Artist Deborah Nixon, always experimenting, broke free from the traditional and familiar still-lifes and landscapes, trying a new perspective. Like her fellow exhibitors, who do mostly abstract, particularly Betty Scholl and Maria Carter, Nixon played with abstract ideas. One – black splatters on a lemon yellow background – were reminiscent of Jackson Pollack, combined with Rorschach. The other was a black canvas featuring bright green spatters looked like an intergalactic fantasy. The works were bold and striking and open for interpretation.
Nixon said she enjoys a style based on reckless abandonment and few details. Her impressionistic work has always impressed observers of her work but Nixon always likes to take it a step beyond to see where it leads her.
Scholl on the other hand, conveys her moods through a variety of colors. Her When I Think of April shows pastes blended together to create what might be considered a spring garden. Her Salsa Days feature red hot reds, oranges and yellows, signifying unbridled passion. Probably, the most significant would be Sight Restored, where the dark colors swirl around a bright, white opening, something akin to a breakthrough from artist’s block and finally seeing a vision.
LaVista, who recently had paintings exhibited at the Fork Union Community Center, had an abstract but it was her signature pieces, including a still life of a bright red truck sitting idle in the garage and the solitude and contentment of Rest in the Reeds that were eye-catching.
Carter’s outstanding works included View Across The Cove, where she used shapes and up and down strokes in her painting to suggest docks with boats on the lake. In Bloom she combines lines and dots to create a field of flowers, an example of abstract impressionism.
Also, exhibiting but featured only one piece was Elizabeth Ryan, who made a statement with her bold sunflowers.
The exhibit will be in both meeting rooms of the Fluvanna Public Library and open for viewing from now until Oct. 31.
