Lost and found

Joan Nelson's delicate landscape paintings feature images that seem familiar: spindly trees, sparkling waterfalls, vivid blue skies. Indeed, for three decades she has borrowed details from the majestic landscapes of painters such as Albrecht Altdorfer, Albert Bierstadt, and Edward Hicks. In this recent series of paintings, on view at Adams and Ollman through July 11, Nelson references an Oregon road trip she took several years ago. Inadvertently getting lost, Nelson found herself driving through the Columbia River Gorge, the rolling hills of Mount Hood, and the foothills of the Three Sisters mountain range. She was so taken by the views that she didn't turn back.

Her use of color and value (warm deep browns in the foreground, faint blue-green-purples in the background) afford the images a great sense of distance while the little plant or spit of land she mentions in the interview appear at the bottom of each painting to pull the viewer into the picture. Nelson is close to the land--she lives in upstate New York and walks everyday, making mental note of each plant that falls within her view. Her paintings convey that physical presence, in terms of both image and process. Much like old hand-painted postcards, they embody a personal memory and evoke a sense of nostalgia.