This August, RLS Gallery (Charleston, South Carolina) invites art lovers to step into a garden unlike any they’ve seen before. “From the Garden,” a new group exhibition, features a vibrant and thought-provoking collection of works that explore the natural world through a lens of imagination, metaphor, and emotion.
More from the gallery:
Curated with an eye for both beauty and surprise, “From the Garden” brings together a diverse roster of painters—traditionalists and experimenters alike—who were each tasked with creating garden-themed work. The result is an evocative mix of styles, from classical still lifes to narrative figurative pieces and surreal interpretations that push the boundaries of what “garden art” can mean.
The exhibition explores not only the visual richness of gardens but their deeper symbolic potential. Twisting vines, sun-dappled orchards, and tangled beds become backdrops for stories of growth, secrecy, solitude, and transformation.
“I love how gardens carry this duality—they’re controlled yet wild, serene yet teeming with life,” says Katie Koenig, whose work in the show merges storytelling with natural symbolism. A lone deer fades into petals as it emerges from the darkness. “In my piece, the garden becomes a place of memory and metamorphosis.”
Participating artists include Andrew Sjodin, Harriet White, Narelle Zeller, Larisa Brechun, Brett Scheifflee, Dakota Pitts, Anna Rose Bain, Kerry Simmons, Reynier Llanes, Denise Stewart Sanabria, Nathan Durfee, Robert Lange, Mia Bergeron, Timur Akhriev, Joshua Flint, and many more.
This mix of classic and unconventional interpretations makes “From the Garden” a refreshing take on a well-loved subject. Artist Karen Ann Paavola, who painted a 24” round arial view of a succulent garden in mid arrangement said, “It’s a reminder that gardens, like art, are spaces of both order and surprise—where beauty can be cultivated, but also where the unexpected can take root.”
Curator and gallery owner Robert Lange said, “Curating group shows offers an opportunity to give artists something to think about and to push them to create work that may go beyond their usual practices. This particular theme gives enough room for all these many invited artists to ‘grow’ in new ways.”
“From the Garden” is on view August 1-22, 2025. For more details, please visit www.robertlangestudios.com.
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