NACOGDOCHES, Texas – A reception with the artist for the exhibition “Junko Chodos: Can We Hear Our Own Voice?” will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 27, in The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House.

“Junko Chodos: Can We Hear Our Own Voice?” features mixed media pieces and drawings. The artist considers herself “a hypermodern mystic,” and she describes much of her work as “centripetal” in nature, according to John Handley, director of Stephen F. Austin State University Art Galleries.

Handley first encountered Junko’s work while he was at The University of California, Berkley. He said he was immediately attracted to it on many levels: “the abstraction, expressiveness and immediacy of the work, touching on emotional turmoil, hope, fear, spirituality and transcendence.”

“This is not your typical art; it embodies so much about the artist’s life and journey, and I believe the show will inspire artists from all media to think in broader terms about creativity,” Handley said.

The artist will discuss her work, specifically where her art fits into the course of art history, at the reception, which is sponsored in part by the Friends of the Visual Arts, Nacogdoches Junior Forum and The Flower Shop. Doors will open at 5:45 p.m., and the artist talk will start shortly after 6 p.m.

SFA’s downtown art gallery, The Cole Art Center is located at 329. E. Main St. For more information, call (936) 468-1131.