April 1 - 26, 2026

Opening Reception: Friday, April 3, 6-8 pm

Fleur Thesmar: “Holy Contradictions”

Alexandra Sheldon: “Springtime Collages”

Fleur Thesmar:
“Holy Contradictions”

Holy Contradictions is a series composed of a poem and ten abstract watercolors. Together, they explore the shifting relationship between thought, emotion, gestural painting, and pictorial form.

In this series, Fleur Thesmar paints from a deliberately neutral inner state. Her gestures echo natural movements, while her thoughts are held together by repeated words and emotional refrains such as “Mother,” “Cherry tree, full of wind,” “Love and Despair”. These verbal anchors function as quiet rhythms that shape the work as much as the movement of the brush itself.

This body of work emerged in response to reactions to Thesmar’s earlier nature-inspired paintings, which viewers described as either “oppressive” or “liberating.” These opposing interpretations led her to question: if semi-abstract landscapes created in a contemplative state can provoke such strong and contradictory responses, how powerful is the artist’s inner state in shaping what ultimately appears on the surface?

The full series culminates in a poem dedicated to her mother, which invites the viewer to contemplation. Each verse corresponds to one or several painting:

Mother,

What do you see in my

Cherry tree, full of wind? You seek the spirit hovering Over the ripples.

Despair and hope crossed long ago, And love is enough.

Let’s shift our pixels,

Stroll from the forest to the meadow, To horizons full of harvests.

Lets join the choir and heroes,

Waltz and abandon our sorrows.

Through layered transparencies, the watercolors evoke the overlapping images of contemporary screens, where perception is blurred and ideas are interwoven with visuals. By correspondences between nature and spirit, memory and perception, the work seeks a dialogue with the viewer. What do they see, and what do they project?

Alexandra Sheldon:
“Springtime Collages”

One of the ways I deal with winter and darkness is by using rich colors in my collages. I attempt to create a sense of celebration that being alive inspires in me despite current weather or politics.

I hang out with a three year old (named Marin) and anyone who knows small children knows that they are like vines and flowers: they reach for the light, they are positive and they are growing!

Most of my titles in this show refer to Greek mythology & springtime.