“These drawings were done during an experimental period when I was drawing from reality and from my projected photographs (slides). I loved the idea that I could juxtapose images…like a location and geese in a pond with something floating above them. I think the images relate to poetry in that you can have a line in a poem saying one thing and then another saying something else that’s associative. It leaves a lot to your imagination.”

Chica Tenney’s work explores themes of ritual, human connection, a sense of place and the evolution of personal history in those places. Her large-scale paintings, drawings and prints employ oils, graphite pencil and sepia pastel. She is especially interested in the play of light on surfaces and how it may create a sensation of immersion. For nearly three decades, Chica taught drawing and painting at Piedmont Community College where she headed the art programs and directed the PVCC Art Gallery. She lives in Charlottesville and works from her studio in Buckingham County.

–Elizabeth Howard, Art Editor