Celebrate the beauty of our region with our July exhibition, “Local Horizons.” With over 45 original paintings, this showcase captures the sights, colors, textures, and sensations of Delmarva’s natural environment. “Local Horizons” features pieces from eight unique artists, including Linda Delaney, Cindy Edzenga, Michelle Marshall, Megan McCrea, Lisa Miller, Kate Mundie, Janet Raesly, and Nick Serratore.    

 

   Oil is the primary medium used in this exhibition. Delaney, Edzenga, Marshall, Miller, Mundie, and Raesly all paint their scenes with oil, while McCrea and Serratore use pastels. While the majority of the oil paintings are realistic interpretations, using pastels adds a dream-like quality to these familiar locations. McCrea’s impressionistic images are reminiscent of Monet’s water scenes, and her purplish tones are complemented by cool greens and fiery oranges. Serratore uses his paintings to showcase the way the environment changes throughout the year. His work depicts fall days, spring flowers, and summer stillness.

 

   Edzenga, Miller, and Mundie’s collections are dominated by ocean images. Edzenga captures the wild and free nature of the ocean in her scenes, depicting powerful waves crashing on a sandy shore. Fluffy, voluminous clouds populate her skies, which put just as much activity in the air as the waves do in the sea. In contrast, Miller’s beaches are tranquil and calm, evoking a serene atmosphere. Dune grasses blow in a gentle breeze, while streams flow into a larger body of water. While Edzenga and Miller’s works are realistic, Mundie leans more impressionistic. Her lively brush strokes create a visual path for the viewer, as buttery movement guides the eye through a scene. Her palette is vibrant and exaggerated, but still grounded in reality. 

 

   While most of the images in “Local Horizons” are of the beaches, Marshall focuses solely on marshes, and Delaney has included scenes of Delaware’s grassy lands. Marshall’s marshes emphasize the sky, creating a never-ending, vast openness. Shades of peach, plum, rose, and turquoise make these skies feel otherworldly, while the appearance of native birds and winding waterways reminds you that these scenes are part of our world. Delaney’s inland scenes use shades of olive, chartreuse, and butterscotch to represent Delaware’s agricultural side. Meanwhile, her vast, azure skies merge with the flat earth to create a perfect horizon line.