These are abstract charcoal and/or pastel work of Ken Januski. Most of them stem from drawings he did in the mid '80s in his Chestnut Street studio next to the Ben Franklin Hotel. During that time the shapes in the drawings changed from geometric to organic. He called that series Chestnut Park to indicate creatures that might be found in a park. The name was meant to indicate a conscious decision to include rather than exclude references to the natural world in his art. Though all of these drawings are later than that series they are representative of the change to more organic shapes and deeper illusionistic space that he first used in the last Chestnut Park drawings.
'Pigeone in Citta', 2007, is his newest abstract drawing. Though probably not evident it was his first attempt to combine birds and abstraction. 'Flea Beetle Falling Through the Empty Cart of Mr. Avant-Garde' was a comment on the emptiness of much contemporary art, particularly that which relies on an explanation for its value. This was juxtaposed to the value of just drawing an insect,like a flea beetle. See his insect pages for more on this subject.
'Pigeone In Citta', 23x29, pastel and charcoal.
'Flea Beetle Falling into the Empty Cart of Mr. Avant-Garde', 23x38, pastel.
23x
'April', 23x29, pastel and collage.
'Odalisque', 32x40, charcoal/pastel.
'Cotelydon', 23x29, charcoal/pastel.
'Mummery', 32x40, charcoal.
'Bridge', 23x29, charcoal.
'Timpani', 23x29, charcoal/pastel.
'Elephant', 23x29, charcoal/pastel.
'Sierras', 28x43, charcoal/pastel.
