From April 1 through 24, an exhibition of new works by five artists with Nevada ties will be on display at Stremmel Gallery. The exhibition of three-dimensional mixed-media works by Larry Williamson, paintings by Mick Sheldon, mixed media works by Michael Sarich, ceramics by Fred Reid and mixed media works by Tom Gilbertson will be shown.

Alternating between the whimsical and mystical, Larry Williamson's work incorporates stoneware elements in combination with materials collected from his walks or runs in the desert, such as bone, horsehair, pinion, juniper or rusted metal objects. His iconography is unique to the Great Basin: Lizards, ravens, rabbits, coyotes, cowboys on horseback, and shaman figures. Larry Williamson was born in Filer, Idaho, and received his Bachelor's degree from University of Nevada, Reno. He taught high school art in Reno before moving to Pioche, Nevada to teach in 1979. He has recently returned to Northern Nevada, living and working in his studio in Virginia City.

Mick Sheldon's newest works are oil on canvas, replacing the hand-colored woodblock prints that he has become known for creating in recent years. Sheldon's images of oversized figures precariously fill his canvases' surfaces. He was once described by Roy DeForest as a painter of monsters, but that his monsters are people. His works poke serious fun at himself and society. They make the viewer want to laugh, although one is sometimes unsure whether one should. Born and raised in Reno, Mick Sheldon received his BA from University of Nevada, Reno, in 1979. He received his Masters Degree in Fine Arts from California State University, Sacramento in 1982 and his MFA from University of California, Davis in 1992.

Born in Chicago, Michael Sarich attended the College of Salzburg, in Austria, in 1977, where he studied printmaking and drawing. After earning his BFA in printmaking from Northern Illinois University in Dekalb, Illinois, he went on to receive his MFA in 1983 in drawing, painting and sculpture from the University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma. Since 1989, Sarich has been an associate professor of art, teaching painting, drawing, and ceramic sculpture at the University of Nevada, Reno. His narrative images function on multiple levels, using a highly personal iconographic imagery that is evocative - telling a story ... but not the whole story. Sarich uses ceramics, drawing and painting to provoke the viewer to look harder, beyond surface meanings.

Fred Reid lives and works in Reno, Nevada. He earned a bachelor's degree in art from the University of Nevada, Reno. He currently teaches ceramics and drawing, while also serving as a curator-technician for the Sheppard Gallery of Art at University of Nevada, Reno. Reid's wall-mounted stoneware duck and dog heads function as canvases for his drawings and paintings with brilliant red-, orange-, or copper-glazed fields. Glazes on his newer raku dogs are consistent with the improvisational nature of the raku-firing technique, showing the burnished patina of the smoky process.

Many of Tom Gilbertson's mixed-media works include disturbed floral studies, sometimes layered with sheet lead, beeswax and photo transfers. His work seems to reflect a personal search for beauty, even among flaws, with the knowledge of that beauty's transience. Gilbertson earned his MFA from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and his MA and BFA from San Jose University. He founded and operated Sun Mountain Artworks in Virginia City, NV in 1993. In 1998, he co-authored Vietnam: Reflexes and Reflections. Gilbertson currently teaches at Imperial Valley College, in Imperial, CA.

An opening reception will be held on Thursday, April 1, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm. The public is invited to attend the reception, view the exhibition, and meet the artists. The show will continue through April 24. Stremmel Gallery is located at 1400 S. Virginia Street. Hours are Monday through Friday 9 am to 6 pm, and Saturday from 10 am to 3 pm.

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