LITCHFIELD COUNTY TIMES

Litchfield County Times

By Jo Ann Jaacks

On a warm Fall afternoon, the Judy Black Park and Gardens Gallery hosted an opening reception for four well-known Litchfield Hills artists: Jen Abbott-Tillou, from Litchfield, and her quirky one-of-a-kind pieces based on found relics of nature; Nancy Lasar, of Washington, who has painting and printmaking studios; Polly Roberts, of Washington, who is also an interior decorator and website developer; and Katie Ré Scheidt, of Roxbury, who favors painting nudes.

Abbott-Tillou said “Much of the work that I create is somewhat autobiographical. Conflict and the juxtaposition of beauty and pain are prominent in my work — combining something clean and modern with something corroded and rusty; something functional with something fanciful. Many of my sculptures have an element of constriction, yet moving parts freely flow, unselfconsciously moving in grace.”

She noted that her art repurposes industrial materials, copper, driftwood, ostrich eggs and colorful found natural objects. The piece entitled “Pitchfork,” for example, is melded with a wind-worn narrow door she discovered in her parents’ backyard. Abbott-Tillou has been creating multimedia sculptures and mobiles for three decades. After a career in physical therapy, fitness and yoga, she is dedicated to her art that creates simple images imbued with personal meaning.