The Hillsborough Gallery of Arts is pleased to announce Embracing Tranquility, kiln-formed and fused glass by Mark Kinsella, Native American-inspired totems and wall hangings by Jude Lobe and abstract metal sculpture by Jason Smith. Embracing Tranquility will be in the gallery from June 23rd through July 26th.
An opening reception will be held during Hillsborough’s Last Friday Art Walk on June 26th from 6-9pm. During the art walk the Jackson Street Band will play live music on the front patio.
The show will include an artist talk by Mark Kinsella and Jason Smith in the gallery on Saturday, July 11th at 4pm.
Glass artist Mark Kinsella explores the paradox of glass: a material born of intense heat and violent transformation that, once cooled, possesses a profound, silent clarity. Using kiln-forming techniques, Kinsella creates calm suspended moments in time that he calls his “meditation on stillness.”
Says Kinsella, “Each piece is a study in balance. The fluidity of the glass contrasts with its solid form; the warmth of the kiln gives way to the cool touch of the finished surface. Through layering, texture, and color, I attempt to translate the intangible feeling of tranquility into a tangible object. My goal is to create a space for the viewer to stop, look, and simply be.”
In his work, sculptor Jason Smith invites viewers to pause, breathe, and reconnect with a sense of inner calm. “Metal has been my primary medium for 30 years and this exhibition is my personal meditation on finding peace amid the noise of daily life,” says Smith. “Each piece is an invitation to embrace stillness without emptiness, strength without tension, and serenity in simplicity.”
In this show Smith collaborates with Kinsella to create metal sculptures with fused-glass elements, exploring the quiet strength found in balance, flow, and stillness, and allowing translucent color and captured light to soften the rigidity of the steel. Serenity is not static, but something that reveals itself gradually through light and reflection.
For artist Jude Lobe creating art for this show has also been a way of embraceing serenity, and she hopes viewing her work will produce these same calm, peaceful feelings. Her landscape paintings take us to places of quiet reflection. Her totems recall the Native Americans’ philosophy of man as part of nature, and her enamels remind us of the things in nature that bring us joy.
The Hillsborough Gallery of Arts is owned by 21 local artists featuring painting, sculpture, photography, glass arts, jewelry, turned wood, handcrafted furniture, pottery, scratchboard, and mixed media. 121 N. Churton Street, Hillsborough NC. Hours: Monday through Saturday 10-6, Sunday 12-4. For more information about the show visit www.HillsboroughGallery.com
