The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Kinetic sculptor hosts studio open house
TORRINGTON — Litchfield native and artist Jennifer Abbott-Tillou recently showcased her kinetic sculptures during the first opening at her art studio in downtown Torrington, across from the Warner Theatre.
The studio is atop a wide and impressive staircase, and there was already a gathering a few minutes after the publicized start time. Her husband, antiques dealer Jeffrey Tillou, greeted the crowd of approximately 105, offering wine, brie and grapes for the reception. Abbott-Tillou’s teenage son Luis also welcomed visitors, explaining that he does Photoshop for his mother’s website and Instagram, and created the video “teaser” for the evening’s event.
Two of the most striking kinetic pieces of artwork on display were “Box and Chain” and “Blurred Lines/Nudes.” Abbott Tillou’s son, Augie, who attends Litchfield High School, unearthed the chain, possibly an anchor chain, at the Brewster Park Club beach in Brewster, Mass. He dug it out of the sand and his mother said, “The distressed metal box I found outside the studio window on the roof as they were working on installing air conditioning, and the undulating bolt was lying on the street behind the Yankee Pedlar Inn.”
Both of these found items could be considered detritus, or treasures, depending on one’s point of view. Jennifer said the name “Box and Chain” is a take on the “old ball and chain” phrase, noting, “I am often inspired to create in a way that highlights female strength and power.”
The kinetic piece “Blurred lines/Nudes” exemplified that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” since there are three different forms of this artwork made of copper and oxidized copper tubing, acrylic bars and monofilament, depending on movement and rearrangement of the parts. The artist explained the oxidizing process she uses to create the unique patina, often in stark contrast to the gleaming natural color in the same piece: “I usually use muriatic acid to oxidize the copper to the bright green, but sometimes I simply leave it out in the elements to get a more burnished look. I then use a spray to fix it and stop the oxidizing process. I could probably use a safer and less-toxic chemical, but I’ve been doing it this way since 1990 and I love the effect and texture that the acid creates.”
Abbott-Tillou is acutely aware that the power of ambient lighting can produce varying and dramatic shadows and reflection. An overhead light in the hall was covered in black gauze to curtail its hindrance of the artwork. Her working studio is a room attached to the gallery space.
“I often spill out into the hallway and gallery when working. Usually, there are lots of things happening on the floor and in the air in that space. Much of my adult life I have worked with anatomy and kinesiology, and I am a kinetic person myself, attracted to both motion and balance and that is reflected in my work.”
Abbott-Tillou was trained as a physical therapist and has a private studio for clients in Litchfield. She also keeps active as a personal trainer and yoga instructor.
She created her first sculpture using a cedar trunk and a piece of copper piping in 1990, beginning by using her garage as a workshop and studio. She is inspired by nature, especially the ocean, where driftwood is easily available for her threedimensional still works meant to hang on the wall. She is a self-taught artist whose work is in the hands of several private collectors, but this event was her first open house dedicated to creating work for the public.
Her friend, and obviously one of her biggest fans, Pucci McGill, describes Jen as “very photogenic, energetic, generous and kind.”
The large enthusiastic crowd paid testimony to that portrayal, and at the end of evening she had sold two of her artworks, and made several new friends by sheer force of personality.