By Adrian Rudd

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UK art professor Lennon Michalski was one of the many local artists featured in this weekend’s Black Friday Sale at the Loudoun House in downtown Lexington.

The event began on Friday night with food and live music, and continued through Saturday night. Twenty-five members of the Lexington Art League gathered to showcase and sell their artwork, which would typically sell for $200 or more, at $50 or less.

Michalski, a UK teacher for over five years, sold his vibrant and colorful paintings. As Michalski has been shown internationally throughout Mexico, Colombia and China, the Black Friday Sale gave citizens of Lexington the opportunity to purchase some of his work and hear what the artist had to say about his paintings.

Using multi-layered transparent paint, Michalski creates a unique image with a glossy finish.

“I like to focus on color theory to get a visceral response from the viewer, and the line work for the illustrations in the paintings kind of foretell the story,” Michalski said.

Some of the works he had on display were of cats with the body of a jar, penguins watching TV and monkeys in spacesuits. Michalski’s inspiration for his work comes from historical conflicts, science and biology, with the goal to portray a sense of comedy.

Grant Aumiller, an art studio senior at UK, browsed the Black Friday Sale and examined Michalski’s work.

“The color palettes and the compositions are really interesting to see in a series,” said Aumiller. “I want them to be narrated in a book or something because they’re so interesting to me.”

Other paintings of Michalski’s take on a more serious tone to evoke spiritual feelings from the viewer.

“Some people have told me my paintings feel very spiritual,” Michalski said. “I enjoy when people can connect with a feeling of divinity.”

Michalski said that he enjoyed the chance to share his paintings with those who do not typically get to enjoy more expensive pieces of artwork.

“My goals for this sale were to get work to those who don’t have the means to pay for a larger piece, and to also connect with the art community in Lexington,” Michalski said. “I feel like I accomplished both.”

Other studios at the sale featured several different mediums of art such as woodwork, ceramics, pastels, photography, jewelry and printmaking.