Mavis Smith's paintings have a subtle undercurrent of disruption hovering just below their serene surfaces. Her imagery has a surreal edge, hinting at scenarios that may, or may not, hold darker subtexts. She often paints with egg tempera, a medium that is exquisitely suited for creating intricate detail and luminous layers of color.
Recently, she has added a series of large works in oil and graphite depicting twisted roots and branches that seem to pull away from the canvas and envelop the viewer. Very different in scale and subject matter to her egg tempera work, the Thicket series still generates a sense of nature's mysteries kept barely at bay.
Born: 1956, USA
Education:
1974 - 77 PRATT INSTITUTE, New York, NY
2002 SEATTLE ACADEMY OF FINE ART, Seattle, WA
Solo Exhibitions
2015 PAYNE GALLERY/MORAVIAN COLLEGE,
Bethlehem, PA
2014 MONMOUTH UNIVERSITY, W. Long Branch, NJ
2012 MICHENER ART MUSEUM, Doylestown,PA
2010 WALTER RANDEL GALLERY, New York, NY
2003 GALLERY OF FINE ART, Newtown, PA
1992 CITICORP CENTER, Princeton, NJ
1991 ANN REID GALLERY, Princeton, NJ
1983 KERR GALLERY, New York, NY
1977 GALLERY D'EENDT, Amsterdam, Holland
1977 BASEL INT'L ART FAIR, Basel, Switzerland
Selected Group Shows
2013 PHILLIPS MILL EXHIBITION, New Hope, PA
2010 NOYES MUSEUM OF ART, Oceanville, NJ
2009 MICHENER ART MUSEUM, Doylestown, PA
2009 WALTER RANDEL GALLERY, New York, NY
2009 SALMAGUNDI CLUB, New York, NY
2008 WALTER RANDEL GALLERY, New York, NY
2008 TURNER CARROLL GALLERY, Santa Fe, NM
2007 BUCKS GALLERY OF FINE ART, Newtown, PA
2005 MICHENER ART MUSEUM, New Hope, PA
2003 PHILADELPHIA SKETCH CLUB, Philadelphia, PA
2002 BRISTOL MYERS SQUIBB, Lawrenceville, PA
2000 ALLENTOWN ART MUSEUM, Allentown, PA
1988 BASEL INT'L ART FAIR, Basel, Switzerland
1982 ALAN STONE GALLERY, New York, NY
1980 NEW YORK ART EXPO, New York, NY