All are invited to visit with artist JW Harrington at an Artist Reception on Sunday, September 15, 1–3 p.m., in the Chapel Gallery.  Harrington will open his exhibit, entitled “The Impossibility of Knowing,” and make a brief presentation about his work. Refreshments will be served.

Harrington produces figurative and abstract paintings using acrylic or oil paints and or oil/wax mixes. “The Impossibility of Knowing” refers to his use of line to mirror the main figures in a composition, intertwining and interacting with the solid figures in ways that suggest memory, desire, or dual existence. The exhibit includes portraits and self-portraits that highlight the joy and challenges of Black lives in the United States. 

“As a painter, my goal is to use color, composition, line and/or implicit allusion to get the casual viewer to engage with the work and their interpretations,“  explains Harrington. “Each of my series (of paintings) works toward that goal through a different set of visual elements. “ Harrington believes that what a painting looks and feels like to each viewer is much more important than anything he was thinking or wanted to evoke as he created the piece. 

Harrington is a long-time member of University Unitarian Church, though he and his partner John Burkhardt have been living and working in Tacoma for a number of years. He is a painter, trained baritone, and Professor Emeritus of Urban Studies at the University of Washington Tacoma. He was born in South Carolina, and educated at Harvard University and the University of Washington. He’s studied painting and drawing with Sandy Bricel Miller in Seattle. Harrington’s work has been shown in Seattle at the Red Ochre Studio, ARTS at King Street Station, the UW Tower, Gallery 110, and the 2017 and 2021 Artist Trust fundraising auctions; in Tacoma on the Tacoma Art Month studio tour, and at the Tahoma Center Gallery in Tacoma. The City of Tacoma has purchased two of his works through a juried competition. More information about his paintings and their availability may be found at his website jwharrington.com. 

The exhibit will hang from Sunday, September 15, through Friday, October 25, 2024.