Curt Kiwak will exhibit “Monsters Under the Bed,” works on paper, in the Fine Art Gallery of the Tucson Jewish Community Center, July 8-Sept. 6.
An artist’s reception will be held on Sunday, Aug.28 from 2-4 p.m.
Born in Chicago, Kiwak attended the Art Institute in Chicago. He moved to Tucson in the late 1970s to attend the University of Arizona, where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in the early ’80s, after having started out to study scientific illustration. His early work was inspired by the Chicago Imagists, who found artistic inspiration everywhere, including other types of artwork, comics, toys, advertisements, their families, theater, music and books.
After graduation, he joined the Central Arts Collective and remained an active member until 1990. Kiwak took a 15-year hiatus from the art community and in 2007 returned to studio work at the 9th Street Studio.
“I like to use my art to tell stories; thinking of the page that I work on as a mini-theatre,” says Kiwak. “When I sit down to do a drawing, I have no idea how it will turn out. … A lot of my drawings include images of things that reflect my childhood fears. Some symbols and subjects get repeated often: animals, water, monsters, prisoner of war camp images, and innocents in jeopardy.”
