“Merge: New Directions” is an exhibition that delivers its theme in each one of its layers. The works by Barb Knuckles, on display this month in the Annex Gallery, are the result of a contemplative year, full of frequent walks in nearby parks. These allowed her to track minute changes in the landscape around her and led to reflections on growth, resilience, and finding “wonder in ordinary things,” particularly in nature.

Cockatoos. Mixed media on paper. 16” x 20”

“A lifetime of making art” and the shared period of social stagnation prompted Knuckles to seek new directions for her own practice, employing techniques, subjects, and visuals that would invigorate her artwork. “Merge” fuses two branches of work into one display, primarily “experimental paint pours” and mixed media pieces. The painting pours tapped into her “childlike delight,” allowing “serendipity” to enter her process. The visual results involved many wing shapes, which Knuckles sees as symbols of hope and peace, hence the titles of many of the paintings: “hope” in a variety of languages, from Czech to Nepali.

Tumultuous Wings. Acrylic on yupo. 16” x 20”

The mixed media works consist of carefully arranged elements that bring together “expressive, distinct lines” through colored pencil and pen and ink alongside paint pours. Detailed views of tiny, wild grape tendrils and the “bones” of Knuckles’s favorite fallen trees are delivered with botanical sketch-like accuracy and translated to the viewer through a romantic lens. Layers and shadows lend depth to the natural hues, with warm and bright saturation, as the exhibit flows uninhibited through seasons.

Yucca Pods. Mixed media on paper. 16” x 20”

“Merge: New Directions” will be on display in the Harrison Center’s Annex Gallery for the month of June. The exhibit can be viewed in-person by appointment and in our online gallery, where all pieces are available for purchase.