Brush and Lathe Studios

"How would you communicate with someone who does not speak your language? You would gesture. You might use props to help. And when you finally manage to make yourself understood, you might exchange nods and smiles, with the satisfaction of knowing that you connected, if only momentarily. This is what I try to do through my paintings.

 

Painting feels like my native tongue. I paint to make social commentary, tell a joke, or start a conversation. In my still lifes, objects are my vocabulary and their arrangement on the canvas is my syntax. My figurative work speaks through gesture and body language. Through all my work, I seek out that nod or smile that affirms our connectedness."

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With no formal training in traditional painting techniques, Kaffee relies on her extensive experience in drawing and design and her inherent observational skills. She always paints from life, never from photographs, and seldom from imagination. Focusing on the nuances of colors, shapes, and relationships, she has developed a body of work that is stylistically distinct and thematically unexpected. Her work is held in private collections and has been exhibited at the following venues:

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• Members Juried 1, 2020

Concord Center for Visual Arts, Concord, MA

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• Winter Member Show, 2020

Maryland Federation of Art Juried Competition​

Circle Gallery, Annapolis, MD

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• "re/seeing HUMDRUM", 2019

Gallery Twist​​, Lexington, MA

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• 20th Annual Francis N. Roddy Open Competition, 2019

Concord Center for Visual Arts, Concord, MA                 

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• "Strokes of Genius", 2018

Maryland Federation of Art Annual Open Competition

Circle Gallery, Annapolis, MD

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• Co-op Gallery, 2018

Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, Annapolis, MD    

    

• "Remaking the World", 2016

Boston University Hillel Foundation, Boston, MA   

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• 15th Annual Francis N. Roddy Open Competition, 2015

Concord Center for Visual Arts, Concord, MA      

"For many years, my creative efforts were focused on 'flat board' work, i.e., furniture design and construction. While I derived great pleasure from producing fine joinery and handsome, functional pieces, I found the process limiting. On a whim, I purchased a used lathe and was immediately captivated. I love everything about the process of taking a piece of wood from a storm-felled tree and turning it into a functional or decorative object. Chainsawing a block of wood to discover and assess what it has to offer; mounting the piece on the lathe to take advantage of those characteristics; the lubrication of the cutting edge by the water in the wood; and the movement of my body as the tool shapes what the wood wants to be, are all captivating to me."

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Joe is a past president of Central New England Woodturners. He has taught woodturning at the Lincoln-Sudbury Adult Education program. His work is displayed in many homes and used by many families, across the country. He has exhibited at:

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• Arts Wayland Holiday Market, 2019

The W Gallery, Wayland, MA

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• Arts Wayland Members Salon, 2019

The W Gallery, Wayland, MA

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• Turning Wood: The Art of the Woodturner

2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 

Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, Boston, MA