The Community Foundation of Louisville, in partnership with Louisville Visual Art, is pleased to announce that Louisville-based multi-media artist KCJ Szwedzinski is the winner of the sixth annual Mary Alice Hadley Prize for Visual Art. The $5,000 award is an opportunity for local artists to enhance their careers through a targeted enrichment experience of their own design.

Szwedzinki’s submission outlines a series of research trips, “designed to synthesize seemingly disparate bodies of knowledge (and) archival practices for historical information and my personal inherited legacies.” Her intention is to, “broaden my ability to make work that is rooted in my own Judaic heritage, while facilitating engagement of a more universal audience.” Her itinerary is:

· Seven days in San Francisco to visit the Jewish Contemporary Museum and The Holocaust Center.

· Fourteen days in Washington DC and Philadelphia to visit the United Sates Holocaust Memorial Museum and Archives (DC) and to take a six-day course, entitled “The History of Artists’ Books since 1950”, at the Rare Book School (Philadelphia).

· Three days at the Genealogy Center in Fort Wayne Indiana

"The Klezmer Step | Glass Study" by KCJ Szwedzinski, Enamel on glass, 22x22in, 2018 — **"The Klezmer Step | Glass Study" by KCJ Szwedzinski**, Enamel on glass, 22x22in, 2018

Memory is a central preoccupation of art in the early years of the 21st century. Perhaps it is the turning of the century, or perhaps it is because we can now look further into our immediate past than earlier periods. The last 100 or more years have allowed a continuum of understanding and a voracious appetite for ongoing social narrative that is endlessly fed by digital technology. That continuum is important to Szwedzinski:

“Every time a story is retold it takes on a new life,” she states. “Simultaneously preventing that information from being lost to history while slowly transforming into something new altogether. These mechanisms for transmission slowly shape collective memory across time and ultimately have a huge hand in shaping personal identity. These are the tools and teachers of belief and belonging. My work reflects on belonging, displacement, and the shifting nature of narrative across time and considers the intersection of art, belief, ethics, and atrocity.”

“Printmaking, glassblowing, and kiln forming are the main processes I use in my
work. Although producing very different visual results, print and glass have
historically played a large role in the documentation of history and the passing on
of stories. From the printing press to the spreading of political propaganda,
printmaking has always disseminated information to multiple people. Glass as a
material often goes unacknowledged but plays a huge role in informing our
experience of the world, whether its creating barriers to keep us safely in or to
isolate information and objects within a museum or archive setting. I particularly
find it interesting that glass and printmaking have been silent, but active,
witnesses throughout history and as an artist concerned with legacy, these
processes both present rich and dynamic stories that support the concepts I
choose to work with.”

Szwedzinski will be interning at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma Washington for the months of July and most of August.

Louisville Visual Art will honor KCJ Szwedzinski on Thursday, June 21, from 5:30-7:00 p.m. in their Portland gallery at 1538 Lytle Street, 40203. The reception is free and open to the public.

"Woven Debka and Klezmer Step" by KCJ Szwedzinski, Graphite on stonehenge, 50x38in, 2018 — **"Woven Debka and Klezmer Step" by KCJ Szwedzinski**, Graphite on stonehenge, 50x38in, 2018

Recent exhibitions (2018):

· Doors: A Collaborative Book Project, University of Louisville, KY

· Blue Grass Bienniel: A Juried Exhibition of Kentucky Artists, Claypool-Young Art Gallery, Morehead, KY

· Glass Art Society International Online Student Exhibition

· Freeze State: Disassociating From the Here and Now, print exchange and exhibition (co-curator),
Louisville, KY (upcoming)

· It’s Your World: Art About the Future of Community, 1619 Flux: Art + Activism, Louisville, KY (Juried)

· What’s the Theme?, OPEN Community Arts Center, Louisville, KY (Group Show)

· OH + 5: Ohio Border 10th Biennial, Dairy Barn Arts Center, Athens, OH (Juried)

Hometown: Jacksonville Florida
Education: MFA candidate. University of Louisville, Louisville, KY (expected May 2019); BA cum laude, Art History and Printmaking, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, FL, 2009
Website: www.kcjszwedzinski.com

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"Coincidence of Opposites I" by KCJ Szwedzinski, Stonehenge paper, steel, 11x15x9in, 2018 — **"Coincidence of Opposites I" by KCJ Szwedzinski,** Stonehenge paper, steel, 11x15x9in, 2018

"Coincidence of Opposites II" by KCJ Szwedzinski, Stonehenge paper, steel, 11x15x9in, 2018 — **"Coincidence of Opposites II" by KCJ Szwedzinski,** Stonehenge paper, steel, 11x15x9in, 2018

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Photography

Vignette: Mark Lenn Johnson

Josh Jenkins · April 11, 2017

"Lesedi" by Mark Lenn Johnson, multiple sizes available, photography (2017), price varies — *"Lesedi" by* *Mark Lenn Johnson, multiple sizes available, photography (2017), price varies*

Artist, Mark Lenn Johnson — *Artist,* *Mark Lenn Johnson*

Mark Lenn Johnson’s Fountainfalls series are photographs of drops of water impacting onto a liquid surface with startling drama and beauty. The extreme close-ups show us something we don’t see every day, and the highly reflective dispersal patterns shot through with intense color look more like glass than water. As Johnson is also a glass artist, this makes sense.

“All of my work, whether it is in glass, creative photography or abstract painting, is the physical manifestation of my intrigue, my captivation, my obsession with color,” explains the artist. “I see my glassmaking process as being much more rigid, orderly, patient and well defined while my painting, in all of its abstract audaciousness, requires a much less systematic and structured approach. My creative photography harnesses aspects from both of these processes. In its own right being systematic and methodical while, at the same time, yielding a completely random, arbitrary and ungovernable outcome. All three, however, are equally important to me and equally necessary and contribute to an all-important sense of balance in my life. Ultimately, I aspire to create art that stirs viewers to a deeply emotional response, even if it's only subconscious – a fitting acknowledgment to work that I hope is considered beautiful by everyone while at the same time being significant to the individual.”

"Cia" by Mark Lenn Johnson, multiple sizes available, photography (2017), price varies — *"Cia" by* *Mark Lenn Johnson, multiple sizes available, photography (2017), price varies*

Several images from Johnson’s Fountainfalls Creative Photography Series were added to the permanent collection of Eastern Kentucky University's Library System and placed for display at the John Grant Crabbe Main Library. He is represented in Louisville by Kore Gallery at Mellwood Art Center, where his most recent solo art exhibit, "Nothing But Color!!!" was held in December 2016.

"Masika" by Mark Lenn Johnson, multiple sizes available, photography (2016), price varies — *"Masika" by* *Mark Lenn Johnson, multiple sizes available, photography (2016), price varies*

Johnson is being honored by Art Tour International Magazine as one of its Top 60 Contemporary Artists of the Year, in an Award Ceremony to be held in Florence, Italy on May 27, 2017.

Hometown: Lexington, Kentucky
Age: 49
Education: B.S., Mathematics - University of KY, Glassmaking instructional classes with Laura Hallock (Hallock's Stained Glass, Lexington) and Brook White, Jr. (Flame Run, Louisville), Photography instructional classes with John Snell (John Snell Photography, Lexington)
Website: Marklennjohnson.com
Facebook: Facebook.com/MarkLennJohnson
Instagram: Instagram.com/MarkLennJohnson

"Dayo" by Mark Lenn Johnson, multiple sizes available, photography (2016), price varies

"Fontana" by Mark Lenn Johnson, multiple sizes available, photography (2017), price varies — *"Fontana" by* *Mark Lenn Johnson, multiple sizes available, photography (2017), price varies*

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Mixed Media

Vignette: Steve Heine

Josh Jenkins · December 23, 2016

“Sweet Camille’s Halo” by Steve Heine, 18x18x2in, laser-cut steel, blue handblown sheet glass, poplar, one of a series of “Cloud Panels” (2015), $2700 | BUY NOW — *“Sweet Camille’s Halo” by Steve Heine, 18x18x2in, laser-cut steel, blue handblown sheet glass, poplar, one of a series of “Cloud Panels” (2015), $2700 | BUY NOW*

Steve Heine is the owner of Cranium Glass in Louisville, Kentucky, where he is also the chief designer. Although trained as an architect, his work is primarily commissioned art glass for individual and corporate clients.

“Stained glass—composed of glass, paint and metal [lead]—is the prototypical architectural glass form. Currently, I’m working on a fresh approach to architectural glass using these same materials—hand blown sheet glass, paint [stark white metal primer] and metal [laser-cut steel]. My “Cloud Panels” [like stained glass] are designed to be illuminated by the sun. I’m particularly fascinated by the wash of color across steel. I’m working primarily with blue, violet, amber or green hand blown sheet glass for each of my “Cloud Panels”.

“I’m trying to transition to some smaller pieces and gallery sales. However, the high cost of my materials creates a bit of a dilemma for me. So, I’m trying to sell these new "Cloud Panels" by way of a concept drawing and a paper study model [8” x 8”] and images of past, completed pieces. Once a concept is commissioned, I can then make the piece in my studio.”

“Lucent Cloud” (concept drawing on left) by Steve Heine, 18x18x2in, laser-cut steel, blue handblown sheet glass, poplar, one of a series of “Cloud Panels” (2016), $2700 | BUY NOW — *“Lucent Cloud” (concept drawing on left) by Steve Heine, 18x18x2in, laser-cut steel, blue handblown sheet glass, poplar, one of a series of “Cloud Panels” (2016), $2700 | BUY NOW*

Of course the final glass version is what both artist and viewer are drawn to, yet the minimalist clarity of Heine’s paper models is notable, a clean, simple aesthetic with an appeal all its own. While we envision an artist’s preparation as furiously scribbling on a pad, hands dirty with charcoal or chalk, the architect’s approach is on display here; the merging of the artist’s creativity with the practical functionality of an engineer.

“Buoyancy” by Steve Heine, paper study model (2016) | Available for Commission — *“Buoyancy” by Steve Heine, paper study model (2016) | A vailable for Commission*

During 2016, Heine’s work was accepted in three juried exhibitions:

•Louisville Visual Art & University of Louisville’s Hite Institute’s Open Studio Weekend Exhibition, juried exhibition, Cressman Center for the Visual Arts, Louisville, KY
• Gathering: Contemporary Glass from the Heartland, juried exhibition “featuring the best of emerging and established glass artists from Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Wisconsin—the heartland of America”, Muncie, IN
• Merit Award in Bluegrass Biennial: A Kentucky Juried Exhibition, Morehead, KY

Heine is now a member of PYRO Gallery in Louisville, and will be featured in the PYRO New Members Show, January 5 through February 11, 2017.

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Age: 55
Education: BA, Architecture, University of Kentucky, 1996;
Website: http://www.craniumglass.squarespace.com/

“For My Brother, Gary, Who Is Much Older Than Me” by Steve Heine, 7x5(d) in, cast glass [lost-wax process], lathe-turned Kentucky black walnut. The wax positive for the glass was slowly turned by hand on a wood lathe. One of a series of “Wood Lathe … — “For My Brother, Gary, Who Is Much Older Than Me” by Steve Heine, 7x5(d) in, cast glass [lost-wax process], lathe-turned Kentucky black walnut. The wax positive for the glass was slowly turned by hand on a wood lathe. One of a series of “Wood Lathe Vessels”, NFS

*A wax model for one of Steve Heine's “Wood Lathe Vessels”*

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Photography

Curatorial Spotlight: culturALLandscape

Josh Jenkins · September 27, 2016

"Art is part and parcel of a cumulative and collective enterprise, viewed as seen fit by the prevailing culture. It isn’t just the result of an unencumbered creative act. Everything that is seen and understood is part of a work and art is always a collaboration with all that came before you, that co-exists with you, and that comes after you." — Louise Lawler

Sarah Lyon, Steven Irwin, 2006, Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in — Sarah Lyon, **Steven Irwin**, 2006, Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in

Tom LeGoff, Matt, 2013, Inkjet Print — Tom LeGoff, **Matt**, 2013, Inkjet Print

The intersection of a geographic location and the culture it sustains is marked by how a physical place both supports and is reciprocally shaped by human involvement. Cultural landscape refers to the coalescence of a place with the people who inhabit it and encompasses works of art, narratives of culture, and expressions of regional identity tied to that specific place. Surveying the social and artistic topography of a place reveals aspects of its origins and development, as well as the interconnectivity of the relationships between the physical location, society and its structures.

The provenance of Louisville’s current cultural landscape can be accessed through the juxtaposition and alignment of the work of two photographers living and working in the city– one native and the other a recent transplant. The accompanying artworks unearth narratives about the area’s human geography- how a place and the people that produce creative output in that place serve as the bedrock of its vernacular landscape. The portraits shown here depict individuals who contribute to and enrich the area’s cultural terroir- affirming that the creative outpouring that takes place here is unique and incapable of being reproduced elsewhere. The individuals represented here may be preceded by their reputation. They may perhaps be more easily identifiable by the fruits of their creative labor - the artwork they create, music they produce, or performances they direct- than by their names or faces alone. But portrayed in and through their most valued environments, the resulting images reveal the virtues of the person depicted in equal measure with the backdrop against which they are situated.

Sarah Lyon, Natalie Sud, 2008, Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in — Sarah Lyon, **Natalie Sud**, 2008, Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in

Sarah Lyon originally viewed her photographic practice as a means through which she could experience her native city, as though she were an outsider exploring it for the first time. She began translating her personal relationships and experiences into an alternative way of mapping the city and its human and geographic landmarks. Out of this practice grew a portrait series that allows Lyon to become better acquainted with those who accompany her on these explorations, synthesizing them with their own personal environments.

The people with whom Lyon re-discovers her city are the figures who appear in her photographs. Consistently situated within a wide visual plane, the space and distance afforded to the figures facilitates an unimposing co- existence between the subject and the viewer. Allowing the viewer to soak in the totality of situational factors that shape the subject’s identity. Lyon’s photographs convey a sense of rootedness, giving prevalence to place and obscuring the distinction between whether the subject’s identity is informed by the impact they have on their locale, or the impact their locale has on them.

Tom LeGoff, Chris, 2015, Inkjet Print — Tom LeGoff, **Chris**, 2015, Inkjet Print

Tom LeGoff approaches his subjects as a self-proclaimed outsider, his portraits less burdened with history and interpretation. After re-locating to the area four years ago, he familiarized himself with the city by considering those who prominently occupy the landscape. LeGoff’s work magnifies the inherently ‘other’ quality that inevitably accompanies notoriety, imbuing his photographs with an elevated sense of intrigue as he casts his subjects in various roles, as though they were characters in a film noir. Yet, these oft-solicited and dramatized relationships still subtly convey reality. LeGoff intently concerns himself with the parts his subjects play in the locale he shares with them. Without pretense of familiarity, he offers viewers delicate contextual clues from which to deduce their identity, as illustrated in is his photograph, Chris (2015).

This image shows the portrait of an artist who uses the scale of her own body as the guiding principle in the production of her artwork. Using materials such as shards of glass and airy mesh boxes as representations of her own weight and volume, she examines how those constructed representations relate to and react with the environment around them. Photographed near her studio in the Portland neighborhood, LeGoff poses Chris standing at centurion attention. LeGoff references Chris’ own artistic study, arranging the composition so that her figure occupies the same amount of visual space in the composition as the first column in the row of interstate pylons receding into the horizon, reinforcing the relationship between her form and the environment in which her form exists.

Sarah Lyon, Jason Willar, 2005,  Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in — Sarah Lyon, ***Jason Willar***, 2005, Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in

Though examined from different vantage points, Lyon and LeGoff both identify the terroir that characterizes the unique cultural landscape within which they have personally and professionally entrenched themselves. By documenting their creative counterparts, not merely as an act of preservation, but as a means of acknowledging and propagating the artistic talent with which they co-exist, both Lyon and LeGoff participate in a camaraderie that nurtures a thriving creative ecology that is cross- pollinated by both ‘insiders’ and ‘outsiders’.

Tom LeGoff, Dean, 2013,  Inkjet Print — Tom LeGoff, **Dean**, 2013, Inkjet Print

Sarah Lyon, Kirby Coleman, 2005, Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in — Sarah Lyon, **Kirby Coleman**, 2005, Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in

Tom LeGoff, Mo, 2014, Inkjet Print — Tom LeGoff, Mo, 2014, Inkjet Print

Sarah Lyon, Mitchell and Matthew Barney, 2004, Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in — Sarah Lyon, **Mitchell and Matthew Barney**, 2004, Archival Pigment Print, 40x40in

Tom LeGoff, Dario, 2015, Inkjet Print — Tom LeGoff, **Dario**, 2015, Inkjet Print

To contact these artists or to see more of their work, please visit
www.sarahlyon.com or www.tomlegoff.com

This Curatorial Spotlight was written by Jessica Bennett Kincaid.
Jessica Bennett Kincaid is currently the Exhibitions Assistant at the University of Louisville Hite Art Institute. Her curated exhibitions include “Hugh Haynie: The Art of Opinion” at the Frazier History Museum, "All of Bob Lockhart" at Louisville Visual Art’s Public Gallery, and most recently, “Joshua Watts- Resonant Disclosures at the Cressman Center for Visual Arts. She studied at the University of Louisville Hite Art Institute, University of Kentucky, Institut Catholique de Paris, and Santa Reparata International School of Art.