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A Notre Dame College faculty member has been recognized for a creative work paying tribute to a natural symbol of commitment to the arts.

William Reed Simon, associate professor of fine arts at the College, has had his painting “Evening, Cain Park” selected for the Heights Artists Showcase exhibit at the Trudy Wiesenberger Gallery on the main campus of University Hospitals Case Medical Center. This painting is a 60-inch by 40-inch oil on canvas featuring cool shades and a few warm tones representing historic Cain Park in Cleveland Heights, Ohio.

Cain Park, founded in the 1930s, features a performing arts center and art gallery on its 22 acres. The park also is the site of annual arts festival that draws nearly 100 artists and vendors.

Heights Arts, a multidisciplinary community based in Cleveland Heights, is partnering with the hospital for their 20th anniversary celebration of connecting the arts with community. The exhibition runs from mid-November through mid-February. Simon’s works are available at WilliamReedSimon.com

The Artist

Simon works with traditional canvas support materials including linen, cotton, board, wood, u several coats of gesso or an oil-based ground. Most of the subject matter is derived and simplified from observed and common scenes. He tends to explore two ideas simultaneously: one being natural and subjective, and the other more objective, more related to two-dimensional space.

“Through this process I strive to render actual the things that are both common and transient–such as the ephemeral nature of light, revealing a hidden effect: that which affirms the majesty and confronts the mystery of being,” he said.

The Educator

At Notre Dame, Simon teaches studio art and design as well as graphic design. He has developed and delivered a range of 2D art and design courses in several area schools, including the Cleveland Museum of Art, Kent State University, Cleveland State University, the Cleveland Institute of Art and Cuyahoga Community College.

Simon earned his B.F.A. in painting from the Cleveland Institute of Art and his M.F.A. from Pratt Institute of Art in painting with a minor in Art History through the “Pratt in Venice” study abroad program. In addition, Reed also studied Visual Communication in Manhattan, working with internet authorware to design and develop interactive web-based media.

The Creative

He is a member of the Nicholas B. White Gallery at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Cleveland Heights and is a jazz violinist who helped found the gypsy jazz band, Hot Djang!, inspired by the music of guitarist Django Reinhardt and violinist Stephane Grappelli. Reed also “fiddles” for the blue grass band, Lost Bob and the Ozone Ramblers.