On view through the end of the month is a beautiful exhibition of new landscapes by painter Steven Lee Adams. Where can you catch a view?
With its renowned craft beer, the beautiful Cascade Mountains, and a host of available outdoor activities, individuals and families need little additional motivation to visit the small town of Bend, Oregon. However, just in case, on view through the end of the month is a delightful solo exhibition of the most recent landscapes from painter Steven Lee Adams at Mockingbird Gallery.
Steven Lee Adams, “Hoar Frost,” oil on canvas, 14 x 18 in. (c) Mockingbird Gallery 2015
Adams paints from the heart and endeavors to capture what he feels to be true, and his landscape paintings are timeless, with a radiant luminance that keeps collectors wanting more. “Knowing what is true because we ‘feel it’ is the axiom of great art, and it is our job to quiet the mind so as to allow access to the infinite,” the artist writes. “As a fine artist, I believe it is my calling to create something more than a pretty picture for a wall, I am looking for the things that connect us with our true home.”
Steven Lee Adams, “Passing Storm,” oil on canvas, 24 x 48 in. (c) Mockingbird Gallery 2015
A great example from the exhibition is “Pasture at Last Light,” which has a gorgeous full-spectrum palette. Standing within a purple shadow is a lone cow, perhaps the last of the herd to return to its barn. In the distance, the viewer finds a sun-bathed grove of trees along a fence line, their colors graduating from yellow, to orange, to red, and finally to a pair of evergreens toward the right edge. A beautiful stillness emanates from the picture.
Steven Lee Adams, “Solitude,” oil on canvas, 18 x 24 in. (c) Mockingbird Gallery 2015
Another captivating example is “Hoar Frost,” which displays the range of colors one can achieve even at the height of winter. A magnetic focal point rests at center and in the distance: a brightly highlighted tree basking in light, reflecting the morning’s frost. A tree imaged with much darker hues — namely, purples, grays, and a hint of deep blue — occupies the middle ground. Dancing back to the right side of the canvas and into the foreground is a similar tree. Within this work, the viewer is taken on a brief journey through the scene.
“An Exhibition of New Works: Steven Lee Adams” opened on September 4 and will be on view through September 30.
To learn more, visit Mockingbird Gallery.
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