Fisher/Wall Art Gallery

MCPA invites the community to experience DiverSCAPE, a compelling exhibition featuring six contemporary Ohio women artists whose work explores the beauty and complexity of the natural landscape through richly textured artistic expression. The exhibition will be on display in the Fisher/Wall Art Gallery from August 3 through September 18 and is free and open to the public during MCPA's regular business hours and before most performances.

DiverSCAPE showcases the work of Robie Benve, Bev Goldie, Janet Grissom, Dawn Petrill, Gale Suver, and local artist Jennifer Sowders. Though each artist approaches the landscape through a unique creative voice and uses texture as an important facet in their medium, they share a common desire to deepen viewers' connection with the natural world.

Inspired by forests, fields, waterways, stone, and shifting light, the artists transform familiar environments into works that encourage contemplation, discovery, and reflection. Using acrylic, oil, encaustic, mixed media, and layered sculptural forms, the exhibition highlights a wide range of artistic techniques—from expressive abstraction that gradually reveals recognizable landscapes to richly textured surfaces created with palette knives, molten wax, impasto, and dimensional construction.

Throughout the exhibition, texture, color, light, and form become more than visual elements—they serve as expressions of memory, movement, and emotion. Whether capturing fleeting moments in nature, uncovering hidden details through layered compositions, or balancing abstraction with representation, each work invites visitors to slow down, look closely, and experience the landscape in a new way.

Together, DiverSCAPE offers an immersive journey through contemporary landscape-inspired art that celebrates craftsmanship, innovation, and the enduring relationship between people and place. The exhibition encourages visitors not only to observe nature, but to feel themselves within it, discovering moments of wonder, connection, and quiet reflection.

The six exhibiting artists bring together an extraordinary breadth of experience and artistic achievement. Collectively, they have earned fine arts degrees from institutions including the Cleveland Institute of Art, Columbus College of Art & Design, Ohio University, Ashland University, Wittenberg University, and the University of Venice in Italy. Their careers span decades as professional artists, educators, workshop instructors, arts administrators, and mentors throughout Ohio and beyond.

As a group, the artists have received grants from the Greater Columbus Arts Council, earned professional memberships in nationally recognized arts organizations, and exhibited their work across the United States and internationally. Their artwork has appeared in publications such as American Art Collector, Artists Magazine, International Artist, AcrylicWorks, Studio Visit, and Art IDEAL Magazine, and can be found in museum, public, corporate, and private collections, including the Ohio Arts Council collection and the Encaustic Museum of Art in Santa Fe.

MCPA's Fisher/Wall Art Gallery features rotating exhibitions by regional and national artists throughout the year, providing opportunities for the community to engage with diverse artistic perspectives in a welcoming and accessible setting.