The showing artist, Mike Smith, made excellent use of the space. He had 12 to 15 large oil or acrylic paintings on display. His paintings were abstractions based on the square paintings developed by Mark Rothko and Piet Mondrian. The work was in different developmental stages that ranged from simple square forms to experimental use of paint. Some were more successful than others. The most successful painting, was the one he chose for his invitation entitled “Seven of Cups/The Star”. The piece has a nice diagonal movement downward with pure primal colors.

His choice of media was a bit disconcerting. He speaks of wanting to “explore the physical qualities of the paint itself” so he chooses acrylic paint. This choice make little sense since it a plastic. Plastic is hard medium to develop texture unless one uses tons of medium. The color of acrylic is dull and drab as well. Smith's work seemed to long for the brilliant color and texture that can only be created by oils.

Smith has one painting in oil but it was muddy. A sad disappointment in comparison to his other brightly colored works. The problem with oil is that it is not a medium that can be quickly be learned. Oil takes years of study to understand when to apply paint and when to hold off. The artist must understand the significance of layering to develop texture.