Emphasizing Accessibility

“Look, but don’t touch.” It’s the rule of thumb when you’re in a gallery or a museum.

If you’ve ever been that daring individual that reaches over the rope to fondle a piece of artwork then you’ve likely suffered the wrath of security guards, shrill alarm systems and looks of disbelief from fellow patrons.

While Jamaica Plain artist Anna Koon probably doesn’t relish the thought of viewers indulging in any heavy petting with her work, she’s dispensed with the ‘don’t touch’ taboo.

Koon produces mixed-media pieces that incorporate various combinations of drawing, painting, photography and found objects (the photographs sometimes also fall into this category) that she sees as having some relationship to one another.  Once satisfactorily assembled, she shellacs the whole kit and caboodle.

“Early on I noted that viewers enjoy touching my paintings, so the shellac protects the artwork while allowing the viewer to interact with the art,” she said in her artist’s statement for her month-long exhibit at the , which is just underway this week.

Koon’s work begs to be touched likely because of its curious, varied texture(s). The shellac eternally binds the various elements together, resulting in a timeless quality that Koon believes is essential to the validity of her work… and everyone else’s.

“I think any creative output, in any medium, must be timeless to be successful,” she said in our recent interview. “Think of music: the songs that last only a few weeks on the pop charts are not timeless, the ones that are played over 20 years later are.” Point taken… Ke$ha anyone?

Allowing onlookers to physically interact with her artwork is just one way in which Koon has made room for her audience. Another is by exercising some mindfulness about being unnecessarily offensive.  While many have turned to shock in order to stand apart in this era of radical desensitization, Koon says lately she values restraint.

“I find these days I’m making choices to steer clear of controversy,” she said. “For example I have a new painting in the Hallway Gallery’s heART show this month.  Initially I was planning to add a sinister component to the piece, but then I thought, 'why?  Why can’t it just be about love, plain and simple?'  So I went in that direction instead.”

But back in the mid-'90s, her “Women on Wood” series really stirred the pot. Koon says she believes that art retains an inescapable gender-viewpoint dictated by its creator rather than the subject; sometimes that in itself can elicit a visceral reaction from folks on the receiving end.

“Frankly, the pieces that tend to fuel the most ire are to me the most innocent,” she mused. “It’s always flattering when something you have created sparks a decisive response, and I’ve had people yell at me about my work, yes… but when that happens I realize I’ve chipped into a part of them they haven’t yet dealt with, so the process of their reaction is potentially cathartic.”

Koon’s exhibit at the library this month is loosely titled “Retro Girls,” a series of works on paper, salvaged wood and stretched canvas. It’s been in development since 2004 and, although it’s taken many different turns over the years, she says at its core, it depicts women, “…living in a gritty, urban landscape.” There will be some work from previous exhibits mixed in as well.

Due to her ability to move between (and often combine) different mediums, she’s very rarely out of ideas -- versatility keeps her busy. For example, in addition to her visual art, Koon has written two full-length feature scripts (curiously, from a male perspective).

“I find if I’m painting frequently, I’m inspired more,” she said. “However, there are times when I’m tapped out, and when that happens, the work suffers. What I find is if I’m tired of one medium I can go to the next to gain energy for the former.  My creative outlets all feed into each other.  I’ll literally be doing a photo shoot and think, 'Wow, that would make a great story or I should paint that.' Right now I’m developing a new series that incorporates all three: the writing, the photography, and the painting.”

Anna Koon’s work is on display at the West Roxbury Branch Library through February 28.