Visual Arts

The ARTery is a large Co-Op Gallery located in the Frontstreet Building #100 in downtown Dayton. They are excited to announce Bonnie Kuntz is their Highlighted Member Artist of the Month for March.  Kuntz is a painter at the ARTery Gallery who uses a variety of mediums to capture her images including watercolor, acrylics, mixed media, and occasionally pastels. 

The Gallery’s Visiting Artist of the Month is Sarah Wrona who is no stranger to Front Street having her own studio located in building 200 called the Glass Station. Wrona is not only a multi-talented artist who works in glass and alcohol inks, but she also creates jewelry, welded metal sculptures, found object sculptures and crocheted items. Sarah will have a selection of her fused glass dishes, jewelry, and crocheted scarves on display and for sale at the gallery this month.  Come meet both artists and see their finely executed body of work 1^st Friday, March 3^rd from 5-9pm, or 3^rd Sunday, March 19th from 12-4pm.

Bonnie Kuntz is an accomplished artist who also enjoys teaching painting classes at both the Rosewood Arts Center and the Miamisburg Community Center – in conjunction with Sinclair Community College.  Kuntz’ work is not only on display at The Artery Gallery, but her work is accepted into a variety of local juried shows throughout the year.  The artist is very active in the Miami Valley’s art community, The Contemporary, the Women’s Tri Art Society, and others who help promote art and artists in the area.

Years of raising horses have provided Kuntz with a common subject in many of her works, and her deep love for all animals, flowers and landscapes become the subject of most of her paintings.  The artist has enjoyed a successful artistic career over the years having won many awards in juried art shows. And, when not painting, the artist keeps herself strong and healthy pursuing her interest in eastern practices such as teaching Tai Chi Chuan and Chi Lel Qigong. She has a brown belt in Astarte Kempo Karate and is also a Healing Touch Practitioner and has completed a 30-month Shaman apprenticeship program. 

The Co-Op ARTery Gallery currently has 16 Artists and Artisans with work on display including Watercolor, Acrylic, and Oil Painting, Encaustic, Fine Art Photography, Photography, Mixed Media, Printmaking, Ceramics, Custom Jewelry, Hand Made Textiles and Sculpture with styles ranging from traditional to Contemporary. 

Article written by:  Melanie Morrett 

The ARTery at Front Street

Bldg. 100, Door B/C, 3rd Floor, Studio #3480

Hours:

First Friday, 5 pm – 9 pm
Third Sunday, 11 am – 4 pm

And Daily by Appointment.

*Current ARTery Artists include:  Fabienne Bee, Alison Bour, Rosalie Campbell, Samantha Farkas, Bob Farley, Charlene Fox, Jim Hayes, Mikee Huber, Bonnie Kuntz, Sarah Maxwell, Melanie Morrett, Ashley Simons, Ryan Taylor, Jo Anne Vincent, Leonard Williams, and David Zawisa.

The ARTery Gallery has a new Exhibit on display for April and May, “Colors of Spring”.  Please join us in welcoming a new Member Artist to our Co-Op Gallery, Charlene Fox, a truly lovely watercolorist who often incorporates cold wax and encaustic techniques into her work.  Our Visiting Artist this Month is Joanne Janetta, a local Photographer who loves to capture the beauty of Nature with the lens of her camera. 

They are introducing their Highlighted Artist of the Month, Samantha Farkas who is a very talented watercolor and ink artist whose work is not only creative and fun, but it is sure to make you smile.

“Primarily“ is one of Farkas’ newest paintings and a perfect example of one of her colorful, whimsical, and adorable bird paintings.  The birds are painted in a variety of shapes, colors, and orientations, and each one seems to have it’s own unique personality. We hope you will take time this month to come meet the artist in person and see her wonderful wall of work at the ARTery Gallery this First Friday in April from 5-9pm.

Samantha Farkas was encouraged from a very young age to follow her passion in the arts, with her late grandfather advising her to “travel the world, capture the perfect photo, and then paint it.” Samantha has indeed taken this wisdom to heart, travelling across North America, Japan, and Central Europe in pursuit of adventure and the perfect photo. Observing local flora and fauna, especially birds, provides her predominant artistic inspiration and satisfaction during her travel experiences. The birds and other wildlife of her Midwestern home are a perennial muse for her work as well. The artist captures the individuality and unique characteristics of each plant and animal, and incorporates the natural movement of wind, water, and wings into each line drawing and splash of color to call attention to the oft-overlooked details of the majestic creatures just in front of each of us, and of those awe-inspiring creatures hidden throughout the world. 

Farkas developed and refined her artistic focus during her undergraduate studies at Kentucky’s Morehead State University. She has displayed her work in a variety of mediums within galleries across Ohio and Northern Kentucky with regular appearances in Columbus, Cincinnati, and Dayton. She presently shares her abilities and insight as an art instructor at Raise Your Brush in Centerville, Ohio.  The artist is an Ohio native who has resided in Yellow Springs for the past decade.

(*Please note this month we will NOT be open 3^rd Sunday on Easter, but will open Sunday April 24^th).

The ARTery Gallery currently has Artists and Artisans with work on display including Watercolor, Acrylic, and Oil Painting, Digital art, Photography, Mixed Media, Printmaking, Ceramics, Jewelry, Fiber Art and Sculpture.

Open Each Month 1st Friday 5-9 & 3rd Sunday, 11-4.
1001 E. Second Street, Bldg. 100, Door B/C, 3rd Floor Dayton, OH 45402

Brian Mathus has a solo exhibition at Kettering’s Rosewood Gallery (2655 Olson Drive) March 14 through April 22. The show is called “The expectation of being seen.” An artist’s reception Saturday from 1-3 pm is open to the public.

To read more about Brian, check out this interview from Dayton Artists United:

DAU: OK, Brian Mathus, tell me about yourself.

BM—Well, let’s see. Fun fact. I’ve lived on both sides of the country. I lived in Virginia from the time I was 2 until I was 17, then I moved to Portland.

DAU–Portland Oregon?

BM: Yep. And it’s just like you imagine it. It’s where I found my peeps, people like me. It’s so creative there, and everybody is doing their own thing. They have this guy out there that rides a unicycle in a Darth Vader mask.

DAU—I’ve seen the video!

BM-I lived in Portland until I was 30, and then moved to Dayton.

DAU: Where you became an artist?

BM–I think I was always an artist. I just didn’t know how to be one. I made my first work when I was 17. It was a large-scale work called “crabs in a barrel.” I didn’t know how to stretch a canvas, so I just stapled it to the wall. I gessoed it and got gesso all over the floor. When it came time to take it down it was gessoed to the wall. It actually came off with pieces of the wall on the back. 

Years later I worked a frame shop and this woman who worked there help me stretch it into a frame. She complained the whole time about how “this wasn’t how you were supposed to do this.”

DAU—where is it now?

BM—I think it might be at my parents.

DAU—And you’ve been painting ever since? How many works do you think you’ve created?

BM—I don’t know. Over a 1000? I’ve started taking pictures of my work. I’ve sold some, maybe 70 pieces, that I never made a record of.

More of the interview here.