Joan Curtis' 'Watchful Guardians' on View in Town Hall Theater's Jackson Gallery

Joan Curtis uses paint, colored pencil, papier-mâché and mixed media in two and three- dimensional works filled with vibrant color and organic form. Incorporating human- and animal-like figures, she combines abstract and figurative imagery to express her fanciful visions. In much of her work, certain figures seem to be protectors or helping spirits -- beings that help us connect to or cross to the next world.

Animals especially have a strong presence in the art. Curtis feels that animals have healing and prophesying powers. They know things that human beings don't know. "I like the idea of humans thinking of themselves as part of the animal family," Curtis says.

Another theme is the seemingly wanton behavior of Nature throughout our world. Perhaps flippantly, Curtis's artwork imagines us in a fictional rapport with tumultuous natural events. Her hope is that eventually humans will connect to the needs of the animal world as well as nature's rhythms and outrages.

The Brandon artist has exhibited throughout New England and in invitational shows elsewhere. Her artwork is in the collections of Middlebury College Museum of Art, the Robert Hull Fleming Museum (Burlington, VT), the Fuller Museum of Art (Brockton, MA), SUNY Adirondack (Queensbury, NY), as well as numerous private collections.

A public reception for the artist will be held during Middlebury's Arts Walk on Friday October 9, from 5 to 7 PM. Town Hall Theater is a community and cultural venue located in the center of Middlebury. Gallery hours are Monday through Saturday noon to five, and an hour before any public events in the building. For further information, call 802-382-9222 or consult the web site: www.townhalltheater.org.