Kennedy Contemporary is celebrating the Grand Opening of the gallery in conjunction with Silver Lining, a solo exhibition with local artist, Elyse Katz. The exhibition will feature mixed media paintings, which will be on display beginning Thursday, June 3rd and closing on Sunday, June 20th. The gallery will be celebrating the exhibition with an opening reception Thursday, June 3rd from 4-7pm.
Since the shutdown in March 2020, Katz’s works have shifted from loose, colorful compositions to confined geometric abstractions. In response to the monotonous routines of the lockdown, Katz challenged herself to paint daily to provide a constant touchpoint as the pandemic progressed. Using found materials - such as vintage papers, text, and typography - Katz builds layers and segments her compositions. Drawn to the appearance of urban and rural landscapes as viewed from the air, she methodically sands away her surfaces to create a weathered composition that exposes the underlying layers. She removes layers, adds more, and tests the limits of the wood panel until the form reveals itself.
Coming to her art career later in life, Katz is a self-taught artist who began painting over two decades ago in response to a personal tragedy. Since first picking up a brush, Katz has committed to her practice by studying with renowned artists such as Nicholas Wilton, Pamela Caughey, and Krista Harris. She has gained recognition through representation with Kennedy Contemporary, and working with local interior designers to place her artworks in private collections around the world.
