Maryland Institute College of Art presents Barry Nemett: Language of Landscape, Works From Italy. The show features paintings and sketches completed in Italy during the past four years. Although Nemett works directly from life, the places he draws and paints do not exist, at least not all at once. He makes them up as he goes, piecing together multiple panels based on half a dozen or more sites.
The paintings and drawings that hang on the wall are beautiful. Each includes an extreme amount of detail and it’s easy to stare at one for a few minutes and still find things for your eyes to play with. The tall panel above was my favorite piece in the show. The sketchbooks (seen below) are equally as engaging. I’ve always found the way different artists handle their sketchbooks to be fascinating, and with a dozen or so laid out for us to peek into it’s a special treat to accompany the show.
The exhibition is up until December 20 in Pinkard Gallery of the Bunting Center, 1401 W. Mount Royal Ave.