and stuffed with a traditional sewing technique called Trapunto. She then carves relief shapes from high-density urethane, paints the surface to further create depth and constructs the forms into cohesion. A graduate of Southern Illinois University with a BFA in fiber arts, Beth has shown work in nationally juried shows in Washington D.C. and Denton,Texas, and is debuting the collective series publicly for the first time.
Nick Lang is a sculptor who works with a wide variety of materials and processes to convey personal narratives that explore incongruity, instinct and natural patterns. He relies on impulse and spontaneity to bring sculptural objects through a process of accretion. The results enable him to understand himself and reflect commonalities between humans. Nick received his MFA from Southern Illinois university Edwardsville, and has shown his work regionally and nationally, including large-scale public sculpture.
Eric R. Nichols, born in Bethesda, Maryland, spent his early childhood in Decatur, Illinois, and moved to St. Louis in 1985. He received his BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute and his MFA from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. As an educator, Eric has taught ceramics, sculpture, Design II, III and IV for St. Louis Community College. Eric also played a key role in the development of a shade shelter sculpture known as "Community Leaf" designed for the St. Louis Science Center during the 2007 St. Louis Art Works summer program. Eric has created and installed numerous public and private art commissions and has participated in national and international juried, group, and solo exhibitions. Eric was awarded an artist grant from the Kansas City Artist Coalition to study at the International ceramics studio in Kecskemet, Hungary. During his travels, a cultivation of new ideas and worldly views influenced his work. Eric was able to work with students from the University of West Hungary, Sopron, sharing artistic theory and practice. At the same time, Eric worked alongside Jim Leedy, an Internationally known, American Sculptor, along with educators and professional artists from around the world. Eric is currently living and working in the Benton Park area near the thriving Cherokee Arts District. His current work is mixed media on paper. Layering two and three-dimensional imagery, Eric utilizing transitions to create the composition. The imagery in his work is not planned, it is discovered through the layering process. It focuses on the continuity of spontaneity, control and chance.
Curt von Diest is a photographic artist who strives to uncover the simple beauty in subjects that the casual passer-by might consider ugly or boring. His work recalls the early history of the medium when photography was a laborious process only mastered by the most dedicated of practitioners. His process is a fusion of old-world craftsmanship and contemporary digital techniques. Curt earned a BA in Photography in 2002 from Webster University where he continues to teach as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Digital Photography.
