BOSTON, MA – Beginning January 30th, Fountain Street gallery will be exhibiting “Microbial Visions” featuring the work of Kay Hartung and artist/scientist collaborators Maria Peñil Cobo and Mehmet Berkmen. Two artists and a scientist use live bacteria, or encaustic, to reinvent the relationship humans have with microbes. A reception will be held on Friday, February 1, 6-8 pm and an artist’s talk on February 9th.

Kay Hartung’s fascination with the beauty and complexity of the microscopic world fuels her paintings. Working in encaustic and mixed media, she contemplates the potential impact of cellular activity on the visible universe and the human species. The growth, multiplication, and movement of these biological forms is essential to her creative process, as they travel freely or are captured and tangled in sinuous webs. Kay Hartung is a mixed media artist and educator whose art has been exhibited nationally and is included in many private and corporate collections. Additionally, she has created specially commissioned pieces for public and residential spaces. After graduating from the Philadelphia College of Art with a BFA and earning her MFA from Syracuse University, she served on the faculty of Bradford College in the Creative Arts Division for 20 years. Kay has received grants from the Somerville Arts Council, Malden Arts Council and the Ford Foundation. She is a member of Fountain Street Gallery in Boston, and maintains a studio at ArtSpace Maynard. She lives in Acton, MA.