Mavis Smith's paintings have a subtle undercurrent of disruption hovering just below their serene surfaces.  Her imagery has a surreal edge, hinting at scenarios that may, or may not, hold darker subtexts.  She often paints with egg tempera, a medium that is exquisitely suited for creating  intricate detail and luminous layers of color.

 

        Recently, she has added a series of large works in oil and graphite depicting twisted roots and branches that seem to pull away from the canvas and envelop the viewer.  Very different in scale and subject matter to her egg tempera work, the Thicket series still generates a sense of nature's mysteries kept barely at bay.