“Looking for America” exhibit

The last days to view “Beyond Whiteness” a collection of Bemidji area snowscapes by Monika Lawrence and “Looking East” a collection of Japanese and Western prints and ceramics, end in January.

“Looking for America,” will open February 7 in the Lakeview Gallery. This collection of paintings were inspired by artist Paula Swenson’s observations as she traveled across the United States of America.

Swenson reflects, “As an artist I explore and interpret ideas, emotions and experiences. A multilayered artwork can create a dialogue between the artist and the viewer and can be enjoyed on many levels. I look for the essential element or elements of a subject and find visual symbols for these elements and create a narrative. Some symbols are obvious universal symbols, some are personal symbols that, I hope, speak to the universal psyche, and many introduce themselves intuitively and can only be understood on an emotional level.

“Artwork is a process of inspiration, meditation, investigation, creation, interpretation and intuition. Mystery is essential to art and to life, it is what keeps us questioning and questing.”

Watermark Art Center is located at 505 Bemidji Avenue N. 218-444-7570. watermarkartcenter.org.

Featured photo: “First Snow”