EUGENE, Ore. — The Lane Community College Art Gallery is proud to present “Whispers,” an exhibition featuring the paintings of Nancy Watterson Scharf, from April 18 to May 25. There will be a lecture followed by a reception on Thursday, April 21 beginning at 2:00 p.m.
An Oregon artist, Nancy has spent her life living in rural areas. The intimate relationship she has with her environment is the source of her inspiration. Nature has given her a fascination with time, space, and the human limits of perception. Through her explorations of illusion and reality, Nancy visually examines her place within the natural world.
Artist Statement: For as long as I can remember I have had a sense that there is more to this world than I can see. Sometimes I get a glimpse, feel a vibration, briefly hear a rustle or buzz. I catch an elusive trace of something just beyond my vision, or a feeling that I am not alone. I depend on my eyes to tell me what the world looks like. Yet science tells us our vision is less absolute and more fluid than we may think. Human eyes discern but a fraction of the entire light spectrum. I wonder if they tell us everything.
Animals’ senses are acute. They often perceive things that we do not. Not only do their eyes perceive differently than ours, but some see better with their ears, their noses, or their skin. And plants don’t rely on eyes at all. Although we live together, each organism “sees” a variation of reality colored by its own history and specific needs for survival. Ironically these divergent perspectives overlap as we each negotiate limited space and resources within our shared habitat. Every species lives in a world of its own, like a ghost within the larger ecosystem. We egocentric humans are actually just phantoms to other organisms. This perceptual anomaly intrigues me.
Modern “civilized” humans don’t like to think about how we are part of nature. The vastness of nature is complex and its wildness is frightening. Our innate tendency is to put a fence around ourselves with manmade structures and inventions. We like to go out to visit the wild rather than to live within it. I am curious about how we compartmentalize and self-limit our perception to maintain a feeling of safety. That human sense of otherness or separateness is central to my investigations.”
The gallery is located in Building 11 on main campus, 4000 E. 30th Ave., Eugene. There is no charge for admission. For more information call Art and Applied Design at (541) 463-5409.
For more information about Lane Community College:
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