Though limited to the edges of a canvas, landscapes capture the unending place where the earth meets the sky. For her exhibition, “Earth to Sky,” Sonja Mattson-Barnes explores the wildness of landscape paintings through dreamy techniques that reject rigidity. Like the landscapes she paints, the oil paintings presented in this exhibition seem to evolve as they are explored, with an innate appreciation for the beauty and indifference of the natural world. This collection of Sonja’s works present horizons that feel both timeless and ephemeral, and invite viewers to be part of a moment real, imagined, or remembered.

Sonja Mattson-Barnes is an artist whose work is guided by a process of building and taking away. With decades of experience, she utilizes two techniques to achieve the abstract, memory-like quality of this oil painting collection. One technique is a wet-on-wet painting style, where she often uses old cotton t-shirt rags and Q-tips to remove paint from canvas. The other technique is creating an underpainting, which acts as the bones of a piece before adding in form and color. Sonja hopes visitors will find the viewing of these landscapes to be a shared, inspirational experience.

Earth to Sky will be on display at Nelson Gallery through August 31, 2023. We hope to see you at the Opening Reception on July 19