Rooted Traditions

Constantine “Gus” John Kermes was born on December 6th, 1923, in Millvale, Alleghany County, Pennsylvania, and died on May 19th, 2009, at Essa Flory Hospice Center in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The eldest of 5 children and the son of proud Greek immigrants, Kermes grew up and spent his early adulthood in Crafton, Alleghany County, Pennsylvania. Kermes attended Crafton High School and graduated in 1942. After high school, he attended Carnegie Institute of Technology until he graduated with a degree in painting and design in 1946. In 1951/52, he married Bessie Sarantopoulos, a daughter of Greek immigrants from Pittsburgh. On December 13th, 1953, the couple welcomed twin daughters, Harriett and Kathi. He was described as a wonderful and caring father. A friend of his daughter, Harriett, once noted that when they were kids, he would let them create artwork in his studio. 

After spending some independent time as an artist in Crafton and the Chartiers Valley, where he had a private studio cabin in the woods, he decided to get a job to support his new family. Kermes was employed as an Industrial Designer by Sperry/Ford New Holland Machine Company from 1955 to 2004. Not long after he started working, he decided to move his family to Lancaster and set up a permanent studio in Landis Valley. There, he began patenting his work and displaying pieces at the Pennsylvania Farm Museum at Landis Valley. During his career at the Industrial Designer by Sperry/Ford New Holland Machine Company, he received 24 Design Patents and awards from the American Iron and Steel Institute and the Industrial Design Magazine. 

During his career as an artist, Kermes had 10 solo art exhibits at the Jacques Seligmann Gallery in New York City. He also had well over 200 solo exhibits in galleries and museums around the United States. He even wrote a book published in 2008 titled “Work in Progress: Paintings and Other Works of Constantine Kermes”, where he documented his 60-year exploration as an artist. Beyond exhibiting his work, Kermes was the president of the Landis Valley Museum Associates and the Echo Valley Art Group, a member of various Watercolor Societies throughout Pennsylvania and Maryland, and a longtime supporter of the Lancaster County Young Artist (formerly Scholastic Art). Every year from 1961 on, Kermes always displayed his works and demonstrations of his woodcutting techniques at the Kutztown Folk Festival. 

Kermes’s artistic style was noted for its flat color areas and strong linear patterns. His style was even described as iconic, similar to religious artworks. Discipline and hard work were virtues Kermes took to heart throughout his years as an artist. While his work mainly focused on the Plain People of Pennsylvania, he also depicted the New England Shakers, the Amanas, the Sant[er]os, the Pueblo Potters, and the Southern Mountain craftsmen. However, he found a strong love and appreciation for the culture of the Pennsylvania Germans, a cultural group defined by virtues of hard work, discipline, simplicity, and religious devotion. When it came to depicting the Amish and Shakers in his art, he did so in simpler forms, like the styles seen in religious icons, of which, aligned with their values. 

Constantine “Gus” John Kermes was born on December 6th, 1923, in Millvale, Alleghany County, Pennsylvania, and died on May 19th, 2009, at Essa Flory Hospice Center in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The eldest of 5 children and the son of Greek immigrants (family is from Smyrna, Turkey, formally Greece at the time of his birth), Kermes grew up and spent his early adulthood in Crafton, Alleghany County, Pennsylvania. His father was the manager of a Billiard and Bowling establishment, and his mother, despite tending to the home, had a few jobs over the years. She was the head of the statistical department as a CPA for Gimbels in Pittsburgh, the manager of the Landis Valley Farm Museum Weathervane shop, and a CPA for Fulton Bank in Lancaster. Growing up, both of his parents were incredibly proud of their Greek heritage and wanted to pass on cultural traditions. His family was devout members of the Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation. Kermes was very devoted to his faith and culture during the course of his life. He would even go on to be awarded Man of the Year by the Philotochos Society (a Greek Orthodox philanthropist society), and become a member of the Lancaster #71 Red Rose Chapter of the AHEPA (the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association, an association known for its faith and connections to Greek culture). 

Growing up in Crafton, Kermes attended Crafton High School. In 1942, he enlisted in the draft for WWII but was never drafted. After graduating from high school in 1942, he attended Carnegie Institute of Technology. He graduated from the Carnegie Institute of Technology in 1946 with a degree in painting and design. In 1951/52, he married Bessie Sarantopoulos, a daughter of Greek immigrants from Pittsburgh. On December 13th, 1953, the couple welcomed twin daughters, Harriett and Kathi. He was described as a wonderful and caring father. A friend of his daughter, Harriett, once noted that when they were kids, he would let them create artwork in his studio. After spending some independent time as an artist in Crafton and the Chartiers Valley, where he had a private studio cabin in the woods, he decided to get a job to support his new family. Kermes was employed as an Industrial Designer by Sperry/Ford New Holland Machine Company from 1955 to 2004. Not long after he started working, he decided to move his family to Lancaster, perhaps to get closer to the culture he would become so fascinated with. He set up a permanent studio in Landis Valley in Lancaster. There, he began patenting his work and displaying pieces at the Pennsylvania Farm Museum at Landis Valley. During his career at the Industrial Designer by Sperry/Ford New Holland Machine Company, he received 24 Design Patents and awards from the American Iron and Steel Institute and the Industrial Design Magazine. 

During his career as an artist, Kermes had 10 solo art exhibits at the Jacques Seligmann Gallery in New York City. He as well had well over 200 solo exhibits in galleries and museums around the United States, including the New York State Museum, Rutgers University, the Pfenninger Gallery, the Higbee Gallery in Cleveland, the University of Notre Dame, the Des Moines Art Center, the Art Museum of New Mexico, and the University of New Mexico. In the year of his death, his work was accepted in the National Juried Art Exhibition. He also had a one-man retrospective exhibit at the Lancaster Museum of Art. He even wrote a book published in 2008 titled “Work in Progress: Paintings and Other Works of Constantine Kermes”, where he documented his 60-year exploration as an artist. Besides his studio in Lancaster, he also had one in Paris, France. Beyond exhibiting his work, Kermes was the president of the Landis Valley Museum Associates and the Echo Valley Art Group, a member of the Prestigious American Watercolor Society, a member of the Watercolor Society in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Baltimore, and a longtime supporter of the Lancaster County Young Artist (formerly Scholastic Art). Every year from 1961 on, Kermes always displayed his works and demonstrations of his woodcutting techniques at the Kutztown Folk Festival. 

Kermes’s artistic style was noted for its flat color areas and strong linear patterns. His style was even described as iconic, similar to religious artworks. In his book, “Work In Progress: Paintings and Other Works of Constantine Kermes,” he commented on his artistic influences and values, “My parents instilled in me the positive virtues of discipline and work. These virtues were further reinforced by my hometown creative artist-mentors, Mr. Einar and Eric Olson, for whom I am indebted for their guidance during my growing years in Crafton, Pennsylvania” (Kermes, 2008, pg. v). Discipline and hardwork were virtues Kermes took to heart throughout his years as an artist. While his work mainly focused on the Plain People of Pennsylvania, he also depicted the New England Shakers, the Amanas, the Sant[er]os, the Pueblo Potters, and the Southern Mountain craftsmen. However, he found a strong love and appreciation for the culture of the Pennsylvania Germans. The Pennsylvania Germans are a cultural group in Pennsylvania defined by virtues of hard work, discipline, simplicity, and religious devotion. Key virtues Kermes valued highly and respected. When it came to depicting the Amish and Shakers in his art, he did so in simpler forms, like the styles seen in religious icons, of which, aligned with their values. He commented on his Iconographic style in regards to depicting the Amish and the Shakers. He wrote, “My uncle, a monk living in a monastery in Greece, was also an icon painter, which gave me my interest in icon painting, a strong sense of continuity with my family roots…The use of symbolic imagery apparent in iconography, along with the use of expressive elongation of figures inspired my painting approach of American religious groups such as the Amish and the Shakers” (Kermes, 2008, pg. 3). The plainness and depiction of people as they were appear to be what drew his inspiration. Gerald Lestz, author and founding president of the Board of The Demuth Museum, believed his inspiration to depict the Amish were more deeper than that, Lestz commented, “Kermes has chosen to express in his paintings the basic way of life of these rural groups, whose cornerstone is the work ethic and as they exist in the midst of America’s industrialized, materialistic society. These are depicted by Kermes in an approach which echoes the art of his Greek ancestry as well as his interest in American folk art. Kermes’ echoes the forms and spirit of Byzantine Icons because he feels this symbolic approach underscores the tenacity with which these rural groups cling to basic principals in a frenetic modern world” (Kermes, 2008, pg. 41). Perhaps Kermes admired the Amish’s dedication to simplicity and virtues in a modern world that felt as if it was pulling away from these morals. 

In the last decade of his life, Kermes moved his focus heavily into watercolor. He mainly depicted individuals, landscapes, and simpler abstract pieces. When asked about the way he depicted some of his abstract watercolor pieces, Kermes stated,  “When an artist is basing his painting on an emotional response to his subject, he doesn’t need much specific information. He’s not concerned about what way a tree is leaning or the exact color of the shingles on the roof. None of those things will help him with his primary goal; to make his painting feel right” (Kermes, 2008, pg. 35). He found a new interest in the abstract side of art, and he became enthralled with depicted emotions with only colors and brushstrokes. No exact image can be made out, but the feeling and emotion are there. Not all of his pieces were abstract. Some of his watercolors depicted a singular person in a singular moment. His style of painting individuals in watercolor was commented on by Ellen Slupe, artist, writer, and former partner/owner of The Pfenninger Gallery, Lancaster, PA, which featured a solo Kermes exhibition in April 2007. Slupe wrote, “Constantine Kermes’ figurative paintings are often of single persons indoors in austere, almost institutional spaces. Contained within a geometric composition of diverse lines, their postures and the darkened cooler colors set a chilling tone. Haunting figures drained of enthusiasm and hope, alone they seem resigned to draw subsistence only from memories” (Kermes, 2008, pg. 50). His art showed individuals in the moment, experiencing everything it means to be human. Despite moving into more abstract watercolor, having people as the focus of his art still remained. He never fell out of love with depicting people, their culture, and their values. Kermes commented, “The human figure has historically been the subject of paintings for generations of artists, as a part of a response to the world around them. In addition to my paintings of landscapes, paintings of the figure relative to the human condition are a constant source of interest in my work” (Kermes, 2008, pg. 48). Throughout his career as an artist, his key interests remained. As he shifted to different mediums and honed his skills as an artist, depicting people and their lives remained constant. His art meant the world to him. His obituary even noted that, “His work was his art, and his art his work, and with seemingly tireless energy he produced many lovely, lively, pieces.” His artwork influenced many aspects of his life. He always strived to improve his abilities, be more creative, and keep old techniques alive. He never fell out of love or appreciation for different cultures throughout Pennsylvania and the rest of the United States, and as a son of immigrants himself, perhaps preservation of cultures is what kept his passion alive for so long.