Two Painters and a Mosaic Artist Reflect on the Properties of Light in Hillsborough Gallery of Arts’ Refractions Show Opening July 23rd

Linda Carmel, Pam Isner and Marcy Lansman each display their take on the properties of light and color in a new show titled Refractions, which opens July 23^rd at the Hillsborough Gallery of Arts.

Linda Carmel’s paintings look three-dimensional, because she uses acrylic modelling paste to build up structure. “In the series of paintings I’ve done for the show,” Carmel says, “I’ve added sand to the mix. The tableaus in the paintings are set against patterns inspired by African textiles, with desert colors juxtaposed against turquoise.” Carmel goes on to explain that fingertips can read the raised areas and sand designs in her paintings like Braille, and she encourages viewers to “read” her paintings that way. “These paintings are a continuation of my sand series and tell stories of home, migration and dislocation,” says Carmel.

Mosaic artist Pam Isner says she’s a big fan of refracting light, a property that can be used to create richness and complexity. “Incorporating glass of varying densities, thicknesses and surface textures within a single art object nicely demonstrates the properties of light refraction,” Isner explains, adding that biology and fantasy inspire her designs. “I like making things that cause one to do a double-take - something surprising, even funny,” she says.

“When I was first learning to draw,” says Marcy Lansman, “I took my drawings to my teacher for a critique. She made the same suggestion for each one: darken the shadows. Then it dawned on me: light is everything. Through highlights and shadows, we create three-dimensional form on a two-dimensional surface. Since then, I have taken special interest in light, and I like to think my portrayal of light sets my work apart. In this show, I’m concerned with the effects of light on flowers and foliage. Long before I became a painter, I was a gardener, and my work reflects that passion. In one painting, I describe the effects of delicate spring light on pale pink pansies, in another the effects of intense summer light on sturdy orange zinnias, and in a third the effect of neutral winter light on evergreen foliage.”

An opening reception for Refractions will be held at the Hillsborough Gallery of Arts on Friday, July 27th, from 6-9 p.m. The Hillsborough Gallery of Arts is located in the Mercantile Building at 121 North Churton Street, in Hillsborough, NC. For more information, visit the gallery Website at www.hillsboroughgallery.com.