“Paintings and Pictures: The Artistic Work of Chris O'Herron and Tom Kutz” at Canton Public Library

            For the months of July and August, Canton Public Library’s Gallery features the work of Chris O’Herron and Tom Kutz, two Canton artists who have studios in the Axe Factory.  The show will run from Thursday, July 5 through Friday, August 31.

            O’Herron, who grew up in Simsbury, draws upon the Connecticut landscape for inspiration, including the familiar tobacco fields and semi-rural settings near his home.  His landscapes are oil, and his portraits are oil or charcoal.  “With its subtle nuances, charcoal is an ideal medium for expressive portraiture,” said O’Herron.  His portraits of loved ones and family pets have become very popular commissions for him.

            Chris has donated his time and art to help raise money and awareness for the Junior League of Waterbury, Chip In For A Cure (a charity for Cancer research), "Shakespearience" (a non-profit educational group for kids), and several area churches.  He has also drawn a charcoal rendition of Simsbury’s famous “Pinchot Sycamore” which was included in – and later purchased from – the CT Department of Environmental Protection’s Art From CT Forests exhibit.  The traveling educational show featured 50 artists and craftpersons who created art using the material from one single CT Oak tree in order to promote forests and healthy

land management ideas.

            He has had solo shows in Connecticut at The McLean Home, Miss Porter’s School, FastFrame of Avon, and Gallery 101 Main in Collinsville.  He has exhibited paintings and portraits at the Maine Art Gallery in Kennebunkport, ME; the Beth Ellis Cove Gallery in Ogunquit, ME; Gallery On the Green in Canton, CT; Green

Trees Gallery in Northfield, MA; Autumn Light Studio & Gallery in Avon, CT; the Talcott Mountain Music Festival in Simsbury, CT; and the Simsbury, Farmington and Prosser (Bloomfield) Libraries in CT.   His work can always be found on the walls of Brookside Bagels, in Simsbury, and Rootz Hair Salon, in Collinsville.

            He graduated from Syracuse University in 2001 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in illustration.  Beyond the classroom experience, he had the opportunity to study and paint in Florence, Italy, in 2000.

            Tom Kutz was born in New York City and grew up on Long Island. “I have been taking pictures since I received my first camera at the age of 7,” said Kutz.   He attended Rochester Institute of Technology, graduating with a B.F.A. in Photo Illustration. “After college I traveled for a few years working on Cruise ships as a photographer. For the last 25 years I have worked as a commercial photographer photographing people, places and products.  My personal photos are based on a surreal reality.” Kutz has shown his work in galleries and shows throughout the last 30 years and has made Collinsville his home for the last 20 years.

            Said Kutz, “The photos that I create are usually based in a surreal point of view. I enjoy images that give the viewers a treat if they spend the time to look at them. Most of my pictures are very personal to me in one way or another. I tend to create art as an outlet for the daily stress of life. Sometimes the photos work, sometimes they don't, but  I enjoy using photography as my artistic medium.”

            Canton Public Library is at 40 Dyer Avenue, Canton.  Library hours are Monday-Thursday 10:00-8:00, and Friday 10:00-5:00 and Saturday 10:00-5:00 (through June  30) and 10:00-1:00 (from July 7 through August 25).  For information:  (860) 693-5800 or www.cantonpubliclibrary.org