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By Eric Neurohr - Gazette Staff Writer
Acrylic paint and linoleum prints are two completely different styles of artwork. But Jonathan and Jan Heath take the inspiration for the art from the same place.
   
Jonathan likes to use acrylic and paint a variety of themes, but he mainly focuses on elderly people enjoying life. And his wife, Jan, does mono-line print photos, and sometimes wood cuts, depicting landscapes and farm animals. Both say the inspiration for the art comes from life and the things going on around them everyday. "I always like to look for the joy in life when I decide to do a painting," Jonathan said.
   
Jonathan said he uses his grandmother as an inspiration for a lot of the paintings he creates. Bright and vibrant colors in his work make the paintings jump off the canvas toward the viewer.
    One picture on display at the gallery is titled "Going my Way." Four 40s era women are sitting together smiling with their heads tilted to one side and one has her thumb out as if she¹s hitch-hiking.
   
Jonathan said he likes to jump around when he¹s painting so a normal painting from start to finish should only take about a day to create. But, he said, that normally never happens.
   
"I¹ll start on something then stop and start something else, so a painting that should only take a few hours to do winds up taking a month," he said.
   
"That¹s a painting I really enjoyed doing," Jonathan said.
   
While Jonathan uses happy images of people at play for his paintings, Jan takes her inspiration from the scenery that often goes overlooked.
  
 "I use a lot of scenes of the forest and wild life for the pictures I create," Jan said. Jan¹s scenes mostly range from what she sees in Berkeley Springs, W.Va., where she and John reside. Some of the pictures Jan has on display are chickens and cows taken from her childhood days spent growing up
a farm.
   
"Sometimes a memory will come back to me and that¹s why you see some chickens mixed in with the trees and landscapes," Jan said.
   
The Heaths started out displaying their work at craft fairs until they received such a positive response to their work they decided to open their own gallery. Jonathan said even though both he and his wife are artists they seem to stay out of each others way while they¹re creating their own works of art.
   
"We don¹t critique each other¹s art. She does her work and I do mine," Jonathan said.
    The Heaths have been artists for more than 30 years and have owned their own gallery in Berkeley Springs for close to 15 years. Jan said they usually display their work in other galleries about three or four times a year.
   
The Heath¹s two different styles of artwork will be on display at the Bedford County Arts Center now through May 30. About 40 pieces are on display and all are for sale to the interested buyer.