John Koch

john_koch

Bio/John Koch

John Koch left his journalism career in 2005 and began drawing and painting in various mediums. He took a number of art courses, some taught by artists in their studios, others at the Center for Cambridge Adult Education; and several on the Outer Cape at the Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill, and elsewhere.

He began showing and occasionally selling work in 2009 at exhibits including:

  • Members Open and Benefit Exhibits at Castle Hill.
  • Several Cambridge Art Association juried shows including Blue (2009) and Red (2011).
  • 11 Miller Street Open Studios, Somerville, MA, (2010 and 2013).
  • Solo show of paintings and drawings at COA Gallery in Truro, MA (August, 2012).

Earlier career:

Koch’s career as a journalist, from 1970 to 2005, centered on the arts. He was variously a writer, critic and editor at several Boston newspapers, including the Boston Phoenix, but notably The Boston Globe (1979-2005).

He worked as a film critic, culture and feature writer, weekly interviewer for the Boston Globe Magazine, and Arts Editor at both the Herald American and the Globe. Koch’s nearly 10 years leading the Globe’s arts department offered full immersion in a world he cared about deeply. Later, he interviewed scores of artists and occasionally wrote about visual art.

But, he says, “I was still frustratingly distant from home, in orbit miles from my destination.”

He retired in the spring of 2005 to begin his life as an artist.

Articles about John Koch:
“A Palette of Time, Discipline and Passion,” by Deborah Minsky; Provincetown Banner, August 2, 2012.

“ArtTalk” interviews broadcast on WMOR-FM, Provincetown, MA, summer, 2012. Two half-hour dialogues conducted by Christopher Busa.