When we say something is like “a breath of fresh air,” we could well be referring to the new show by Bets Cole in Eugene. August is a hot month in the Valley, so if you can’t make it to the coast, come on into the Karin Clarke Gallery and immerse yourself in these quintessential painterly images.
For example, “Sea Breeze” is a calm painting of a fishing trawler at rest in the marina with its still reflection. What gives it emotion are the depths of sea greens and blues, the surrounding harbor that lends a sense of safety. The bright spots of orange and yellow on the deck say, “I want to be there.”
A much more abstract painting is called “River Reflections.” You know how sometimes you look into a reflected world so long that all the wavery lines and colors start to look like a painting? This painting fully evokes the otherworldly appeal of those oh so slightly moving branches and leaves that is both abstract and instantly recognizable.
I like the way Bets Cole describes how much she enjoys being out of doors in some wonderful moment, taking in the sights and sounds and then she tries to pull her entire impression of the moment together onto the paper. A painting called “Irish Countryside” really couldn’t be mistaken for Oregon. The fence line in the foreground rises up out of stone at an angle; a stone farmhouse is just a suggestive space at the base of a green hillside across the textured pastureland, and yet if asked, I would have instantly have said “Ireland.”
Bets has a range of interests and subjects in this large show. Another one I loved is “Coastal Tides,” which is acrylic. The rocky shore, some fast strokes for the quick in and out of the waves, a rough black sketchy frame all come together to take me out of all this heat and down to the shore. I think you would enjoy this show, too.
