Artist Jance Lentz-Hatch left unfinished work on her easel when she died on the morning of Thursday, July 12. She had fended off cancer for three years before passing away less than a week after her 77th birthday.
A lifelong Ohioan, Jance was born in Canton, raised in Mentor and Willoughby, and lived most of her life in Kent where she raised three sons. She was best known for her Impressionistic landscapes, which she exhibited in Kent, Cleveland, Columbus, Washington, Maui, New York, Paris, and elsewhere.
From childhood, Jance embraced art and music. She studied piano with her Aunt Jane and filled notebooks with drawings of horses. A graduate of Andrews Institute for Girls (now Andrews Osborne Academy), Jance earned her Bachelor's and Master's of Arts degrees from Kent State University.
She married Thomas Hatch in 1981 and subsequently left her job as a medical illustrator at the Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy (now the Northeast Ohio Medical University) to pursue a career as an independent artist. Shortly thereafter, she earned her first gallery representation with the Fisher Galleries in Washington. A few years later, she began showing her work at the Bonfoey Gallery in Cleveland.
Over her career, she held more than 30 one-woman shows and was accepted into dozens of selected and juried exhibitions. In 2013, she joined with other Kent artists to launch the Group 10 Gallery in Kent's Acorn Alley. In 2014, the Butler Museum in Youngstown purchased a painting for its permanent collection.
Among her other passions were gardening, cooking, and traveling. A walk through her studio is to immerse oneself in those pursuits. Art books, violins, sheet music, cookbooks, photos of her family and her animals, and, of course, her paintings, drawings, and sculptures, occupy every corner. She built prodigious flower and vegetable gardens that fed both her artistry - more than a few paintings came from sitting in her backyard - and her family.
Jance enjoyed hosting visitors, throwing parties, and preparing gourmet meals with her husband. They took trips to Martha's Vineyard, Australia, England, France, Italy, the Caribbean, and elsewhere - all of which provided inspiration for dozens of paintings, as well as respites from Ohio's winters.
But her favorite place of all was atop her horse, Leo, with whom she earned multiple ribbons and performed a Dressage Foundation-sponsored Century Ride.
Jance is survived by her husband, Thomas; son Steve Hatch and wife Selya Price of Middletown, Conn.; son Mark Hatch and wife Suzanne of Tiverton, Ohio; son Joshua Hatch and wife Cynthia of Arlington, Va.; step-son David Weiner and partner Carol Seifert of Washington; step-daughter Deborah Weiner and wife Janne Harrelson of Silver Spring, Md.; five grandchildren - Jane Wiedenhoft and husband Nick of Columbus, Ohio, Truman Hatch of Chicago, Samuel Hatch of Portland, Ore., Lucy Harrelson of Silver Spring, Md., and Samantha of Arlington, Va.; sister Greta Bemiller and husband Steve of Delaware, Ohio; and 10 nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her sister Meril Price and her granddaughter Sydney Hatch.
Calling hours will be held at Bissler Funeral Home in Kent, Ohio, from 2 to 4 and from 6 to 8 on Tuesday, July 17. A memorial service is being planned for mid-September, after which she will be interred at Standing Rock Cemetery in Kent.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks those who wish to make donations to Coleman Professional Services. https://www.colemanservices.org/ways-to-give/give-online.aspx
Calling Hours
JUL
17.
2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Bissler & Sons Funeral Home and Crematory
628 W Main Street
Kent
Calling Hours
JUL
17.
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Bissler & Sons Funeral Home and Crematory
628 W Main Street
Kent