Geoffrey Kostecki

Anthropology or Fine Art may seem like completely unrelated fields of study. I became an Archaeologist and excavated  many artifacts. After years of living in tents in strange places,  I wanted to be the person making the artifacts, not the one digging them up. Now, 20 years later working as a Liturgical restorationist for Catholic churches, I still consider myself an Archaeologist, digging through layers of time built up on the surface of old oil paintings and statuary.

This series of mixed media oil paintings explores our relationship with art as artifact and our ever changing perception of art and iconography over time. In this case, how the effect of time has transformed our definition of what “art” is, while contemplating the actual deterioration and patina on the surface of a painting by showing the mid-process restoration and the physical manifestation of “time” on a work of art.  By pealing back and revealing multiple “veils” of dust and yellowed varnish in stages, the viewer is asked to consider the significance of the “veils” separating themselves from the subject, and acknowledge the inherent ephemeral quality of both art and life itself.

This series of work also addresses the question of how we feel about certain imagery which we have been overexposed to, or that we feel is too traditional or “beautiful” for our Modern sensibility, by showing the symbolic destruction of the “overly beautiful” while simultaneously referring to the restoration of beauty.

This series of work attempts to obscure and reveal by using many different traditional and non traditional materials and techniques such as oil paint, wax, pastel, ink, gold leaf, soot, a French newspaper from 1820, and lipstick.

Artist and restorationist Geoffrey Kostecki holds a BS in Anthropology, a BFA from the Art Institute of Boston with a concentration on Painting, Design, and Traditional Arts. Kostecki also holds an MFA from the Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University in Cambridge. In addition, he studied advanced painting, painting restoration, and color theory at University Lorenzo d’ Medici in Florence Italy. Upon completion of his academic career, Geoffrey apprenticed 10 years with Graydon Parrish, one of the most celebrated classical figure painters in the world, honing his skills as a realistic painter and designer. Geoffrey has applied his skills and knowledge to the field of Liturgical Design and Restoration, for the last 22 years, revitalizing countless Catholic churches and sacred spaces throughout the US. 

Most recently Geoff won a grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council for the 2022 fellowship competition in the category of Traditional Arts.