Kay King and John Back

Artist Bios

Kay King

After earning a degree in art education from Kurtztown State College, King continued her graduate studies at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, Trenton State College in New Jersey, Maryland Institute, the Institute at San Miguel de Allende in Mexico and Florence Academy of Art in Florence Italy. She has participated in juried exhibitions in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and had several solo and group exhibitions throughout those states and in Maine. Kay King has shown with us at the Lodge Gallery for over 15 years. We are thrilled to welcome the artist back for our Fall 2024 exhibit. King’s artistic process can be understood by the quote of the Persian poet Rumi:  “Let the beauty you love be what you do…”  The artist’s response to the natural world is visceral. She often paints her local surroundings in Buck’s County, Pennsylvania, but is also inspired by the landscapes of France and Italy. Primarily a plein air painter, King finds additional motivation once back in her studio where she reconsiders and experiments with color and applications. Both outside and inside observances become  invigorating and serendipitous.The above “Still Life with Cantaloupe” explores elements of cubism, with flat geometric shapes that also expand in fullness. Through swaths of light, dark and color, her lush, energetic brushstrokes contained within the vase of flowers dances on the picture plane with alongside the stillness of the cantaloupe and planter, the contrast creating a moving narration.

John Back

One of John Back’s collectors surprised him by describing the effect of living with his work: “Throughout the day, when I walk past these images they give me a feeling of confidence.” He still ponders that mysterious alchemy, yet it is no surprise that livingwith art alters our lives. The Lodge has a number of his photographs in their permanent collection, which you can relish as you pass through the corridor to your room! The photographer’s series of “Leaves and Sticks” come from “various parkland settings, from the island of Oahu to the Hudson Valley and the Catskills. At first glance,the subjects are natural things, like leaves and sticks, branches and glimpses of sky in a vivid palette of saturated color, altered by scale and focus, conveying a sense of motion and changing light. The images have the formal attributes of abstraction, with color and form of a unified structure. They capture memories in a form that the writer Michael Frayn has described as “vivid particulars” that create “hidden links.” The hidden links are what you bring to the picture when viewing it. Born in Wisconsin, Back has a BS in Art from the University of Wisconsin and a MFA in Photography from the Rhode Island School of Design. He has lived and worked in the New York City area since 1980 and currently lives in Barryville, New York. He has had solo exhibitions at the Perimeter Gallery, Chicago IL, at J. Walter Thompson, NYC, Burlington College, Pemberton NJ 1982, The Madison Art Center, Madison WI and a two person exhibit at DVAA Narrowsburg, New York. Commercially the artist has photographed primarily Fine Art, Architecture and Design related objects. Among his clients were Pace MacGill, Pace prints, Chuck Close, Alfred Leslie, and the architects Haines Lundberg Whaehler, Beyer Blinder Bell, and NextDes. The artist is included in public collections at The Center For Creative Photography;Tucson,AZ.: Bibliotechque Nationale; Paris,France: George Eastman House; Rochester,NY and the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art; Madison, Wi.