Buffalo and Erie County Public Library is unveiling a new exhibit this week focusing on the life and works of Buffalo native AP Gorny.
AP Gorny: Different from the Rest is a mixed media exhibit, including several books with paper and covers he personally made, pictures and videos of his various performances or appearances.
Library Rare Book Curator Heather Gring is a former student of Gorny’s from his time as a professor at Buffalo State University.
It’s difficult to summarize his career in one exhibit because his art took such a variety of forms, she said.
“He is someone that you really can't appreciate unless you see him for his multiple facets. I've been using this metaphor recently that he's like a kaleidoscope," Gring said. "You think you're looking at him, and then you just turn it a little bit and you're seeing something totally different. And yet, it is still the same pieces.”
Accessibility is part of what sets Gorny apart, like it does for many artists in the region, Gring added.
“We are all swimming in the same fishbowl, right? And so, like, these artists are not people on pedestals that you hear about but never encounter," she said. "Like I've been at PTA meetings with, you know, different artists. I've seen them at the grocery store. I've seen them all around town.”
Gorny attended school at Buff State, moved back to the area to teach at his alma mater, and has continued to live near Buffalo during retirement.
AP Gorny: Different from the Rest opens Thursday at the library and runs for 10 months, and there will be additional works featured from Feb. 27 to March 21 at Western New York Book Arts Center.
