Gallery Opening: The works of Tony Fitzpatrick & Kirk Kerndl

Primarily inspired by street culture in his native Chicago as well as children’s books, childhood encounters with Catholicism, superheroes, circus posters, field guides, politics, folk art, and tattoo designs (which often appear in his precise etchings), Fitzpatrick is a contemporary artist, actor, and writer whose early artistic career focused primarily on printmaking. In more recent years he turned to large-scale mixed media drawings, paintings and collages. The Park Art Center exhibit features Autumn Etchings, five-color etchings of earlier work, completed in 2001 and 2002, that have never been exhibited before, which may also be of interest to collectors as they illustrate the evolution of his work: “The Autumn Etchings were made in 2001 and 2002. I started them after 9/11 as a way of finding what was good in the world. I had also recently lost my Father and had a desire to be out among Nature. I spent a few weeks in Missoula, Montana and healed a bit. These etchings are a testament to the restorative power of the wild. They are about finding some peace in what surrounds us” – Tony Fitzpatrick.

Originally from Lombard, Tony Fitzpatrick is one of Chicago’s best-known artists whose work is exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. With nearly 200 prints at the Art Institute of Chicago, there are nearly as many prints by Fitzpatrick as by Rembrandt, Goya, and Picasso. Enjoying international success at the prime of his career, Fitzpatrick suggested Park Art Center pair his work with Kirk Kerndl, a landscape artist also from Lombard, whose work he admires. Describing Kirk as an amazing landscape artist and an undiscovered jewel, he feels strongly that local artists should have the opportunity to show their work: “I believe this exhibition and this Art Center are important. I mostly grew up out here and I can remember there was not much in the way of the Arts. Art is a salvation for some people. Especially me. Art is what righted me in life, a thing I could cling to; the Hammer and Nails I needed to navigate the world. I don’t think I was special in feeling this way. I think people need the outlet and catharsis of adding something beautiful to the world– or something truthful–or something necessarily disturbing. Art serves many purposes, but mostly we celebrate Art because Art celebrates life” – Tony Fitzpatrick.

Kirk Kerndl, a realist painter who lives and works in Lombard, Illinois, draws inspiration from the tranquility found in the Midwestern landscape. Kerndl is drawn to capturing the light and stillness in the landscapes he depicts, finding that the understated calmness of his work helps to provide a counterbalance to the chaos of everyday life. Paintings that are evocative of road trips through rural America, complete with farms, cows, large skies and a wide-open country feel, exude the calmness and peace found in nature. “I’ve always found that through my paintings I am able to find the peace and solitude that I sometimes struggle to find in everyday suburban life. My work attempts to capture the stillness and beauty of the Midwestern rural landscape.” – Kirk Kerndl.

Kerndl received a B.S. in Finance and Economics with a minor in Art from Elmhurst College in Illinois. His work has been shown at One Fine Art Gallery in Geneva, at Hinsdale Gallery in Hinsdale, and at North Central College’s Schoenherr Gallery in Naperville, Illinois. He has been the recipient of several awards at the Naperville Art League and the DuPage Art League.

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Park Art Center, a 501(c) 3 non-profit community art center devoted to fostering the appreciation and expression of the arts among diverse audiences and providing access to the arts for people of all ages and backgrounds through art education, exhibition, and collaborative projects.

Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed on Sunday and Monday. All events are free and open to the public. The event is sponsored by Country Financial.