Jeff Kowatch

"In all of my work, I strive to meet what I consider the three essential elements of art: materials, subject, and the unknown. The materials are the physical foundation; the subject is what can be seen, thought about, or spoken of; and the unknown is what cannot be explained — that silent, ineffable presence that gives a painting life beyond words. For me, that’s where true art begins. It’s something you can sense but not fully grasp — the same quality I find in the works of Rembrandt, Vermeer, or Bruce Nauman, who each move beyond depiction into mystery.

With 'Hey Stack,' the materials are straightforward — oil bar on aluminum — but what emerged reminded me of Monet’s 'Haystack"' series, where form and light dissolve into pure perception. There’s a warmth and stillness in it, a quiet echo of nature seen through time.

...the materials and subject are simply the gateways. What matters most — and what I hope the viewer feels — is that sense of the unknown that moves quietly beneath the surface."

~Jeff Kowatch