Winter art storm: Canton Museum features ceramic animals, Ehret and Francis

Ed Balint, The Repository
·4 min read
The Canton Museum of Art recently opened four new winter exhibitions: "Thinking with Animals"; "Potion Park: The Kaleidoscopic Garden of Steve Ehret and Kat Francis"; "Right Place, Right Time: Paintings by Robert C. Jackson"; and "Color Wonder: From the CMA Collection."
The Canton Museum of Art recently opened four new winter exhibitions: "Thinking with Animals"; "Potion Park: The Kaleidoscopic Garden of Steve Ehret and Kat Francis"; "Right Place, Right Time: Paintings by Robert C. Jackson"; and "Color Wonder: From the CMA Collection."

CANTON − New exhibitions at the Canton Museum of Art showcase artistically precise ceramics, the vivid realism of a nationally showcased artist, and the wildly imaginative paintings of two local artists.

Opening last week, the winter exhibitions will be on display through March 5.

A free public reception will be 5 to 7 p.m. Dec. 2 at the art museum during First Friday activities in downtown Canton. Visitors will have an opportunity to meet exhibiting artists and receive a balloon animal from local artist "Jumpin' Jelly Bean," said Danielle Attar, the museum's marketing and events director.

Light hors d'oeuvres will be served, and a cash bar is available. Admission also will be free during extended hours from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Dec. 2 in conjunction with First Friday.

The Canton Museum of Art recently opened four new winter exhibitions: "Thinking with Animals"; "Potion Park: The Kaleidoscopic Garden of Steve Ehret and Kat Francis"; "Right Place, Right Time: Paintings by Robert C. Jackson"; and "Color Wonder: From the CMA Collection." The new exhibitions will be on display through March 5.
The Canton Museum of Art recently opened four new winter exhibitions: "Thinking with Animals"; "Potion Park: The Kaleidoscopic Garden of Steve Ehret and Kat Francis"; "Right Place, Right Time: Paintings by Robert C. Jackson"; and "Color Wonder: From the CMA Collection." The new exhibitions will be on display through March 5.

More:Artist couple: 'We both like making things'

What's new at the Canton Museum of Art?

New exhibitions include the ceramic works of more than 50 artists in "Thinking With Animals"; the "dream world" paintings and mixed media artwork of "Potion Park: The Kaleidoscopic Garden of Steve Ehret and Kat Francis"; and "Right Place, Right Time: Paintings by Robert Coleman Jackson," a contemporary still life artist whose work has been showcased in galleries and museums across the country, including at the Delaware Art Museum and South Dakota Art Museum, as well as in the homes of collectors worldwide and in various corporate collections.

Another showcase is "Color Wonder: From the CMA Collection," which features "some of the brightest and boldest examples" from the museum's collection, where viewers "learn to decode the messages that different colors send in art," the museum said in a news release.

The Canton Museum of Art opened four new winter exhibitions on Nov. 25, including this painting from "Potion Park: The Kaleidoscopic Garden of Steve Ehret and Kat Francis." Ehret and Francis are local artists.
The Canton Museum of Art opened four new winter exhibitions on Nov. 25, including this painting from "Potion Park: The Kaleidoscopic Garden of Steve Ehret and Kat Francis." Ehret and Francis are local artists.

More:'Very strange even by my standards.' Canton artists paint quirky images at Condado Tacos

Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. The museum is closed Mondays, as well as on Christmas, Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

Admission is free on Thursdays through a sponsorship by the PNC Foundation. The museum is at 1001 Market Ave. N.

Tickets are available at the museum during gallery hours. Admission is $8 for adults and $6 for senior citizens. Children 12 and under are admitted free. Blue Star families are admitted free with a valid ID. More ticket information is available at https://www.cantonart.org.

The museum can be reached at 330-453-7666.

The Canton Museum of Art opened four new winter exhibitions on Nov. 25, including this work from "Right Place, Right Time: Paintings by Robert Coleman Jackson." The new exhibitions will be on display through March 5.
The Canton Museum of Art opened four new winter exhibitions on Nov. 25, including this work from "Right Place, Right Time: Paintings by Robert Coleman Jackson." The new exhibitions will be on display through March 5.

Moss spreading on a tree, plants reaching toward the sun

Ehret and Francis' work is displayed in the Milligan Gallery.

Francis' art is "created by collage-like assemblage of realities, to portray memory, attitude on contemporary culture, personal experience and reflections on society," the museum said in a news release. Her work blends "urban landscape along with real life experiences."

Francis graduated with master of fine arts degrees from Columbus College of Art & Design and Ohio State University.

The Canton Museum of Art opened four new winter exhibitions last week, including this work from "Right Place, Right Time: Paintings by Robert Coleman Jackson." The new exhibitions will be on display through March 5.
The Canton Museum of Art opened four new winter exhibitions last week, including this work from "Right Place, Right Time: Paintings by Robert Coleman Jackson." The new exhibitions will be on display through March 5.

Ehret, a self-taught painter also known as "Monster Steve," is inspired by the natural world he sees during trail runs throughout the year.

"He makes careful observations of moss spreading over a fallen tree, or plants reaching towards the sun," the museum said, noting such experiences inspire the phantasmal settings of his paintings.

More:'There's only your art': Canton museum uses creativity to bond, heal, connect

Sculptures of prehistoric animals on display

"Thinking with Animals" features the creations of Taylor Robenalt, Ariel Bowman, Shelsea Dodd and many others.

The artists "are a diverse representation of gender identity, culture, backgrounds, and career stages," the museum said. The range of building techniques demonstrated includes slip casting, paper clay, solid building, hollow building, wheel throwing and mixed media.

The Canton Museum of Art recently opened its four new winter exhibitions, including this painting from "Potion Park: The Kaleidoscopic Garden of Steve Ehret and Kat Francis." Ehret and Francis are local artists.
The Canton Museum of Art recently opened its four new winter exhibitions, including this painting from "Potion Park: The Kaleidoscopic Garden of Steve Ehret and Kat Francis." Ehret and Francis are local artists.

Ceramic pieces are an example of how animal symbolism provides a "universally understood way to examine ideas that may be difficult to discuss or understand in any other form."

In 2020, the Canton Museum of Art hosted Robenalt’s solo exhibition, "Symbolic Narrative." Bowman creates sculptures of prehistoric animals.

"My work uses reflective nostalgia to present the animals in my own fantasy of an imagined place and time," Bowman writes on her website.

The work of local artists Steve Ehret and Kat Francis is on display in a new exhibit at the Canton Museum of Art.
The work of local artists Steve Ehret and Kat Francis is on display in a new exhibit at the Canton Museum of Art.

Balloon dogs, food, toys, assorted props inspire art

Jackson worked as an electrical engineer for Motorola and then as an assistant pastor before working full-time as an artist.

He also authored the 2014 publication “Behind the Easel,” which explores the unique voices of 20 contemporary representational painters.

Jackson's work is both comedy and drama through realism in bright colors and an amusing narrative, the museum explained. Painting subjects include balloon dogs, food, toys, books and assorted props.

Reach Ed at 330-580-8315 and ebalint@gannett.com. On Twitter: @ebalintREP.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: New Canton art: ceramic animals, Kat and 'Monster Steve,' still life