Multi-media art show explores impressions of nature at St. Paul's
The Nicholson B. White Gallery at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 2747 Fairmount Blvd., announces its spring show, Nature’s Impressions. The show opens with an artists’ reception on Friday, March 6, 5–7 p.m., where participating artists will be in attendance to greet guests and discuss their creative processes. The show runs through May 29.
Featured artists are James Brindle (wood, alabaster), Lori Diemer (photography), Eileen Dorsey (oil landscape) and Leonard Trawick (prints).
Brindle’s woodturnings are both functional and non-functional. The simplicity of his turnings, combined with flowing gracefulness in design, are attempts to expose nature’s inherent beauty of wood, which is further enhanced through various finishing techniques. Brindle has won several ribbons at woodturning competitions and has been published in Woodturning Design magazine. He also works in alabaster, which offers colors and translucency that make it a wonderful medium for turning vessels. Brindle also combines alabaster with wood accents to create unique turnings.
Diemer has always been fascinated by nature, wondering at its beauty, simplicity and complexity, and says she loves the adventure that comes with searching for and finding subjects. Her aim is to capture the essence of her subjects or surroundings: the feelings she experiences when a subject first catches her eye and details that often go unnoticed. She wants her art to inspire viewers to look beyond first impressions and see the beauty of the natural world.
Landscapes are the vehicle that Dorsey uses to express texture and color, punctuated with aggressive and expressive painting techniques. With a palette that changes for each painting, she challenges herself with color combinations. Choosing what color to begin with is one of the more important decisions in her process, as the first color down—the sky or the mid-tone of the background—tends to decide the palette of the piece. She does not rely on realistic colors to create a painting, and says many of her decisions are “subconscious.” Her paintings read more as expressions of scenes rather than actual places.
Trawick feels his artwork represents nature as filtered through human feelings and imagination. His prints imply a narrative or an imaginative situation, so the viewer has to try to figure out what is happening. In his print Peony Jungle, a black cat sneaks. The question for the viewer is, “What does he seek?”
All are welcome at the opening reception. The gallery is open weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on weekends, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The artists receive all proceeds from sales of their work.
Mary Cushing
Mary Cushing is a member of St. Paul's Episcopal Church.