Emily Davis Adams’ “Somewhere Between” series of small works glow with light. Depicting both still-lifes and abstract shapes, her work has both a physical and emotional vibrancy. The deep, sublime colors swim with light and shadow. Her “No. 152" has a luminescent, mother of pearl dazzle that could be the inside of an oyster shell or a section of early sunrise sky. “No. 156” is all ocean, sky and horizon line, a study of blues that is liquid, velvet, and lit by an imaginary moon.
Merion Estes offers a series plus “Cooling Trend," both of which compliment and contrast with Adams’ work. The series, titled “Lost Horizons,” depicts disappearing natural domains while referencing the utopian society depicted in Frank Capra’s 1937 film of the same name. Estes rearranges reproductions of ancient Chinese landscape paintings, combining images of nature and destruction with an imaginary Shangri La. Flora and fauna pop from vibrantly colored collages, acrylic, and mixed media works. In the Project Room, her “Cooling Trend” is a single painting that plunges the viewer into a hot summer. Extreme heat and brightness take center stage in bright orange and yellow spots and rays. Dragonheads and dark birds seemingly ringed in fire soar and plummet amid beautiful, repeated patterns of flowers. Seen together, Estes and Adams present insightful and illuminating visions of nature that take us into altogether fantastic worlds.
