Affinities
MAC (Mount Airy Contemporary)
25 West Mt. Airy Avenue, Philadelphia PA 19119
5/22/2026 - 7/2/2026
Reception May 22nd from 6-9 PM
Gallery hours: by appointment
www.mountairycontemporary.com
Phone: (267) 270-2787
Email: info@mountairycontemporary.com
MAC is pleased to present Affinities, an exhibition of works by Nancy Agati, Nathan Pankratz and Kate VanVliet.
In our first show in 2009, And So On And So Forth, we designed the exhibition to model how social connections between artists are forged, and how these are driven by friendship, creative affinity, chemistry and respect for each other’s work. Over the subsequent decade we revisited this model in various ways: Invite artists we respect, and ask them to invite others to join them. In our first exhibition in the main gallery space since 2019, we’re returning to this pattern.
We’ve long had admiration for Nancy Agati’s work and for her practices as an artist, curator, and community builder. Her work is visually rich and draws you into the organic spaces she creates. Earlier this spring we invited Agati to show with us. As we were considering who to pair her with, without prompting she immediately suggested Nathan Pankratz as an exhibition partner. This proactive offering by an artist felt serendipitous to us, and we shifted gears.
Nancy Agati and Nathan Pankratz were MFA students and studiomates at University of the Arts in Philadelphia, and worked together for twelve years at the Haverford School. Agati says “I have always had an affinity to Nate's work and have wanted to show work alongside his for years.” She sees connections between her work and Pankratz’s - moving scapes of water and land, abstractions, spirals, and play calm and tension.
Nathan Pankratz invited Kate VanVliet. Pankratz shared that “Art is a relationship between creator and viewer. I see my work in relationship with Kate’s, as a reflection of the creator or, as Kate puts it, a ‘human heirloom machine.’ I’m all in!”
We at MAC will add our own thoughts on connection. All three artists have expansive practices that include teaching, curating and community building - Agati has engaged in artist collaborations and curatorial projects, Pankratz is a co-founder of Tiger Strikes Asteroid, and VanVliet is a founder and co-director of BYO Printmaking Collaborative. It’s our belief that like often seeks like, and all three artists approach the art community through a connective lens.
Nancy Agati is a Philadelphia artist whose multidisciplinary work includes painting and works on paper, sculpture, site-specific installation, and public art. Agati holds a BFA from Alfred University, School of Art & Design, NY, She received an MFA from The University of the Arts, Philadelphia, in 2007. She has exhibited her work widely throughout Philadelphia and nationally.
Agati’s works on paper are in several public and private collections including the Pennsylvania Convention Center and Temple University, Fox School of Business. Agati’s recent accomplishments include completing a series of prints and drawings at Officina Stamperia Dei Notaio, an artist residency in Tusa, Sicily, in September 2024. Agati began working on curatorial projects in 2025 with the group exhibition "Contemporary Ruin, future visions" at Drexel University's Pearlstein Gallery, followed by “TIMELINE” at Laurel Hill Mansion, Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, PA.
Her work can be found at https://www.nancyagati.com/.
Nate Pankratz is a Philadelphia-based artist and a founding member of the Tiger Strikes Asteroid network. His experimental painting practice centers on themes of perception, facture, and redemption. A graduate of Penn State (BFA) and the University of the Arts (MFA), his work spans solo exhibitions and public commissions, including permanent installations at Temple University’s Charles Library and the Fox School of Business. Pankratz is currently on the faculty at The Haverford School, and his work is held in numerous private and corporate collections throughout the region.
His work can be found at https://nathanpankratz.com/.
Kate VanVliet is a multi-disciplinary printmaker, sculptor, and community organizer practicing from her home studio in Elkins Park and from BYO Print in Philadelphia. Parallel with her studio practice, VanVliet is a founder and co-director of BYO Printmaking Collaborative, a nonprofit community printshop located in Old City, Philadelphia. Through BYO Print, she collaborates with other creatives to curate special projects, workshops, and themed portfolios, including ALMANAC: valuable information for *these times* to be published in 2026. She teaches printmaking at Cheltenham Center for the Arts, and has been a recurring visiting artist at Arcadia University. Former residencies include Vermont Studio Center, Olivet Church Studios, Cheltenham Center for the Arts, and a Flat File Residency in the Printmaking Department at Tyler School of Art. Her recent solo exhibition, Theoretical Gore Point, was the culmination of a 2025 WIND Challenge grant from Fleisher Art Memorial. VanVliet received a BFA from Moore College of Art & Design in 2007. Her work is in numerous private and public collections, including Stanford University’s Bowes Art & Architecture Library, Hotel Anne & Bel, SGCI Archives at the Zuckerman Museum of Art, The Free Library of Philadelphia, Moore College of Art & Design, and the William Penn Foundation. VanVliet is represented by Paradigm Gallery + Studio.
Her work can be found at https://katevanvliet.com/.
Operating since 2009 out of a Mt. Airy carriage house, MAC (Mount Airy Contemporary) has focused on providing low key, high quality art experiences in an informal residential setting, and building strong, authentic connections between artists and audiences. Since 2021, the gallery has also mounted shows at miniMAC, a tiny dollhouse-sized exhibition space installed on the street.
MAC is an ongoing curatorial project by artist couple Andrea Wohl Keefe and Colleen Keefe.
