An exhibit showing side-by-side artwork painted by a father and daughter was displayed July 11 through 22 in the Kent State art galleries. 

Jay Kozar last exhibited his work at Kent State University in 1994 before attending Savannah College of Art Design and focusing on video and film production. After almost two decades without painting, his daughter Addison Kozar inspired him to begin again. 

He and his wife bought their daughter a painting station for Christmas when she was three years old, and she began painting as often as possible. It was during COVID-19 that they started painting together, and Jay Kozar rediscovered his passion for art. 

“It started as something to do during COVID,” he said. “My daughter showed an interest in painting, and I hadn’t painted in 20 years, so it really brought me back. She kind of brought me back to life on the creative side.” 

Jay Kozar found many artists struggle with fear of opening their artwork to the public, but his daughter did not express any of those doubts. 

“I think we get scared; we don’t want to be vulnerable, and we don’t want to show our work,” he said. “I mean, if this was a catalyst for her to be fearless, that’s awesome.”

The father-daughter duo was encouraged to showcase their work when his former high school art teacher and Kent State Associate Professor Linda Hoeptner-Poling viewed their artwork. 

Hoeptner-Poling decided to propose the idea of showing an exhibit at Kent when she first saw their artwork together. She said she was struck by how wonderfully their work juxtaposed each other. 

“While Jay’s is very purposeful, with abstracted non-objective elements, Addison’s is quick and fresh, but you still see the similarities, and that kind of relationship is just a fascinating interplay,” she said. 

Kozar and Hoeptner-Poling agreed highlighting children’s artwork and encouraging young artists was one of the main goals of the exhibit, so offering an interactive experience within the gallery was important for them. 

“We actually set up a painting corner for children, so there were a handful of children that actually attended the show,” she said. “Making that art gallery experience very child friendly, that was important to us.” 

Hoeptner-Poling hopes that by encouraging children to pursue making artwork, she can work to remove the elitism that can often happen in institutional spaces. 

“It’s my dream to get the message out there that children’s art has value, it has a place in the world, and that we value it side by side with adults’ art, and I think this show did just that,” she said.

Kayla Gleason is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].