,
This story was originally published in the Sandoval Signpost. If you like this story, please support local, independent journalists like these by reading more and subscribing today at SandovalSignpost.com
The Art of Wandering is a visual road trip of an exhibition, taking the viewer through parts of New Mexico and Colorado that Placitan Joan Fenicle has been inspired to paint.
Some of the paintings include locations that she visited many times over the 50 years she’s lived in New Mexico. Others highlight locations that she happened upon purely by serendipity. Fenicle says her newest exhibition features locations she has experienced with a sense of respect and wonder.
“Wandering is about surrendering to possibilities and understanding that unplanned detours often bring the greatest rewards,” Fenicle said in a press release. “If you set a destination and give yourself permission to get lost along the way, you might have what it takes to be a successful wanderer. I have been a wanderer since I was a small child (much to my mother’s dismay) and there remains a child within I never left behind.”
Fenicle says that sometimes heading off on a journey with only a map drawn on a bar napkin can lead to fascinating conversations with strangers, new discoveries and a desire to share those discoveries through her art.
Fenicle describes herself as a multimedia artist, using photography, oil paint or mixed media to express her vision. The Art of Wandering is rendered entirely in oil on canvas on birch panel.
Fenicle told the Signpost she had a great time painting the various locations, and it was just as much fun to hang the exhibit as she planned how it would look and feel to the viewer.
The artist’s reception will be celebrated with fellowship and refreshments from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, July 13. A First Sunday ARTScrawl Meet the Artist event will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 7.
Wild Hearts Gallery is an artists’ collective, supported by 15 local artists. Located at 221-B State Highway 165. The gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. A visual tour of monthly exhibitions can be seen at wildheartsgallery.com.